September 04, 2010   25 Elul 5770
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SOCIAL ACTION  

Our summer has been very busy trying to catch and conquer the groundhog that was eating our garden cucumbers, pepper and other vegetables in our victory garden.  We did succeed and we have had a great success with our tomatoes, eggplant and basil. The Matawan United Methodist Church has been delighted with our harvest. We still have string beans and more vegetables to harvest.  Our gardeners have been very diligent in their efforts.  If you have an abundance of vegetables in your garden, we would love it you would donate to the Matawan United Methodist Church food bank on Church Street and Atlantic Avenue.

 

In September, we are having our annual High Holy Day Food Drive to help the Matawan and Old Bridge food banks. 

 

In October, we are having a political debate with Congressmen, Frank Pallone and Republican contender Anna Little, (6th district) and Rush Holt, and Republican contender Scott Sipprelle, (12th district).  We are having a debate format with a moderator from the League of Women Voters This will take place in our Social Hall on Sunday, October 17th at 7PM. Come and join our debate and have your issues addressed.


In November, we are planning to have a Meet Your Freeholders Forum.  The main topic for discussion is the wind turbines that are planning to be build in Keansburg and also in Hazlet, next year.  There have been several town hall meetings with the community of Keansburg objecting to it being built so close to their homes.  The Freeholders are siding with the community

 

We are also planning a food drive for Emmanuel Cancer Care. 

 

We are  supporting the Improving Nutrition for Americas Children Act HR5504, which will improve the quality and nutritional value of meals served at school and child care facilities and provide food coverage when school are not in session.  These meals are the only healthful meals for millions of American Children.

 

Temple Shalom is helping our congregants and the community by reaching out to those less fortunate.

Perform a Mitzvah. It will be greatly appreciated.

If you have an interest in Social Action issues, we invite you to join our Temple’s Social Action Committee. 
Contact Lenore Robinson for more information. 
READING BUDDIES  

READING BUDDIES

A Program of Family & Children’s Service

 

Reading Buddies is an innovative early-childhood program that advances literacy skills and creates enthusiastic, confident young readers.  The program is comprised solely of volunteers who:

          • read to small groups of students on a weekly basis in their classrooms
          • choose from many schools in Monmouth County
          • commit to one hour of reading each week
          • receive training and volunteer recognition, and
          • are eligible for travel reimbursement

If you are interested in volunteering for this program contact Lou Schoen, Social Action Committee @ 732-534-4682 or plad13@aol.com

 

Volunteer to read and make a difference!

Become a “Reading Buddy”
VICTORY GARDEN  

COMMUNITY VICTORY GARDEN
The Social Action Committee is  coordinating with Temple Beth Ahm and the Matawan United Methodist Church
to build a raised community victory garden outside of our social hall.  The produce from the garden will go to the
church's food bank, which is part of the Matawan food bank.

We need Temple families, adolescents, adults and seniors to help out.
You can offer your time, no matter how limited or your truck, or you can make a donation to defray the cost of seedlings
or other garden necessities. 
 
Contact Lenore Robinson for more information.


Hi Everybody!

For those of you who know, I've been working on a documentary about this garden for the past few weeks.  I just completed this film today and it is available for you to view on YouTube by following this link: click here

Thank you so much to everyone who helped me with this film.  Hopefully, this documentary will be winning awards in upcoming film festivals!

- Mike Smith

THIS IS TRULY A COMMUNITY EFFORT TO BENEFIT OUR COMMUNITY

2 men digging in two different planting beds

The Gan Tikvan (Garden of Hope) Sign

3 gardeners building fence around garden

All gardeners together in prayer

2 mothers and 2 daughters planting seeds

2 red haired brothers digging a hole
CURRENT and UP-COMING PROJECTS  

We are always looking for volunteers for our victory garden or for our social action committee. Any one who has good ideas, or wants to help people are welcome. If you have a surplus from your garden this year, please donate to Manna House or Lunch Break, in Red Bank.

Contact Lenore Robinson and/or call 732-264-2458 and someone will come, pick it up and deliver it.

 

WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT/ WHAT ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT?

Your input will help the Social Action Committee plan programs and advocate for special projects that involve our Temple and our community.

 

MANNA HOUSE NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT

Drop offs at Temple: large size diapers, cleaning products, dishwashing products, toilet paper and paper towels.

MITZVAH OF THE MONTH  

 

Mitzvah of the Month

Our current tzedekah project is

The urj GULF COAST relief fund

Please be generous

       Choose Your Mitzvah

Matchmaker, Matchmaker

The Caring Committee would like to embark on an ongoing project to ensure that no one is alone for a holiday. If you have room for an extra guest or two at your table, or if you find you will have no one to celebrate with, contact our Temple Office, 7325662621 and we will try to make a shidduch (match).

  

Send Care Packages to our College Students

Several times per year, at the key Jewish holidays, Temple Shalom sends out a “care” package to the college students of our temple members, to show we care enough to stay in touch, to offer a bit of Jewish education and to help them feel that they remain a vital part ofour temple family. The packages include a few reminders of the specific holidays.

 

For example, the Purim package is a shalach manot Purim box filled with a gragger, mask, hamantashen baked by our Sisterhood, and a personal letter from the Rabbi. These packages are assembled by volunteers and last year our list grew to 50 students!

 

To keep this program going donations are needed in two vital areas:

 

MONETARY GIFTS

These help us to pay for sending out the care packages and to buy items to fill them. Make checks payable to Temple Shalom (please write “college fund” in the check memo) and send to the temple office.

DONATE ITEMS

You can donate some items to be included in the mailings.

 

Contact Debbie Ross to review what’s needed. E-mail your child’s college address to Debbie Ross as well and write “College Address” in the subject line.

 

Aid sought for needy children in Africa

The Social Action Committee is collecting donations for the Ramal Child Care Center and their neighboring school in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. They are without water, electricity, teaching supplies, and money for lunches as that is the only meal they have for the day. Please contribute what you would give as a present for one day of Chanukah.

Ongoing Mitzvah Deeds Throughout the Year:

Nursery & Religious School students collect Tzedakah for many causes including:
  American Dental Association Foundation
  Jewish Guild for the Blind
  Kosher Meals on Wheels
  Mazon, the Jewish Response to Hunger
  Nursery School Hopathon in April supports MDA - Magen David Adom
  Phone cards & Chanukah cards for Jewish military personnel
 
Say thanks to a soldier! Send a card, designed by children, with your message.

Sisterhood Sponsors:

    Delivery of plants to patients at Bayshore Hospital

    Hummies and cards sent to soldiers overseas

 Renaissance Actvity:

    Pull Tab Collection for Ronald McDonald House

    Deposit tabs in lobby

 

ToSTY Activities:

    Annual visit to Assisted Living - Spend day with seniors to play games & other fun stuff

    Benefit Concert will raise funds for causes including Darfur & HIV/AIDS

 
GOOD SEARCH  
GREENFAITH DIRECTORY  

 

GREENFAITH DIRECTORY

   Certification Program
   Creating Compost

 

GREENFAITH CERTIFICATION  

GreenFaith logo

This May, Temple Shalom was honored to receive a grant from the URJ to enter the 2 year Greenfaith Certification Program. Temple Shalom’s mission statement:

As reform Jews, we know that God has charged us to guard and to preserve the earth, and we have an obligation to be God’s partners in tikkun olam, repair of the world. We will therefore dedicate our people, our resources and our passion to protect and to serve the earth.  We will institute energy savings, increase recycling, and focus on educational efforts for all ages to show our children that we care about their future and the earth we share. We will inspire our congregants and reach out to our greater community to give wings to our hopes that together we really can change the world.

5 Priority Steps for ‘Greening’ Your Home

Whether on TV, in newspapers, or in our email inboxes, we’re surrounded by claims about hundreds of supposedly ‘green’ products. In the midst of all these advertisements, how do we identify the most important priorities for greening our own home? This is an important question. With the United States using 25% of the world’s resources, we need to stay focused on the environmental actions that do the most good.

Based on research from a number of sources, here are our five priority recommendations:

 

Priority #1: Travel Energy-Efficiently

The single most important environmental choice that most US citizens make is our choice of transportation. The average US auto releases 6 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, acting as one of the biggest contributors to climate change. It’s a trend that has to stop. We recommend that you walk, bike, cycle or take mass transit whenever possible. And when you purchase a new car, buy a vehicle that gets 35 mpg or higher: http://www.fueleconomy.gov/

 

Priority #2: Eat Green and Healthy

The average American consumes nearly twice his or her weight in meat each year (Worldwatch Institute)! Industrial, “factory farming” meat production leads to significant greenhouse gas emissions and massive amounts of waste, and subjects animals to unspeakably cruel circumstances. We recommend that you reduce your meat consumption –including turkey and chicken – as well as dairy intake, and eat more vegetables, fruits and whole grains. Go one step further by supporting organic and local agriculture, or by starting a backyard or container garden. For more information, download GreenFaith’s Repairing Eden guide to sustainable food choices at www.greenfaith.org. For good vegetarian recipes, visit: www.vegetariantimes.com .

 

Priority #3: Cut Your Home Energy Footprint

US households use more than half of their energy on heating and cooling. But our homes are so leaky and poorly insulated that it’s as if we are leaving a window wide open all day long (Energy Star). We recommend that you heat and cool more efficiently by insulating and sealing your home, and by using programmable thermostats. Remember that programmable thermostats are only useful if you program them according to your usage—be sure to turn the temperature down in winter and up in summer at those times when you’re not at home or you’re in bed. Choose Energy Star appliances and lighting, which use 10-50% less energy and water than standard models over their lifetime. To conduct an on-line home energy audit visit www.energystar.gov, click on ‘Home Improvement and then ‘Home Energy Yardstick’.

 

Priority #4: Be Water Wise

The typical family of four uses 400 gallons of water each day (US EPA), a startling fact when you consider that only 1% of all the water on Earth is drinkable (UN Environment Programme). Use water wisely - reduce your water consumption by installing a low-flow showerhead and faucet aerators in each sink: http://www.niagaraconservation.com/ . If you’re buying a new toilet, aim for a low-flow model that’s Water Sense certified http://www.epa.gov/WaterSense/, or use a brick or toilet tank bank www.niagaraconservation.com to reduce the amount of water used per flush. Support water as a public resource by avoiding bottled water. Instead, use filtered tap water and a reusable bottle. Water your lawn responsibly—the typical single-family suburban household uses at least 30% of their water outdoors for irrigation. Water at dawn, when it is coolest, and consider installing a drip irrigation system, which use 20-50% less water than conventional sprinkler systems.

 

Priority #5: Toxic Takedown

The 2010 President’s Cancer Report tells a sobering story: “to a disturbing extent, babies are born ‘pre-polluted’ ” because of chemical exposure in the womb, and - “many known or suspected carcinogens are completely unregulated.” Too many household products –including cleaning products, pesticides and herbicides – contain harmful chemicals. It’s time to get these chemicals out of our homes whenever possible. We recommend that you choose ‘green’ cleaners such as Sun & Earth, GreenWorks or Seventh Generation, which have full ingredient lists (not just ‘active’ ingredients) on the label, are vegetable-based, biodegradable and solvent-free. Also, aim to eliminate pesticides, and learn about alternatives: http://www.beyondpesticides.org/.

 

              Congratulations! By committing to these 5 ‘green’ actions, you’ll create a home that is healthier for you and all of creation

 

GREENFAITH COMPOSTING  

GreenFaith logo 

Composting: Turn Food Scraps into "Gardener's Gold"

 

Reduce waste and give your garden a healthy dose of nutrients by composting food scraps and yard clippings.

Arrows pointing from garbage can to ground

What can be composted?

1. Yard waste  -leaves, grass, clippings

2. Kitchen scraps – avoid meat, oils, citrus. Use veggies, coffee grinds, etc…

Turn twice a year and add moisture.

You can begin your own, or fertilize Temple Shalom’s new Victory Garden.

Here’s how to do your own:

1. Start a pile surrounded by chicken wire, or buy and place a bin in a convenient location

    Sun or shade levels aren’t critical

2. Simply drop yard debris into the bin and add water as necessary to maintain proper moisture

3. Once or twice a year, harvest the finished compost from the bottom or inside the pile

    Chopping or shredding the materials helps a lot - turn occasionally

4. Use to mix in garden soil, or as mulch on plants and lawns

    Save $$ on fertilizer!

 

More info? Margo

 

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