J Blog

Happy Holidays,

On behalf of the J, I would like to extend the best wishes to you and your family for a happy and healthy 2018!

It was great to see many of you this past Sunday at the Jewish CultureFest at Evelyn’s Park in Bellaire. The weather cooperated so we could all enjoy the live music, great food and the many great activities. Special thanks to the City of Bellaire and Evelyn’s Park staff for assisting with the festival and to Rabbi Samantha Safran for coordinating the festival.  

With so many activities available for our kids, how do you know which are the right ones and when is the right time to get them started. All seem to have slick marketing that promotes what you'd think to be the "right" things, but how do you truly know?    

First, don't be fooled by the slick marketing. Do your own due diligence! To help, here are three fundamentals that I focused on when I chose gymnastics for my two sons. I will concede, there may be other criteria that might be worth looking at. However, as a Dad and a former high level competitive athlete, these were my top three, and I feel as you read you will see why.

Morgan Hoang’s gymnastics career started as a 3-year-old when her mom enrolled her in gymnastics classes because she was “too energetic.”

Today she is a senior at Dulles High school and a Level 10 gymnast at the Houston Gymnastics Center at the J. This month marks her 8th year competing with HGC.

“From a young age, I began to excel much quicker than my peers and my parents realized that gymnastics was my true talent,” said Morgan. “As I continued the sport, I battled many injuries and they regretted their decision. However, my passion for gymnastics had grown so much that they decided to let me continue gymnastics.”

Not only did she want to continue for the love of the sport but she wanted to compete collegiately and at the age of 13 had her heart set on Stanford University.

“I remember the first time I ever looked at a list of colleges that had gymnastics, I was about 13. I immediately pointed to Stanford University and told my coach that that was where I wanted to go. At the time, I had no idea how difficult it was to get into the prestigious school, but I learned how to become self-sufficient and and dedicated the majority of my time to gymnastics and academics.

On behalf of the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center Board of Trustees and staff, I would like to wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving. This holiday affords us the opportunity to spend time with family and friends and celebrate the wonderful Thanksgiving traditions. Daily we are starting to see increased levels of activity at the J. As a thank you for your continued patience and support, watch for an announcement regarding ...

Astros Celebration Camp at the J Congratulations Astros! Our World Series Champions are coming home and to match their epic win there will be an epic celebration Friday in Houston with a World Series Victory Parade. For a lot of you that means there’s no school tomorrow! So whether you’re a member of the J or not, we’re offering an Astros Celebration Day Camp on Friday, November 3. Activities include baseball themed ...

For the Love Of Books

If you have been to the Ann and Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival at the J, chances are you have shopped the Bookstore. There is a dedicated group of volunteers responsible for it: Esther Chess, Linda Chess, Carol Emery, Ellen Gaber, Ann Glazier, Sandy Gomel, Robin Greenspan, Louise Kershman, Beulah Maltz, Ruth Morris, Claire Noll, Sheila Sack, Leenie Skolnik and Beverly Sufian set aside two weeks each fall and volunteer as book store managers at the Festival. Most of them have been doing it between 10-15 years.

Each lady will tell you there’s something about volunteering at the J, but they all agree that their love of books brings them to this place every fall. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Thank you for your patience as we continue to move forward with building repairs and work to resume as many programs and activities as possible. I wanted to provide you with a number of important updates and announcements.

Thank you Jewish Federation of Greater Houston 
I was informed earlier this week that the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston made a grant of $1 million to the J to support the repair and renovations costs for all of our facilities. More than $17 million has been raised to support Hurricane Harvey and relief efforts, and we are grateful to the Jewish Federation for its partnership and to all of the donors that have contributed to the fund.

There’s Something About this Place! and that includes the Ann and Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival

The last few weeks have been a challenging and difficult time in Houston and especially in our Jewish community with so many individuals and institutions suffering significant damages that will take a long time to repair.

There is a silver lining… as a community, we are resilient.  We have strapped on our boots and resolved to rebuild - not only our homes and our beloved J, but our emotional well-being. One way forward is participating together in important community gatherings and events. 

There is a silver lining… as a community, we are resilient.  We have strapped on our boots and resolved to rebuild - not only our homes and our beloved J, but our emotional well-being. One way forward is participating together in important community gatherings and events.

It just so happens that at the end of October, the Evelyn Rubenstein JCC hosts one of the biggest community events of the year, the Ann and Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival.  Yes, you read that right... it’s not just a “Fair” anymore.  This multi-week event has evolved over the years to encompass so much more than just books. The Festival has grown into a world class showcase for theatre, music and film, in addition to top notch authors.

 

A New Beginning This Shabbat we read the Torah portion B'reishit that tells the story of the seven days of creation as well as the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. This Torah portion is significant not just because it marks a new beginning in the Torah, but also because it has the ability to inspire new beginnings in our lives. As we approach a new beginning at the J, I am thrilled to share with you that we are planning to re-open ...

Thank you for your continued patience as we work through the necessary repairs to open our facilities on the Levit Family Campus. Please make note of the following important updates: Our goal is to open the Weingarten Building on Monday, October 16 and begin to resume business operations, daytime and evening classes and other programs. Further details on class programs and schedules will be announced next week. The Fitness Center flooring ...