Thanks to you, we raised over $300 at our Tzedakah Drive!  This money will be turned into gift cards and donated to the Marin Foster Parent Association!  These cards will be given to fostered youth to purchase clothing and personal items.  In addition to the money, we also donated over a dozen nice dresses, a box of baby items and several purses.

Thanks to you, twelve families who are transitioning into permanent housing will receive a laundry basket full of household essentials to make their move easier.  A special thank you to Allie Darrow from JFCS for leading the art activity, making “Welcome Home” signs and cards to go in the baskets.

Thanks to you, the Ritter Center received 50 bag lunches to distribute to the homeless.

Thanks to you, we collected two large bags of trash from the grounds, keeping the Kol Shofar property looking beautiful!

Thanks to you, we planted carrots, herbs and strawberries in the Kol Shofar garden!

Thanks to you, our community came together to make a difference!

Pictures are coming soon, so check back for an updated post!

Join us on Sunday, April 14th for our Second Annual Mitzvah Day!

We are partnering with community organizations for a day that will benefit many of the most vulnerable in our community.

Highlights:

• Make bag lunches for the homeless (see list below for donation items needed)
• Make “Move-Out Baskets” for Homeward Bound Clients who are transitioning into their own homes (see list below for donation items)
• Raise money for teens and tweens in foster care- Tzedakah Challenge Goal $180 to be distributed as gift cards so foster children can buy their own clothes.
• Donate gently used “party clothes” to the Marin Foster Parent Association (see list below for all donation items needed)
• Work in the Kol Shofar Garden
• Trash Collection Contest
• School Clean-Up

Donation items needed:

• shower curtains (12)
• dish cloths (12 sets)
• laundry baskets (12)
• small broom and dustpan sets (12)
• small first aid kits (12)
• calendars or day planners (12)
• toiletries (enough for 12 baskets)
• toilet paper (12 packs)
• gently used party or dress clothes for ages 6-18 (boys and girls)
• gift cards for Target, Old Navy or Khol’s in small denominations ($25 max)
• Young Adult books (gently used)
• new or very gently used clothing for ages 6-18 (boys and girls)
• school supplies (pens, pencils, notebooks, binders…)

if you are unable to attend, but would like to give a monetary donation towards the purchase of supplies, please contact Tracy at 415-388-1818, ext. 101.

On Sunday, April 14, 2013, Kol Shofar is having a Mitzvah Day and I am coordinating  a drive to collect items for Homeward Bound of Marin.  We will be working to collect and create baskets for members who will be moving out of Homeward Bound housing and into their own house or apartment.  We are collecting bedding (twin and full sizes), new bath towels, hand towels, and washcloths, shower curtains, toilet paper, paper towels, toothbrushes, toothpaste, dental floss, toiletries, pot, pans, sets of dishes, sets of silverware, kitchen utensils, cleaning supplies such as cleansers, sponges, or rubber gloves, laundry soap, dish towels, mops, small brooms, brushes with dustpans, calendars, planners, and laundry baskets (Ideally we need 12 of each item).  Bring these items and other household items to Kol Shofar from 9:30 A.M. to10:30 A.M. April 14th, and help us put the baskets together until 12 P.M.

To donate or volunteer, please contact Tracy Harding at 415-388-1818, ext. 101 or trice@kolshofar.org.  If you are donating items, please let us know by Thursday, April 11th. 

We need volunteers to help set-up and clean-up, organize the items into baskets, take leftover items to other organizations, take baskets to Homeward Bound and collect donations.

Not able to donate items, but want to help set up baskets?  We can use your help starting at 10:30 A.M. on the 14th.

Can’t make it, but want to show your support?  Consider making a monetary donation that can be used to buy missing items.

This event is open to ALL 4th-12th grade students, so feel free to bring a friend (Jewish or not!)

See you at the Seder!

To register, click here.

I have space for one person in my car if you want to go but cannot get a ride to San Francisco.

Come join hundreds of 8th-12th graders at the Annual Day of Learning

They Did Not Stand Idly By…

Learning from courageous individuals and their acts of resistance in 1943

Sunday, March 17, 2013, 12:30 – 5 pm   

Mercy High School 
San Francisco

At the Day of Learning, students and educators from all public and private schools throughout California are invited to gain a deeper understanding about the Holocaust and patterns of genocide to inspire moral courage and social responsibility in the future. The 14 workshop choices include eyewitness testimonies from survivors of the Holocaust or genocide.

The Day of Learning program is free, and lunch is provided. Registration is required by March 8, 2013. 

Questions? DOL.JFCS.ORG, dol@jfcs.org, or 415-449-3717

The Day of Learning is a program of the Preisler Shorenstein Institute for Holocaust Education.

During Tichon we have a class dedicated to planning youth group evens. Our next event is an Ice Cream Movie Night where we will be screening “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” It will be Saturday February 9 at 7 pm (after Havdallah). Teens are encouraged to bring a Jewish friend. Please send your RSVP including the number in your party to Tracy Harding at trice@kolshofar.org so we can assure adequate supplies of ice cream. 

Cost- $5 for movie, ice cream and snacks

 We hope to see you there. And remember: 

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

–Tichon Teens in the Leadership Class

“I want other kids to share the same fun that my friends and I have with Legos.”  – Rudy Lee 

Got Legos?  Why I’m collecting Legos for other kids who don’t have them                 

By Rudy Lee

Have some Legos you don’t want anymore, and you don’t know where to donate them?

I couldn’t find a place to donate my Legos, so I figured I’d make my own organization. It would be about people giving used Legos to less fortunate kids.  I want other kids to share the same fun that my friends and I have with Legos.

My organization is called Building On.  It will give Legos to schools, hospitals and local rec centers where kids gather.

Want to donate your Legos to Building On? It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3.  Here’s how:

1. Find the Legos that you’d like to donate
2. Call us at 415-459-1950 or e-mail us at alysong1@comcast.net .  
3. We will pick up, help package and deliver your Legos

Thank you for helping me to build on!

Rudy Lee

Founder, Building On

Sunday was our Winter Shelter Work Day.  We started the day making bag lunches and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the Emergency Winter Shelter and St. Vincents guests.  We had so many donations of food that in addition to the extras that are going to the Ritter Center, we have enough juice boxes and health bars for the next round of bag lunches for mitzvah day on April 14th! Our bag lunch team was a lovely group of adults and youth ranging from 1st grade to high school!

Our second shift started at 1:30pm and was all teens!  We made brown rice, roasted broccoli, seasoned crispy potatoes, sauteed green beans and carrots in a butter and cinnamon sauce.  The food was all prepped by our crew of 8 teens. 

The last shift was another mix of adults and teens at Westminster Presbyterian Church for the set up and running of the Emergency Winter Shelter Dinner.  We fed 28 guests and 4 staff members a delicious meal that was very appreciated by all.  As I looked out over the dining room, it made me so happy to see our teen community sit and enjoy a meal with the men in such an easy manner.  There was a lot of laughter and joy in the room and it was felt by all!

Monday was a beautiful day to meet at the Shoreline Trail Park in San Rafael for the Marin Interfaith Council’s Youth Leader’s Group beach clean up!  There were 6 different faith communities represented and it was great to see how many of our youth were already connected to each other through school.  We collected over 10 bags of trash while beautifying this stretch of beach that is well-used by the San Rafael community.

While Monday was specifically designated as an interfaith event, I am very happy to report that all of Sunday’s shifts had interfaith participation as well.  This weekend was a beautiful way to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

Here are some photos from our weekend:

Thank you to our youngest participants!

PBJ Assembly Line!

Happy Sandwich Makers!

Beautiful Spot for Service!

The Zail Family Ready to Work!

Team CKS!

Reflection Circle

Team MIC!

Just some of the trash bags we collected!