The Charlotte Jewish News - May 2012 - Page 17
Celebrate
Lag B’Omer
with Kosher
Barbecue
and Bonfire
at Lake
Norman
This month a spectacular fami
ly event will take place outdoors
on Lake Norman. On Thursday,
May 10, Lubavitch of North
Carolina will be hosting their
annual Lag B’Omer celebration in
a beautiful private setting right
beside the lake. Children and their
families will be invited to partici
pate in a host of outdoor activities
ranging from boating and fishing
to assorted beach sports. The event
will include a delicious kosher
barbecue with grilled hotdogs and
hamburgers, as well as a vegetari
an alternative by request.
Lag B’Omer marks the anniver
sary of the passing of Rabbi
Shimon bar Yochai, a second cen
tury mystic who authored the
Kabbalistic source text known as
the Zohar. Before his passing, he
instructed his students to celebrate
the day as heralding the dissemi
nation of the Torah’s esoteric
teachings.
Beginning this year on
Wednesday evening and continu
ing through Thursday night. Lag
B’Omer is characterized through
out the world by bonfires, outdoor
celebrations, and Jewish unity
parades. One highlight of this
year’s festive program on
Thursday evening will be a huge
bonfire and Kumzitz.
Participants will be invited to
sit around the fire and enjoy
Jewish unity songs, stories, and
delicious treats.
The schedule of the May 10
events are as follows: Children’s
activities will begin at 4 PM.
Dinner will be served starting at
5:30 PM. The bonfire and
Kumzitz will start at 6:30 PM.
Celebrate Shavuot with
Congregation Ohr HaTorah
on Sunday, May 27
Temple Kol Ami Continues
to Invest in Its Youth
This year Shavuot, which cele
brates the gift of the Torah to the
Jewish people, will be take place
from Saturday night. May 26
through Monday night. May 28.
The holiday will begin with after
noon services at 8:15 PM, and
evening services at approximately
9 PM. One highlight of the night
will be an all night study program,
beginning at midnight and con
cluding early Sunday morning.
Sunday’s festivities will
include the reading of the Ten
Commandments during the morn
ing services at approximately 11
AM. Men, women, and children
are encouraged to attend as the
Torah reading reenacts the Giving
of the Torah that first took place
over 3,300 years ago. On Shavuot
morning, the children are honored
as the stars at Congregation Ohr
HaTorah, as the children were the
Guarantors of the Torah, the ones
that God was willing to entrust
with the critical task of passing the
Torah down from generation to
generation. After the conclusion
of the services, a festive dairy
luncheon will be served, including
delicious dairy desserts. This is
due to the fact that on Shavuot,
when the Torah was first given,
there wasn’t enough time to pre
pare kosher meat, so the only
available food was kosher milk,
straight from the cow.
Shavuot morning services
begin at 10 AM. Monday’s service
on May 28 will include the memo
rial Yizkor service at approxi
mately 11:45 AM. For more infor
mation about Shavuot at
Congregation Ohr HaTorah,
please visit chabadnc.org or call
704-366-3984. «
Oei ngrega t i o n
HaXorah
fljMTi^er oj Jitlmvitch ij; N'wrfrCtftiilitui
As the inaugural year of Temple
Kol Ami's Religous School comes
to a close, parents, students, and
teachers reflect not only on the
school’s first accomplishments,
but also on the vast future that lies
ahead.
The school opened in
September 2011, providing for the
educational needs of the youth of
Temple Kol Ami. Our enrollment
exceeded our expectations with 28
students enrolling for the first
year. Our students range in age
from four to B'nei Mitzvah. The
Temple and the school both meet
at Unity Presbyterian Church in
Fort Mill.
Classes are taught and organ
ized by a team of dedicated teach
ers and congregants, all volun
teers. The teachers and students
have orchestrated a Sukkot serv
ice, a Chanukkah Around the
World Celebration, and created
artwork and Judaic items for the
Temple’s first Congregational
Seder.
The future is bright for the stu
dents and teachers of the
Religious School of Temple Kol
Ami. The Temple has recently
affiliated with the Institute for
Southern Jewish Life, and with
this we are going to use the ISJL
curriculum to enhance the already
dynamic start of our Religious
School. This curriculum has gar
nered national attention for the
innovative and exciting way it
approaches Jewish education in
the 21 st century. Developmentally
appropriate, it will nurture our stu
dents’ Jewish identities and equip
them to live rich and meaningful
Jewish lives.
Registration for next years’
Religious School begins now. For
more information or an enrollment
packet, please contact Michelle
Silva, Religious School Director
at tka.religiousschool@gmail.com
Or, visit Temple Kol Ami’s web
site at www.kolamitemple.com ^
The location of the event is 361
Sundown Road in Mooresville,
NC. To get there from Charlotte,
take 1-77 North. Take exit 33, then
turn left onto Williamson Road,
and continue for about 2 miles.
Turn right on Sundown Road and
continue for 1.1 miles to 361
Sundown Road. The cost per per
son is $12, or $40 per family. To
make your reservation, please visit
chabadnc.org or call 704-366-
3984 for more information. ^
jps
A five-star preschool*****
p»«i.cci on 3.rdi. Jpsonsardls.org