link to journal news video re Noah's bar mitzvah Check it out.

http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=VIDEO

JOURNAL NEWS ARTICLE ABOUT NOAH'S BAR MITZVAH AT FHC

CLICK BELOW FOR THE LINK TO THE JOURNAL NEWS ARTICLE ABOUT NOAH'S AMAZING BAR MITZVAH. HE DID A GREAT JOB AND THE ARTICLE IS GREAT. SHALOM. JEREMY


http://www.LoHud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071209/NEWS02/712090370/1018/NEWS02

Blogging for over 2 and 1/2 years.....

Recently, my son Noah has been surfing this blog (instead of studying for his Bar Mitzvah), and he has been enjoying the pictures and the blog entries. He mentioned to me that he did not see any new entries and that comment made me think of this blog and also where FHC is going. And it is my hope that both are going in the right direction.

It is hard to believe that I have been FHC blogging for over 2 and 1/2 years. There are over five hundred pictures of FHC related activities on this blog. In conjunction with that I have created a separate CD of the pictures that I hope we can show at some future event at FHC.

The blog has been extremely enjoyable for me. It has allowed me to create a diary of sorts for FHC, to chronicle events, to comment about FHC and our Jewish Community. While there have been a few less than positive comments about the blog here and there, the majority of the comments have been extremely positive. I know of one person who moved away from our area who repeatedly e-mails me and thanks me for doing the blog. To that person, I thank-you for your support and I am glad that you enjoy this blog.

I am truly excited about upcoming events to blog about in the coming months, which will allow me to post more pictures.

I am looking forward to our Chanuka party and candle lighting activities.

I am looking forward to our great Purim party.

While I cannot take pictures of Shabbat Across America, I hope this year the turnout will be great and I can write about the event.

We are trying to organize a celebration of Israel's 60th anniversary with a Mural making party with Israeli foods, music and dancing.

The future looks bright and I am confident that FHC will prosper in the coming years which will allow me to have additional content to post.

I am working on posting video. I do not profess to be the best at this activity, but slowly I hope that I can master placing video and sound content on the blog. I will enjoy the content and hopefully make surfing this blog more enjoyable.

Shalom. Jeremy

Hanukah at FHC coming up!

First Hebrew Congregation invites you to the 2007 Hanukah lighting of the Menorah:

At the Gazebo in Downtown Peekskill: 12/9/07 Sunday

4:00 Gather at Treatstation train store for hot cocoa
4:30 Lighting at Gazebo
5:00 Party @ First Hebrew Congregation


At the JV Mall: 12/10/07 Monday @ 7:00 PM


Please join us!

Shalom.

Michael Kohel 11-18-07 Brunch at FHC PICTURES

north County News link to pictures of 50th anniversary

http://www.northcountynews.com/ncn_slideshows.asp

photos photos and some more photos

Blogspot has changed several times the method to post pictures. I think I have figured it out. Please check out a bunch of pictures that have been taken over the summer and recently. They include the last day of school, a class by the Rabbi, Open house and apple picking with the Youth Group.

Hopefully I may be able to put video on the website in the near futute... We shall see. Enjoy the photos.

Shalom.

Jeremy

50th anniversary: An incredible historical find

While getting things ready for the 10-21-07 50th anniversary Jubilee (which I am confident will be a huge success), we located an incredible tape cassette.

As some of you may know, the one and only Eleanor Roosevelt gave a speech at FHC downtown sometime in the 1950's. Inside a box containing FHC historical documents we located several copies of the cassette of her actual speech.

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to listen to the speech and from the references in the speech I guesstimate that it was given sometime in 1952-54 period. (If anyone knows the exact date, please advise.)

Her comments were eloquent, thought provoking and many of them are quite relevant today.

We have a beautiful and colorful history at FHC, and fortunately parts of that history have been preserved for future generations to listen to and to see.

I would like to somehow incorporate the Roosevelt speech into the Jubilee festivities. If anyone has any suggestions, please contact me.

Shalom.

Jeremy

Some thoughts

As most of you are probably aware, I am currently the President of FHC. I receive advice and opinions from all corners. I have tried and will continue to try to have a balanced approach to various issues. One of those issues was my use of the blog. The vast majority of individuals I have spoken to and those who have e-mailed me have requested that I continue to utilize the blog as a forum for information, pictures and yes, commentary.

One person in particular pleaded with me to continue since she has moved away and it is a way for her to keep in touch with FHC issues and things.

In light of the requests that I have received, I will continue the blog entries, with a reduced emphasis on commmentary and a greater emphasis on information and (if I can figure out the revisions made by blogspot), more pictures. I will, from time to time, provide commentary since I compare this blog to a radio or TV talk by an elected official. It is another example of the bully pulpit in action. The primary emphasis, for the time being, will be information.

As most of you are also aware, our family has had a recent loss and at the same time we have been very busy with FHC matters. Obviously, the blog has taken a back seat. Let me take this opportunity to thank the FHC family for being so supportive at our time of loss.

Finally, I'd like to end this blog entry with some great news. I was advised by the Chair of the 50th anniversary jubilee committee that we have no less than 100 guests coming to the 10-21-07 jubilee. And we will welcome many many more. In addition, I have been further advised that the Journal is going to be a great fundraiser with many ad pages. I truly look forward to this event and it is because of the incredible dedication of the people who have and continue to work hard to make this event a reality.

Shalom.

Jeremy

Guest Writer to Blog (approved by writer's parents) Unedited. Enjoy!

By: Becca Kissel

Over the summer, I went to a Jewish sleep away camp, Sprout Lake , and came back a true Zionist. Camp Young Judea Sprout Lake is loads of fun. It helped me make friends to last a lifetime. All the counselors are really funny and wacky, but that makes them a lot more likeable. We do lots of activities! Sprout Lake has a rock wall, a soccer field, two playgrounds, a pool, a creek (the nochal), a gaga pit (gaga is a fun Israeli sport that everyone loves to play.) and new things are added every year.

We follow Shabbat and add a little bit of Sprout into our festivities. The Friday night meal is always chicken with apple turnovers for dessert. Saturday we get to sleep late (and of course, since we’re allowed to, nobody does.) or play outside for a bit if we get up earlier.

The two longest days at Sprout Lake are Tyuill (Te-yul) and Maccabia. Tyuill is this five hour hike and camp out in the woods. It doesn’t sound fun, but I always liked it. At the campsite we gather firewood for that night and put up the tents. Then we eat. Finally, it’s night time. Before it gets too dark, we all get a little free time to star gaze or play a little flashlight tag, but then we have a camp fire. We roast marshmallows and sing songs. The next day we pack up and take a bus back to camp. Tyuill is always fun.

Maccabia is truly the most exiting (and the most tiring) day in all of camp. Maccabia is the COLOR WAR!! There are four teams; all of camp is separated into the four teams. Every bunk is separated, so you might not be with your bunkmates. Each Maccabia has a theme. That way, no Maccabia is ever the same. I’d love to tell you all more about Maccabia, but that would ruin the surprise and excitement of not knowing what’s going to happen during Maccabia!

That’s pretty much it. Camp was fun and taught me a lot about Israel and Judaism. At camp they added a little bit of Sprout into the after meal prayer. We add signs and little additions to make it fun! When I came home, I felt like a true Zionist. I will also miss my two best friends from camp, who won’t be coming back to camp, next year, Oded and Shakaf; they were two of my counselors. I learned the most from them. Shakaf taught me never to give up and that anything can be fun if I add a little Sprout. Oded taught me a very important lesson: don’t listen to what others say about you, you’re always you, and you can make a difference in the world. Make every moment, a moment to remember. Because of Oded, Shakaf and the rest of camp, I’m ready to take on the world, and Make A Difference In My Own Way.



THE END

It may be summer, but we are planning for the year

To many, the hot humid days of summer are a chance to get away, vacation, spend some time at the pool, read a good book or just relax. But for many FHC members, we have been working to get FHC ready for its future.

Planning is underway for numerous projects and to address important issues and I am pleased to say that we are making headway.

I personally welcome any member's involvement and suggestions for FHC. I want all of our members to feel a part of the future of FHC and be a part of the FHC family.

In the meantime, read a good book, relax and drop me an e-mail. All three things are quite simple. rjkrantzbest@yahoo.com Click it and write to me.

Shalom.

Jeremy

Life's Experiences Direct Us....

As some of you may be aware, my daughter Emily is at TY camp in Barryville, NY. After having received several letters from her, (the old fashioned paper kind), I am pleased to see that she is having a great time. She also advises that she is hanging around with British and Israeli Jews!!!

While I did not expect Barryville to be an international experience for my daughter, I find that experiences in life sometimes come to you when you least expect it.

In my profession, I am always having to move/change based upon the decisions of others, be it Judges, adversaries or even clients. But at the same time it gives me the opportunity to be flexible and willing to change with the current state of affairs.

We are a point in time when we need to be flexible, open to change, willing to take on new experiences and responsibilities. I am willing to take on new experiences and challenges. I welcome all readers of this blog to be open minded, flexible, open to change and willing to take on new experiences and responsibilities. I am very optimistic that FHC is ready to meet the future we will experience together.

Shalom.

Jeremy

FHC June 2007 Photos of BBQ-party

My first comments as Pres. of FHC

In my new capacity as Pres. of FHC I want to take this opportunity to thank the Congregation for placing its trust in me. I will try my best to do what I believe is in the best interests of FHC. My only agenda has been and continues to be what is in the best interest of FHC and its extended Jewish family.

We have already started to take positive and tangible steps in that direction. Hopefully our efforts will bear fruit.

In that vein, I welcome constructive ideas and communications that advance our Northern Westchester Jewish Community. I do not profess to have all the answers and often great ideas come when you least expect them and from unexpected sources. Please communicate your ideas to me. Whether you know me personally or not, or even like me or not, I hope to be there for all.

It is my hope that the next two years will be positive, productive and enjoyable. I realize that there will be mishagas along the way. However, it is my hope that we do not let mishagas distract us from the many tasks at hand.

The tone I wish to set for the next two years can be summed up as follows:

This is our congregation. Together, we can make it a better congregation.

Shalom.

Jeremy

HISTORIC MOVIE OF 1957 DEDICATION OF FHC UPTOWN FOUND!!!!!!!!

In what can only be described as an incredible find, a movie of the 1957 dedication (converted to DVD) of the FHC uptown synagogue was donated to FHC. I will not state the names of the contributors of this incredibly historic movie, but needless to say the contribution is greatly appreciated. (I also thank the person from FHC who received it and then tendered it to me.)

This grainy color 8mm (I believe) short movie is literally a window into the past. Images of members from 1957, 1950's cars, a procession from the downtown shul in an open convertible.... I got the chills watching the images as they quickly passed before my eyes.

When I first suggested a 50th anniversary celebration of the uptown synagogue several years ago based upon my looking at the plaque which was displayed in the lobby before the renovation, little did I know that our 1957 founders would have the foresight to place a 1957 journal from the 1957 journal dance behind the plaque, only to be found while we were having the renovation work done.

Similarly, this historic movie, so graciously donated, demonstrates the vision of those involved with the 1957 dedication of the uptown Synagogue.

I anticipate this will be shown at the October 21, 2007 Jubilee honoring the 50th anniversary of the uptown synagogue. All are welcome to attend this historic evening.

Shalom

Jeremy

FUNDRAISING KEEPS DUES DOWN

I have previously written about the tremendous benefits FHC gets from its fundraising. Bingo, Scrip, donations, are all important and are part of the lifeblood that keeps the lights on, teachers paid and the grass cut (in no particular order or priority)

Bingo is money generally derived from non-members coming to FHC to play Bingo. We need membership involvement to keep Bingo running and bringing in the revenue it generates!

Scrip is money derived from members getting 100% of their purchase price in the form of gift cards and the processing company provides FHC a percentage from vendors over and above the purchase price. As I have repeatedly stated, this is a no-brainer, and it has a huge potential for thousands of dollars more than what we are currently collecting.

Donations are generally derived from members who wish to give above and beyond their dues requirements. Donations are essential to FHC and if you need to adopt a charity, FHC is ready and it provides excellent documentation of donations for tax purposes.

Advertising for the Journal for our October 21, 2007 50th Anniversary event is money derived from non-members and members who want to place ads or purchase space in the Journal to commemorate the event and/or congradulate the honorees. I cannot emphasize enough the need to solicit ads and/or take out ads for the Journal. We have the original FHC Journal from 1957 and it is packed with ads from vendors, members and friends of members. We need the 2007 journal to be a successful reflection of our efforts. Every member of FHC should purchase an ad and sell ads. The ads sold to non-members HELP KEEP DUES DOWN. It is that simple.

The trustess and officers of FHC have tried to keep dues down and not to impose assessments. Fundraising and especially monies from non-members are critical to FHC. Solicit ads. Purchase an ad and buy your tickets to the 10/21/07 event.

The financial stability of FHC is not the sole obligation of the Board of Trustees or the Executive officers elected by the congregation. It is the obligation of all members.

This is your FHC. Sell and buy ads and attend this event.

It is that simple.

Shalom.

Jeremy

A religious institution is not a health club

A religious institution is not a Health Club

My wife recently reinstated our family membership to the local health club. While I am not overly pleased with this decision since I have too much on my plate already and I do not believe my family will utilize the club enough to make it worthwhile, the membership in the club got me to thinking about how some people might consider their membership in a religious institution similar to a health club membership since they remain members until the services of the religious institution are no longer needed. For instance, once the children have grown and moved on, to many, the religious institution is no longer necessary in their lives.

In my opinion, this mindset of discontinuing one’s affiliation with a religious institution once it is expedient represents something inherently wrong in our society.

A religious institution is a not for profit entity owned by its members. It represents a foundation in the community, a place of moral direction and a sanctuary for the belief that humankind is something more than just an advanced animal species.

Personally I could care less if a health club closes, loses members, does not have a profitable season. In contrast, since I consider myself a joint owner (together with those in the past, present and in the future) of my religious institution, I take our successes and disappointments personally. I want my religious institution to thrive and remain viable and relevant in my community. I want it to make an impact on the morals and ethics of my children, the children around me, and certainly upon the adults as well.

Further, the more I volunteer and remain active at my religious institution, the more vested I feel in it as a living and breathing entity and not just a building. I will never have any feelings for a health club. I will never feel a sense of connection with a place that lacks a moral center.

I think we should all think about the need to vest and invest more of ourselves in the religious institution so that we can strengthen that sense of connection and community. While I know that personalities and politics concerning various issues sometimes overshadow the overriding purpose of a religious institution and cause one to question their allegiance to the religious institution, one may be able to turn those feelings around and recognize that such things provide more color and character to the religious organization and that we learn from such behavior and grow as a community.

I sometimes tell my oldest daughter the famous quote “adversity builds character”. While I hope that we can minimize adversity, there is no reason why it must discourage us or cause us harm.

Together we can use adversity to grow stronger and more unified as a community. That is my goal and hope for the years to come.

Shalom. Jeremy

Should the Blog take a hiatus?

It has been suggested to me by at least one member of FHC that maybe the blog should take a hiatus if I become President of FHC. I am somewhat conflicted on the issue since I have been doing it for over two years.

I believe that the blog has been, overall, a plus for FHC members and their friends. At the same time, I can understand that using the blog for something more than an outlet for information/pictures, may be a distraction if I am President. I have been known from time to time to sermonize (or something akin to that).

I welcome reader comments, by e-mail. (Apparently most readers communicate with me by e-mail as opposed to leaving comments on the blog.) I would like your thoughts on whether I should place the blog on hiatus, limit the content to certain things during the next two years, or continue to use the blog as a bully pulpit for the opinions I hold near and dear to me.

Please advise this blogger...

Shalom.

Jeremy

EVERY DAY IS A VICTORY

I do not know if the phrase "every day is a victory" is in fact my father's or something he heard or read somewhere, but I truly believe it is a saying that provides me comfort and hope each and every day. If someone knows its origins, please advise...

For all the mishigas (sp?) that goes on in my life, it is my mishigas. For all the stress my children put us through, it is our stress. And while sometimes I would like to pawn it off on someone, there apparently are no takers.

I guess the same could be said of a congregation. There will always be mishigas, but it is our mishigas. Alot of the self-inflicted mishigas we bring to bear on ourselves becomes part of the perception of a Jew and our Jewish heritage. We seem to be more inclined to attacking one another as opposed to protecting and growing the flock.

Yet, together with all the mishigas, there does come the occasional joys, the nachas, the satisfaction of completing a task, having a productive discussion, getting something done; advancing a positive moral and ethical agenda in the name of G-d.

So while the daily stresses of our personal lives, professional/business issues and FHC are certainly things that give our lives mishigas, we should try and take the mishigas in stride, learn from it and try to kvetch less and expend more of our energies on problem solving and not problem rehashing and reliving.

I truly hope that we can spend more of our time and energy in the future finding ways to grow the nachas and reduce the mishigas. Certainly that is my desire and hope. If not, I can always take comfort in knowing that no matter what, every day is a victory.

Shalom.

Jeremy

FHC from above

No, I did not hire a helicopter to photograph FHC. As most of you may be aware, Google Earth provides free access to satellite photography. I thought it might be nice for us to look at FHC from above so that we can continue to improve what we have below.

Shalom.

Jeremy

On behalf of my family, I want to thank those friends and family members who contributed to the 4-12-07 TSA gala.

While I know this blog entry is not directly related to FHC, I do know that several FHC members and friends made contributions to this event which is working to find a cure for my son's disease. For that, I truly appreciate their generosity.

Since the last post was not in the best of taste, I thought everyone might enjoy a beautiful picture of Julianne Moore (and me of course), the actress who continues to work tirelessly for TSA. The picture is from the the gala where Ms. Moore was an honorary chairperson together with Tiki Barber.

Shalom. Jeremy

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL SITE. HUH?

ACN :: Matzo Man

ACN :: Matzo Man

TOWN HALL MEETING 4/22/07 AT TEMPLE BETH EL, CHAPPAQUA, NY (READ BELOW)

AIPAC
and
NOW ISRAEL
The Israel Action Committees of Northern Westchester

present a town hall meeting focused on
The State of the U.S.-Israel Relationship

Sunday, April 22nd 3:00 pmTemple Beth El 220 South Bedford RoadChappaqua, New York

As space is limited, advanced registration is strongly recommended.
For additional information or to RSVP, contact AIPAC Director for Westchester Ilana Decker at 212-750-4110 or idecker@aipac.org
or NOW ISRAEL Chair Dennis Monasebian at adee18fam@aol.com

October 21, 2007 50th Anniversary Gala: Lock it in to go!!!!!

The 50th Annivesary Gala Committee met this weekend and the enthusiasm was terrific!!!!

We have commenced taking reservations for the gala and for journal ads and we are off to a great start.

Check your mail for more information concerning this event. Should anyone want more information, or is willing to help the Gala Committee, they can contact me and I will forward it to the Chairperson of the Committee, my lovely wife.

My e-mail is jkrantz@smithkrantz.com or rjkrantzbest@yahoo.com

Shalom.

Jeremy

construction blood drive wine sale 2007