Temple Israel of Westport, CT

We will awaken our souls as we begin to prepare for the High Holy Day season with Cantor Becky Mann, Cantor Julia Cadrain, and special guest Cantor Isaac Sonett-Assor. This special concert will feature music written by Cantor Becky Mann and Cantor Isaac Sonett-Assor as well as familiar favorites that inspire us to look inward as we enter the month of Elul, a time of reflection and returning. Register at https://templeisraelwestport.shulcloud.com/form/songs-of-reflection-and-return

Our Israel Engagement Group hosted a comedy night to support organizations we visited on our February mission trip to Israel: Kibbutz Nirim, IDF Paratroop 55, Danny's Farm, and Safra Children's Hospital. The Israel Engagement Group will continue to raise money for these organizations. If you are moved to donate to their efforts, you may do so by visiting https://tinyurl.com/59kzmvxu

Our first (and victorious!) softball game of the summer against TCS. Register for our next softball game on Aug 11 at 10a at https://tinyurl.com/588bzwy9 🥎

Shabbat Update for Aug 2:

Unfortunately, the forecast now calls for thunderstorms this evening. In the interest of safety and of providing a wonderful experience for our congregation we have made the decision to move our Shabbat celebration to TI’s campus at 14 Coleytown Rd. If the weather permits we will gather outdoors. If not, we will be together in our sanctuary. Either way, we invite you to bring your beach attire and vibes, and stay for stay for dinner – BYO or enjoy pizza and wine on us!

Our first Shabbat on the Beach of the summer was perfect 😍. We can’t wait to see you on Friday, August 2 for our next one. 🏖️☀️

“The pursuit of knowledge for its own sake, an almost fanatical love of justice and the desire for personal independence—these are the features of the Jewish tradition which make me thank my stars that I belong to it.” – Albert Einstein

Sharing some of our favorite June moments:

☀️ June 7 | We kicked off summertime in our outdoor sanctuary surrounded by the greenery of nature during our first Shabbat Under the Stars of the summer. During this special Shabbat service, we honored our 10th grade confirmands and graduating seniors.

☀️ June 14 | We honored and celebrated our longest tenured members during our Shabbat Honoring 36+ Members Shabbat, as part of our 75th Anniversary celebration. Their steadfast dedication to TI forms the foundation of our congregation.

☀️ June 21 | We lifted up to the voices of the LGBTQ+ community and filled our sanctuary with rainbows, symbols of diversity and love. Elana A***n, one of the leading voices in contemporary music, was our artist in residence for this radiant Pride Shabbat.

📣 We are proud to announce the release of The Sound of TI at 75, a collection of songs recorded in honor of Temple Israel’s 75th anniversary and made possible by Betsey and David Lebow and family.

Streaming at http://li.sten.to/soundofti

Due to the forecasted weather, we will hold our Pride Shabbat service in the sanctuary tonight at 6:30. We invite all to bring the beach inside by dressing casually (rainbows encouraged!). After the service, stay for schmoozing and a beachy oneg. Feel free to bring your own dinner and drinks just as you would at the beach. Elana A***n, one of the leading voices in contemporary music, will be our artist in residence for the evening. We will see you at 6:30p, either in person or on the stream at tiwestport.org/livestream

We are proud to share that our own Cantor Becky Mann’s compositions will be included in Vol. 2 of Shireinu, the definitive source for contemporary Jewish music. Stay tuned for news about when Shireinu Vol. 2 will be released to the public.

Last Friday, we celebrated our 4’s students in our ECC during our meaningful Siyyum ceremony.

We kicked off our Pride month celebrations with a rainbow challah bake, and a community gathering at Westport Pride. We are proud to live by our values of radical inclusivity and belonging for all people and loved seeing our community -- LGBTQ+ and allies -- show up in strength and joy.

❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🖤🤎🩵🩷🤍

Last Friday, we hosted our annual Israel Shabbat in celebration of Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israeli’s Independence Day) and Yom HaZikaron (Israel’s Memorial Day). We also honored John Kaufman on his completion his term as president and our late Kesher teacher Iris Jaffe z’l.

We are delighted to announce that Elana A***n will be joining us for Pride Shabbat as Artist in Residence. A composer, multi-instrumentalist, and prayer leader, Elana A***n is one of the leading voices in contemporary Jewish music. Elana’s music is part of Jewish life across the globe, and her compositions are sung in spiritual communities, summer camps, and synagogues from Chicago to the Czech Republic. Elana has released four albums of original music, and her compositions have been published in countless Transcontinental Music collections. Elana serves proudly on the faculty of Hava Nashira (Oconomowoc, WI), the Wexner Heritage Foundation (Aspen, CO), Shirei Chagiga (London, England), and Hebrew Union College in New York, where she teaches in the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music. Elana has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Tanglewood, and perhaps most memorably, five separate appearances at the (Obama) White House. She lives in the Hudson Valley with her wife, Julia, and their two daughters, Maya and Acadia.

TCS in Westport, CT will join us for this special Shabbat.

We are still beaming from our gala celebration last Saturday. It takes a village to make an event like this a success. Thank you to everyone who everyone who made this evening possible.

This morning, we joyfully celebrated Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel’s birthday) with our community. 💙🤍