Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, & Simchat Torah 2021

Normally on Simchat Torah, we would honor individuals for their continued service to the Darkhei Noam community. This year for Simchat Torah, the board decided to do things a bit differently. The pandemic has led to a lot of adjustments and changes in community practices, and our adjustments were the result of not only individuals, but committees coming together to better imagine the role that Darkhei Noam could play throughout the pandemic. As a result, this year we’ve identified two committees whose service has been invaluable to us and have asked members of these committees to accept the aliyot for Chatan Torah and Kallah Bereishit. 

Not everyone is comfortable being indoors, but the work done by these committees and individuals is worth sharing as widely as possible. We have decided to send out as an email an explanation for why these groups of people are so deserving of being honored. 

We hope that those who are comfortable being indoors on Simchat Torah will be at SAJ to celebrate with us when the aliyot are given.
 

Honoring the Planning Committee for Chatan Torah

In the late Spring of 2020, as the worst of the first wave of the pandemic was waning, and an easing up of lockdown restrictions were starting to roll out, we realized that navigating how Darkhei Noam would transition into a “new normal” required answering many questions. What health and safety concerns remained? How can we react to scientific realities and not only press releases, be they sensationalist or otherwise? How has the pandemic shaped the needs of community members across demographics? And throughout, how do we stay true to the aims and philosophy of Congregation Darkhei Noam as an inclusive community existing within the bounds of halakha? The Planning Committee was thus formed. A collection of members across different stages in their lives, gabbaim and members knowledgeable in halakha, board members, and scientific and medical professionals, the Planning Committee started by imagining indoor services on Shabbat, followed by considering and planning our outdoor Musaf and Kabbalat Shabbat services. As the pandemic continued to change, our diverse members of the committee continued to explore how changing facts on the ground similarly changed the challenges and temporary solutions DN had previously enacted. What allowances can a largely vaccinated population enjoy? How do emerging data change the degree of vigilance required of outdoor services? What data and statistics need to be paid attention to in assessing danger? And how do different variants change the rules? These are only some of the questions. 

Names of the members of the committee are: 
Allie Alperovich
Lee Feinman
Eric Hecht
Talia Hurwich
Gabriela Lupatkin
Dima Nemirof
Naomi Steinberger
Avi Zollman

Accepting the Aliyah: Dima Nemirof

Early in the Planning Committee’s formation and communication, Dr. Dima Nemirof offered his services to the committee as a physician. Dima and the Nemirof family have been attendees and active members of Darkhei Noam for several years. Aleeza has led the Torah Service, Yona has led and continues to lead Kabbalat Shabbat, and Sivan has layned and led Musaf. On the committee, Dima’s approach, along with many of the other committee members, has been that given the social and spiritual hardships presented by the pandemic, Darkhei Noam represents for many an essential service. The committee’s job was to enable the offering of such an essential service keeping in mind dangers presented by the pandemic and the available safety measures to help reduce the chances of infection happening at DN.

What Dima, along with microbiologist Lee Feinman have offered the Planning Committee and the Darkhei Noam community in general, is the ability to make decisions based on scientific evidence and information. They have flagged for us when indoor masking was no longer necessary, they have discussed the dangers of breakthrough COVID cases, they have identified what statistics to be following, they have recently shared the effectiveness of both PCR and Antigen testing, and many other areas of guidance. They have devoted much time and effort not only sharing this information, but doing so in a clear and understandable way. We are grateful for their stepping up to help the community during this period of time and are excited to offer Dima this reshut on behalf of the Planning Committee. 
 

Honoring the Bikkur Cholim Committee for Kallah Bereishit

In March 2020, when lockdown started due to Covid-19, the Bikkur Cholim Committee stepped into action. This period was a terrifying, uncertain, and unprecedented time. Volunteers called Darkhei Noam community members to ascertain how people were fairing, whether folks could participate in the robust Darkhei Noam virtual programming and whether they needed anything to get ready for Pesach or just anything they could not access. The volunteers recorded the names and circumstances of the people they spoke to who might need specific attention as the pandemic continued. People who felt comfortable in doing pre-Pesach shopping in stores, some of whom had cars, offered to buy and deliver different items that were not readily available via online delivery. These shidduchim, the pairing of volunteers and members, was made seamlessly and represented authentic representations of chesed. After most people started to navigate how to stay safe and get necessities, we continued efforts on a smaller scale. Every Friday morning, a few people came together to deliver challot to families in the neighborhood who we thought could enjoy based on the phone calls made before Pesach. This weekly ritual went on for about five months, and when Covid-19 vaccinations became available, volunteers stepped forward vigorously, helping people to navigate a complicated and frustrating online appointment system. Through these efforts, volunteers and members made connections, and people in the community came to trust that these chesed doers could be depended upon when necessary. Our volunteers look forward to being available to individuals and families whenever needed and organizing chesed activities where everyone can participate.  

The names of people who made this possible are:
Dan Smokler - developed the idea of calling all shul members
Sarah Zollman - did weekly deliveries
Mindy Schactman - did weekly deliveries
Noam Lochshin - Pesach shopping trips for members
Suzanne Langman - made appointments for vaccines
Mindy Hecht - made appointments for vaccines
Phil Gassel - delivered groceries to people living on the east side
Ann Scherzer - Pesach shopping
Naomi Langer - Pesach shopping

Accepting the Aliyah: Michelle Kraus

When preparing the text for this email, Michelle shared with us a full list of people who helped with calls, deliveries, and Pesach shopping. The list included around 35 names of Darkhei Noam members, regulars, and attendees across a wide variety of backgrounds. They are included at the end of this email. At the very end of the list Michelle wrote, “It takes a village.” It does, indeed, take a village, but it also takes someone like Michelle Kraus to engage a village the way she did for the Bikkur Cholim Committee. Michelle regularly attends Darkhei Noam, participates as a Board Member and member of the Nominating Committee and Hospitality Committee. Many know her and deeply value her friendship, and the degree that she cares about the DN community and the people within the community shines through in nearly everything she does. 

The COVID-19 pandemic presented both opportunities and challenges for the Bikkur Cholim Committee. On the one hand, who better to address community needs during a pandemic than people devoted to Bikkur Cholim? On the other hand, safety restrictions placed upon hospitals and society in general meant that regular Bikkur Cholim activities were no longer an option. What was required was quick and creative thinking to innovate the committee, at least for a brief period of time. What you read above is the result of Michelle’s hard work and ability to engage and coordinate a fantastic and devoted committee and group of volunteers. 

We are deeply grateful for Michelle’s leadership and presence in our community.
Volunteers on behalf of the Bikkur Cholim Committee: 
Abbe Pick, Andrew Waxman, Avrum Mlotek, Adina Mermelstein, Bruce Goldberger, Catalina Trigo, Dana Ostrow, David Brotsky, Deborah Anstandig, Diane Sandoval, Donny Kanner, Elana Katz, Elena Weissmann, Emily Magid, Emmanuel Bloch, Gabi Lupatkin, Gila Leiter, Hannah Rothstein, Hilary Gardenswartz, Jen Barnett, Joerg Riegel, Julia Scherzer, Kobi Luria, Lee Feinman, Leore Lavin, Lev Polinsky, Molly Pollack, Philip Gassel, Rachel Landsberg, Sharon Samet, Susan Rosen, Tova Reiter, Wendy Amsellem, Yael Smolar, Yonit Lavin.