Click the Gold Button Below to Give
As of mid-June, 2017, 281 donors had pledged over $381,000 to to our Give Back to the Future! endowment campaign, exceeding our initial goal of $360,000 by Rabbi Joey Wolf’s retirement.
If you haven’t yet contributed, please pull together with us! Insure the future of Havurah as a progressive, egalitarian, participatory Jewish community open to all regardless of means. Contributions of every size are equally welcome and equally honored.
Just click on this gold button and support what Havurah Shalom stands for and gives us.
Make a Legacy Pledge to Havurah’s Endowment
An important way to support Havurah is to remember Havurah in your estate plan/will. Twenty-two Havurahniks have already pledged to leave a legacy to Havurah. We urge every member family to add their legacy pledges to this growing list to insure that Havurah’s progressive Jewish values will thrive into the future.
Call the office and to say that you and yours will pledge! No need for specifics—that’s up to you and your advisors to arrange. Just make your pledge—and join those dedicated to insuring the future of Havurah Shalom.
Why an Endowment?
An endowment is an investment fund set up by a nonprofit institution such as Havurah Shalom in which regular withdrawals from the invested capital are used for ongoing operations or other specified purposes.
Our voluntary dues can neither provide for nor sustain everything that makes Havurah Shalom irreplaceably valuable to us. Havurah is and must remain a congregation
- in which each family pays according to what it decides it can afford;
- that welcomes Jews of every background and orientation, and members' non-Jewish partners;
- that resounds with inspiring music, traditional and new;
- with a rabbi and educator who teach and support us to that we can explore and renew Judaism;
- in which we take Judaism into our own hands, learning and teaching Jewish ideas and traditions to our children and grandchildren at home, in Shabbat School, and through Havurah events;
- and that affirms tikkun olam as a key way to bring our Judaism into the world.
We launched the endowment in honor of Rabbi Joey Wolf. This campaign lays the groundwork for an endowment and a planned giving program to insure Havurah Shalom remains open, and open to all, from generation to generation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow: The Havurah Shalom Story
Yesterday: Three decades ago, Havurah began as a community of thirty seeking a participatory, inclusive, hands-on and freshly traditional re-engagement with Judaism. Here Jews, including those with non-Jewish partners, could seek their roots, raise their children together, discover intentional spirituality, and engage in social action in a Jewish context. Here, twenty years ago, Havurahniks raised over $2 million for our building, creating an even deeper sense of community.
Today: Havurah Shalom, now 365+ families strong, is a participatory, Reconstructonist Jewish community housed in a beautiful, unpretentious shul. Warm, supportive, connecting and re-connecting with each other and our Jewish roots, we offer diverse services and foster a rich community and spiritual life as well as Jewish education, Jewish music, cultural programming, and a religious foundation for Tikkun Olam.
Tomorrow: Havurah Shalom strides into the future with our Give Back to the Future! campaign. We remain committed to a culture that innovates, adapting to the 21st century’s challenges for Judaism and the Jewish community.
We Have Celebrated the Gifts to Us of Rabbi Joey Wolf
The first stage of Give Back to the Future! celebrated Rabbi Joey Wolf’s 30 years of generous gifts to the Havurah Shalom community as our
- Learned and inspiring teacher
- Spiritual leader
- Community visionary who has welcomed innovation and intention in our religious practices
- Comforter in times of need
- Leader of our commitment to Tikkun Olam
Rabbi Joey gave to Havurah Shalom with great energy and a boundless spirit. In May 2016, he was chosen by Forward as one of America's Most Inspiring Rabbis. The initial stage of our Give Back to the Future! endowment campaign marked and celebrated the significance of his sustained and dedicated work. Over 280 generous donations seeded the first stage of Havurah Shalom’s endowment. Read Rabbi Joey's reflections about his years at Havurah here.