RELIGIOUS SCHOOL REPORT	Magda Reyes, Educator
	Robin Potter, Chairperson, Religious Education Committee

Welcome to the new school year 5772!

Late summer is always a time of anticipation, anxiety and change. A big part of the late summer ritual is that inevitable “schoolshopping trip” where we fill up the shopping cart with brand new, shiny, as yet unopened but full of excitement and promise, school supplies. Be it erasers, scissors, notebooks or just new pens and pencils (has anyone figured out why we always have to get new pens and pencils every year when we have so many at home already?) We also take a long time choosing a brand new backpack to hold all the new stuff. I realize, of course, that all this preparation does not, by any means, have any bearing on future academic success, nor does it reflect any past accomplishments, but it does light up a child’s face and build excitement for the coming school year. And the anxiety about the peer pressure to conform is gone.

Recently, I got an e-mail about backpacks that needed to be bought. HomeFront, the social services agency located in Lawrenceville, sent out a notice of their Annual Back-to-School Clothing and Supply Drive for Local Kids in Need. It seemed that over 200 needy kids in our immediate area did not have the items needed to start school and their families could not afford to purchase them. These children were still waiting to be sponsored. To sponsor a child means that the sponsor would be donating either clothing or a backpack filled with school supplies for a particular child. The sponsor would be notified of the age, sex, clothing size and shoe size of a child to shop for. A list of supplies is available. Monetary donations are also greatly appreciated.

As we get ready for our new Religious School year and fill our backpacks, I wonder if we could think about sponsoring a child in need. “Tikkun Olam” teaches that we need to take care of the world. If you can, please help our larger community and make it possible for all children to get excited about learning. Please contact either me at the temple or HomeFront directly at homefront@homefrontnj.org to find out how to get involved.

So on the first day of Religious School, please pack your child’s backpack and possibly one extra, with some pencils and a notebook, and don’t forget plenty of enthusiasm and lots of excitement. There is much Jewish learning to explore and we are thrilled to start.

My family and I would like to wish all our students and families a New Year 5772 surrounded by the warmth of your family and Jewish learning.

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Religious School Calendar
September 2011

Sunday, September 11