Monday, September 28, 2009

Rain, Schmain...The Sukkah Is Up (and it's good!)

The rain came down but the Sukkah went up on the morning of Sunday, September 27. In spite of the challenges of inclement weather, a short window with Kol Nidre that night and some really good football games to get home to, the Men's Club raised the Sukkah in just under an hour-and-a-half. (It seems to get quicker every year!)

The Sukkah will play host to several Agudath Israel events, many of them sponsored by the youth and school programs. The Men's Club will take center stage in the Booth on Thursday, October 8, 8 pm, when it hosts its first annual "Scotch in the Sukkah" event. The cover charge of $18 gets participants a Scotch tasting, seminar from a Scotch Maven and a commemorative glass. Additonal glasses can be purchased from the Men's Club for a discounted price of $6.00.

Marty Schenker, Men's Club VP is co-chairing this event and can be reached at marty-boy@comcast.net.

Special thanks to our Sukkah builders, with special yasher koaches going to event chair Gary Kabler (pictured, catching raindrops with his tongue) and our foremen Mike Chiaet and Alfie Mahler, who brought the good drill.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Scotch! In the Sukkah! On October 8th!

First, we ask that you join the Men's Club as we raise the Sukkah on Sunday morning, September 27 at 10:30 am. Then on Thursday, October 8th, 8 pm, come join us for a brand new event!

Scotch in the Sukkah! Sip wonderful scotches of distinct flavors. Hear how they're made from a Scotch Maven. Schmooze with old friends and make new ones! The $18 cover charge gets you the tasting and a commemorative Scotch glass. (Additional glasses will be sold at a discount.) Other refreshments will be served. You don't have to be a Scotch drinker to enjoy this event!

Then, on Sunday, October 18, kindly help us in taking down the Sukkah. Meeting time is 10:00 am.


Men of the Year 2009

The CAI Men's Club has selected it's 2009 Man of the Year, to be honored at the NNJR MOY Dinner at the Crystal Plaza in Livingston on Wednesday, November 11. Larry Dodyk, recent past co-president receives the well-deserved honor this year. Alongside Scott Kopen, Larry led the Men's Club during the synagogue's renovation years. His efforts sustained favorite programs of the past and introduced new events. In addition to his presence in the conference room, he is also a force on the basketball court, serving as power forward on the CAI Men's Club Basketball team. At left, Larry is preparing one of the carnival games for the 2009 Purim Festival.

Also being recognized this year is Harvey Hershkowitz, a past Men's Club president who now serves as Vice President of the NNJR of Jewish Men's Clubs. He is the NNJR Man of the Year for 2009. Harvey's representation on the NNJR board does us proud and his continued participation in many CAI committees is a great inspiration to the shul's many lay leaders. Harvey is pictured, second from right, with NNJR board members, delivering a check to the Worldwide Masorti Movement.

An added feature to the Man of the Year Dinner is the Youth of the Year Award. The club has selected Austin Mahler for this inaugural honor. Austin's mitzvah project of organizing the Agudath Israel library has made the room a better place for learning and meditation. Austin can also be counted on for helping us raise the sukkah every year. An Eagle Scout-to-be, Austin is a senior at Newark Academy in Livingston.

Please help us recognize all three of this outstanding gentlemen by attending the Man of the Year Dinner on November 11th and taking out an ad in the event's ad journal. Please contact Adam Shandler at adam@adshandler.com for more info and pricing.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Yotam Zach Speaks, Inspires at Agudath Israel

On Tuesday, September 15, the CAI Men's Club and Israel Program Committee welcomed speaker Yotam Zach, 23, to Caldwell. Yotam is the 2009-2010 Youth Shaliach (emissary) from Israel.

Yotam took the audience through a very thorough but inspiring timeline that began all the way back in 1936 when his grandparents fled an oppressive Iraq and post-war Europe respectively. He spoke of growing up in the Tel Aviv suburb of Azur where his parents held high ranking civic titles.

Yotam spent much of his lecture talking about the public relations and physical wars that were fought in the Gaza strip during his days of military service. Two of the most challenging but impactful experiences were having to remove Jews from Gaza during disengagement and battling Kazam rocket-launchers during the incursion. But the P.R. war seems to have been one of the toughest things Yotam had to deal with. Friends would call him on his cell phone to verify and refute disparaging reports about the Israeli military seen on international media.
Towards the end of the presentation, Yotam encouraged the audience to write letters of hope for POW Gilad Shalit and talked about reactions from the death of IDF pilot Assaf Ramon.

Yotam will be spending the year engaging with Jewish communities of all ages in the Metrowest area and Rutgers University. We highly recommend having him speak to your group. You'll get some great stories about what it's like growing up in Israel and you'll be able to connect with a young Israeli who genuinely wants bring a bit of the Holy Land to the States. For more information contact Men's Club President Adam Shandler at adshandler@gmail.com.

Thanks to Yotam for giving us a strong start to the Men's Club 2009-10 programming calendar, and to Randi Brokman for suggesting this terrific speaker. (At right, Yotam Zach, center, poses with, from left, Men's Club VP Marty Schenker, Israel Committee Co-President Harvey Hershkowitz, Men's Club President Adam Shandler and Israel Committee Co-President Lee Gladstein.)

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Men's Club Votes on New Logo, Slogan

The CAI Men's Club has voted on a new logo, pictured, at left. The logo fonts and torch were designed by club president Adam Shandler but reformatted by a committee of Men's Club veterans.

"The font is Neuropol, a new design featured in MS Word 2007," said Shandler. "The torch represents the numerous NNJR Torch Awards for Excellence in Programming that we've won throughout the years." The Men's Club has also rolled out a new slogan for the 2009-2010 programming year. "Excellence in Friendship."

"The slogan best captures what we're all about - being a nationally recognized Men's Club that focuses on brotherhood," Shandler added. Last year's slogan was "A National Award Winning Club".

The CAI Men's Club kicks off its 2009-10 programming calendar this Tuesday night, September 15, at 8 pm when it hosts speaker Yotam Zach. Yotam is this year's Metrowest Youth Emissary from Israel and a former IDF Intelligence Officer. The Men's Club is sponsoring this event in partnership with the CAI Israel Program Committee. For more info, email mensclubcai@gmail.com