Chanukah Miracles, Music, and Moonbounce!

A great time was had by all this year as we celebrated going into the 8th night of Chanukah with a sing-along by world traveled singer Mr. Gavri Tov-Yares. Gavri sang a variety of songs in Hebrew and English as well as teaching a song of Ladino (Judeo-Spanish) sephardic descent called "Ocho Kandalikas".

Even though the music ended at 12:45, the fun certainly did not stop. Everyone came into the social hall and got to experience a 30 foot inflatable castle obstacle course, Chanukah coloring pages, dreidel spinning tournaments, sufganiyot, and pizza.

Once everyone had bounced to their hearts desire and filled up on pizza and sufganiyot, a large group of kids gathered front and center for a fantastic Olive Oil Scavenger Hunt. After hearing a Chanukah related question, the children all worked together to decide the correct answer to the question. Once the correct answer was given, the children were given a clue as to where the next vessel of oil was hidden.

Once all 8 of the bottles of oil were found, we got to end off the day with lighting the Chanukiah. We again were blessed to have a mix of people from a variety of neighborhoods coming together for a great Chanukah celebration.

Light up the night!
Brett Kugler

Midrash, Manicures, and Milkshakes!!!

Midrash, Manicures, and Milkshakes was a great success for the second year in a row! Even with more seating, over 100 people registered within the first 15 hours, and we had a sellout crowd.

This year, our speaker Mrs. Cortell spoke about Chanukah and miracles. She also engaged the audience with questions that allowed for audience participation. After the D'var Torah, the nail polish painting began. This year, we had a greater variety of choices for both the nail polish as well as the milkshakes, and we didn't stop making milkshakes until everyone had the option for multiple servings.

Once the nail painting was completed, participants got to eat pizza and socialize with friends. It is always so nice to see girls/women of all ages interacting and bonding with each other.

If you have any feedback on the event (positive or constructive feedback), please email me at bkugler@yise.org so that I can continue to make improvements to the program. Additionally, let me know if you would like to see Midrash, Manicures, and Milkshakes come back for a third year, or if you would like a different event.

All the best,
Brett Kugler

2nd Annual Parsha and Popsicles in the park!

We hit our 250 person bench mark again this year with a buzz of excitement surrounding the park! We were so fortunate to have so many new and old faces in the crowd, some that came last year and were back for more, and others that missed out last year were eager to join in the fun!

Once again the popsicles and all of the climbing apparatuses were huge hits, and this year the kids got to hear from Rabbi Silver, who gave a wonderful D'var Torah. Looking forward, we are happy to have such full Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur babysitting programs, and for other exciting events that are coming up as well! As always, if you know of someone who is new to the community, or not yet on the YISE youth mailing list, please have them email me at bkugler@yise.org so that they can stay up to date on future activities!

Shavuot Learning and Ice Cream

This year we had learning opportunities for both 4th-6th grade boys as well as 4th-6th grade girls (and their mothers) on the first night of Shavuot. The reports from everyone were that both shiurim were highly successful and well attended. I want to first and foremost thank Rabbi Rosenbaum and Allison Ginsburg for their inspirational speaking, and also to thank the shul staff and youth staff for all of their efforts in helping to coordinate these activities. Between the two shiurim, I am told that we had roughly 70 4th-6th graders stay up to learn. This showing was a great turnout from students representing a variety of schools and a great opportunity to be together as a community.

On Monday afternoon, the YISE youth department had its annual ice cream social. "A Sundae on Monday" was attended by parents as well as children from nursery through high school. In addition to an open toppings bar, the roughly 100 participants were also surprised with delicious cheesecake. Truly enhancing the fun at this event was the opportunity to see people both new to our community as well as long standing members interacting with each other and greeting new families. On a chag such as Shavuot, when B'nai Yisroel came together as a nation, it is always a pleasure to see both of these events bringing people together in times of celebration! Thank you as well to Adam Bashein and the other anonymous donors who sponsored this event!

Lag Ba'Omer at Sandy Spring Adventure Park

Lag Ba'Omer is meant to be spent outdoors enjoying nature, trees, and bonfires. Our Lag Ba'Omer at The Sandy Spring Adventure Park was nothing short of spectacular! Once harnessed, parents and children alike listened intently as the guides explained the process of how the equipment worked. After a brief tutorial and test run, everyone took to the sky to try out the 13 different courses available.

Children as young as 5 years old were seen high above the ground, maneuvering through cargo nets, across wood beams, and zip lining from tree to tree. Adults and older children climbed as high as 65 feet off the ground, tackling some of the more challenging courses which included climbing up to different levels in the middle of the course. A lot of effort and hard work helped everyone feel a sense of accomplishment as they completed their respective courses.

 

Once families finished their 2 hours of climbing, we all gathered together around the bonfire and listened to songs about Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai as we toasted marshmallows. The youth had a look of accomplishment on their faces, and several parents expressed that it was the most fun that they had experienced in a long time. One participant said that they felt like they were "on vacation", while another shared that "This is what Lag Ba'Omer is all about!"I am grateful to everyone who was able to come out and partake in the festivities.

Hamburgers, Hotdogs, and Haggadahs

Our first ever YISE youth non-youth event, “Hamburgers, Hotdogs, and Haggadahs” had a wonderful turnout. We had adults come out from a variety of different shuls to join in the learning of new ways to enhance their sedarim for their children/grandchildren this upcoming year. Between Rabbi Rosenbaum, Rabbi Silver, and me, guests shared that they got to learn about the emotional/spiritual connection to the seder through the 4 sons/4 cups/4 questions, gained a deeper connection to the ten plagues, and learned how to take a hands on approach to the décor and activities at the seder.

Participants eagerly took notes and listened attentively during this 1 hour round robin event. In addition to the learning, everyone enjoyed a delicious BBQ dinner. Special thanks go out to Rabbi Rosenbaum, Rabbi Silver, Josh and Mickie Breitstein, Adina Obstfeld, Yitz Sandberg, Tuvia and Carol Lazar, and the office and maintenance staff for all of their help before and at this event. I could not have done this without them. I would also like to thank all of the people that came out 2 weeks before pesach to make their sedarim more meaningful! As always, if you have any comments or questions, please feel free to email me at bkugler@yise.org. If you have any ideas for sedarim that you would like to share, please add them in the comments section below!

YISE/KMS Community Purim Extravaganza!!!

A little bit of snow did not stop roughly 300 people from pouring into the KMS social hall for our KMS/YISE Community Purim Extravaganza! Upon arrival, children and their parents were greeted by 3 huge inflatables (bounce house, pirate ship, and game center), multiple carnival games (Big Popper, Froggy Flyer, Skeeball, etc...), face painting, hamantaschen baking, mask making, and card decorating. Additionally, a large group of younger children gathered in the youth beit midrash for a purim story (Barnyard Purim) and a sing-along with local talent, Daniel Siesser.

 

Throughout the event, people got to enjoy cotton candy, a variety of snacks, and mingling with each other.  There was a wave of excitement every time another raffle winner got called over the microphone, and the music got everyone in the mood for the upcoming chag! We could not have done any of this without the efforts and happy smiles on the faces of our teen volunteers who greeted each person with a smile, and helped all of the children to have fun in a safe environment.  KMS was an incredibly gracious host, and we look forward to hosting them next year when the community carnival shifts over to YISE.

High School Boys Oneg

Our first shabbos oneg took place this past Friday night at the home of the Ginsburg family. We were blessed to have a wonderful turnout despite the freezing cold weather, as all of the chairs were filled shortly after our start time. The hosts went all out to put together a lovely evening with snacks, drinks, and a delicious chulent, which was finished by the end of the night (high school boys....would you expect any different?) :).

Rabbi Rosenbaum spoke beautifully and engaged the boys in a wonderful discussion. After finishing talking on the topic covered, the boys were so engaged that they followed up with a series of questions, which the Rabbi gave thoughtful answers to. And of course the night would not have been complete without singing. The ruach filled the room as a variety of zemirot were sung, and laughter filled the air. As people headed for the doors, the requests to have future onegs came filing in.

Please look out for future emails about the girls high school oneg, our Purim Extravaganza, and a wonderful Pesach learning (and eating) opportunity for parents, as well as our Yom Hashoah and Lag Ba'Omer activities.