Save the date: Boston Jewish Food Conference

Tu B’shvat: Exploring Our Relationship with Nature

    

The annual holiday of Tu B’Shvat offers us the opportunity to reflect on our relationship to the earth—both local and global—through song, storytelling, food, and discussion.

Where does our food come from?

This year’s seder (ritual gathering) will focus on food, place, and the agricultural cycles in New England, Israel, and other parts of the world.

In addition to exploring the traditional symbols of the seder (including fruits, nuts, and juices), we will hear from local farmers, activists, and business people involved in producing and distributing sustainable foods.

Date: Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Time: 7:30-9:00pm
Location: Temple Beth Zion, Social Hall (lower level)
1566 Beacon Street Brookline, MA 02446
RSVP here.

Co-sponsored by:

     

Jewish Values & Hunger Awareness Program for B’nai Mitzvah

Space is limited in this program, so please RSVP by Monday January 2 to: Tamar Moskowitz tmoskowitz@jfcsboston.org or 781-693-5593

Kicking Off the Omer: Sowing Seeds of Sustainability

Kicking Off the Omer: Sowing Seeds of Sustainability is the 1^st Annual Boston Jewish Food Conference, bringing together those interested in food, cuisine, agriculture, labor, business, health, access, history or religious practice.   It is a time for exploration and celebration, bringing vibrancy to relationships and influencing commitments to social justice, spirituality, the environment and Jewish expression.  Above all, Kicking off the Omer is a place to form community that nourishes ourselves and our communities.

It is fitting to hold this conference during the time of the Omer. The counting of the Omer that begins at Passover carries our biblical agricultural year through to Sukkot. So too our New England agricultural season follows this flow. Come explore the parallels, learn new skills and make new friends.

Kicking Off the Omer will be on Earth Day, Sunday April 22^nd at Hebrew College in Newton Centre, MA. It will feature 12-16 program sessions, a community meal and keynote speaker. Woven throughout the day will be themes of Agriculture, Food Systems & Policy, Jewish Text & Thought, Food Traditions: History & Culture, Health & Nutrition and Business.

We are currently forming a planning team.  The planning team will be headed by 2 Co-chairs and assisted by liaisons from Ganei Beantown and Hebrew College.  Planning team members will help set the groundwork for what the conference will become.  Organizational partnerships are also welcomed.  This is a wonderful opportunity to become a leader, join a new community, and be a part of a new regional initiative. Our first planning team meeting will be on Tuesday Dec. 6^th at 8:00pm. If you’re interested in joining the planning team, please email: Leora@beantownjewishgardens.org

Planning team time commitments will vary throughout the year, depending on their area of responsibility. All planning team members are asked to focus in one committee areas. Please expect to work as an ambassador or on tasks for about an hour a week, with committee meeting phone calls every few weeks.

Planning Team roles include:

• Programming – Create innovative program components & network with presenters. Discuss keynote possibilities.
• Kids/Teens- Capacity for babysitting and/or age- appropriate educational programming.
• Donations – Donation solicitation
• Logistics – Creating a smooth conference experience
• Marketing & Outreach- Identify marketing avenues and reaching out. Creating a buzz. Website updates.
• Volunteers- We’ll need lots of volunteers on April 22^nd, as well as somebody to coordinate their efforts.
• Food- making dinner happen

Thanks!
Hannah Levine
2011 Co-Chair

Sukkot Festival: Gathering & Thanking

It was great to see so many people at the first annual Sukkot Family Harvest Festival!

Sukkot is a holiday of multiple names and meanings. Chag Ha’asif, the Festival of the Ingathering, is a celebration of the harvest. Since most of us are not currently farmers, we’re not building structures to camp out in our fields. We’re not exhausted from days of dawn to dusk physical labor with no time to head back to our permanent homes, while simultaneously guarding the remaining bounty in our fields from thieves. In our lives today, how do we make this component of the holiday relevant?

During autumn in New England, we celebrate and enjoy the local harvest season; we appreciate we have much to be grateful for. We acknowledge the divine elements to the bounty around us.

We have so much to be grateful for:

• All 150 people who attended the first annual Beantown Sukkot Family Harvest Festival.
• The 250 pounds of carrots we harvested at the festival!
• Our tremendous educators: Rabbi Daniel Klein & Rabbi Ebn Leader, Amy May, Laura Evonne Steinman, Helen Bennett
• Our musical performers: Rakia Shemaya, Bethel Steele and the Klezwoods
• The JCC staff for providing decorations to decorate our Sukkah.
• Lands Sake Farm for hosting.
• Rabbi and Farmer Joseph Berman for all his work coordinating, and for co-sponsorship with his congregation Temple B’nai Israel of Revere.
• Hebrew College for their co-sponsorship.
• For the sun that shined upon us at the Festival.

It’s not too late to make a donation, we accept those year round!

 

Sukkot Festival Schedule

Chag Sameach! We’re so excited to see you THIS SUNDAY October 16th from 12:00pm-4:00pm at Lands Sake Farm for the first annual Boston Area Sukkot Family Harvest Festival. Bring a picnic lunch and join us on the farm.The farm stand will be selling fresh veggies, local honey and pumpkins.If you’re planning on coming, we’d move to know, please RSVP here. If you can’t RSVP, just come! We’re also still looking for some folks to volunteer with site (and Sukkah) set up! You can sign up here. Here’s our schedule of events (rain or sunshine- we have sturdy tents): 12:00pm – 2:00 pm *  Bicycle powered recycled paper making– Amy May We’ll be making paper from old paper but instead of coming from a big factory, we’re going to power the process ourselves with a bicycle. Create a piece of paper you can take home with you. *  Truck Farm– Erin Taylor The Truck Farm is a mobile community farm that grows produce in the bed of a pickup truck. *  Face Painting– Fiesta Face, Gaby Fiato Come get into the festive holiday spirit by getting your face painted! *  Sukkah decorations -The JCC staff Get creative and make decorations for our Sukkah and for yours. 12:30-1:15 pm *  Shelter from the Storm?! Exploring the Purpose of the Sukkah- Rabbi Daniel Klein In our tradition, meaning so often follows form. Our rituals are designed to take us on a psychological and spiritual journey. What is the meaning of this strange and wonderful hut we call a home for the holiday of Sukkot? Come explore classic and modern wisdom on the purpose of the Sukkah. *  Animal tour of Lands Sake farm– Doug Cook Come see the cows, sheep and goats that are being grazed on public land for the common good. Then, we’ll visit the bees and chickens, who are also working hard for the farm. *  Harvest Fest in Context: Where we are in Today’s Food System- Helen Bennett Interactive and hands-on games and activities will bring together families and friends on the topic of our place in today’s food system.  Working together, we’ll play and discuss how we interact with the foods of this season, and how connected (or not) we are to the time when the Israelites dwelt in Sukkot. *  Rakia Shemaya Chandler hip hop performance Rakia Shemaya takes her name from the Biblical Hebrew, meaning the firmament, which separates duality, while knowing all is One. Her persona combines a deep spirituality with a drive to make a difference in the world and she is committed to using performance to educate and empower struggling people everywhere through music, dance and lyrics. 1:15-1:45pm *  Bethel Steele musical performance A regionally-touring singer-songwriter whose solo performance has been described as being reminiscent of Joan Armatrading, Ani DiFranco and Neil Young.  Singing in a smoky alto, she writes simple and direct poetry, and sets it to beautiful music. 2:00-3:00 pm *  Klezwoods concert A Boston-based amalgam of strings, horns, and percussion that melds the spirit of traditional klezmer and balkan music with modern grooves, improvisation and east coast attitude. Every player comes from a different background, which creates the band’s unique sound and style. They originally got their start some years back when local Cambridge, MA haunt, Atwood’s Tavern, asked soon-to-be-bandleader Joseph Kessler to put together a group of klezmer musicians during Christmas time for a “klezmer Christmas” event. Thus, Klezwoods was born, and continues to captivate audiences all over the world. 3:00-3:45 pm *  Working the land– Joseph Berman Get ready to get dirty weeding the strawberry field. *  Praying for Rain: What are we really asking for?– Rabbi Ebn Leader Join us as we examine several early rabbinic texts exploring the tradition of praying for rain during the Sukkot season.  How do we, as New Englanders, understand this ancient tradition of praying for rain in the land of Israel? *  Harvest Prayer Ornaments– Laura Evonne Steinman Come create using a variety of natural fibers, including felt made from recycled bottles and found objects a prayer ornaments to decorate your home or sukkah at this harvest time. All ages welcome! *  Holiday Songs, Stories, & More– Ariel Rosenberg Songs of joy, stories of adventure, and other surprises for children and adults alike…  Bring your voice, your energy, and your curiosity! *  Animal tour of Lands Sake farm- Doug Cook Come see the cows, sheep and goats that are being grazed on public land for the common good. Then, we’ll visit the bees and chickens, who are also working hard for the farm. May we all be blessed with shelters of peace, Leora Mallach & Or Rose Leora@beantownjewishgardens.org (617) 877-2036

Sukkot Family Harvest Festival

Registration is now open for the first annual Ganei Beantown and Hebrew College Sukkot Family Harvest Festival. We look forward to seeing you at Lands Sake Farm in Weston, MA for an afternoon of live music, study and family friendly fun.

Register here.
Help us build our Sukkah on Sunday morning October 16th by signing up here.
Stay tuned for more information.