It has been a difficult week for our congregation with the tragic loss of Aaron Kay. As a community, we draw support from one another – and we have been successful in doing that. We have also been successful in meeting the more traditional needs of the Kay family in their mourning process. This shows the adaptability and readiness of our congregation to step forward and perform rituals that may be unfamiliar to them.

A special thank to the following people who performed the mitzvah of shmirah – guarding the body until the funeral:

Steve Liverman

Joel Jacobs

Michael Steiner

Stuart Rockoff

Jason Klein

Steve Jacobson

Jonathan Larkin

Arty Finkelberg

Josh Pashall

Peter Sharp

James Bowley

Michel Rivlin

A very special thank you to those who participated in the Chevra Kaddisha – the team who does tahara – the ritual washing of the body:

Jonathan Fratkin

Steve Liverman

Joel Jacobs

Arty Finkelberg

Buddy Fish

Rabbi Marshal Klaven

On a happier note – a huge welcome to Traci Stratford, our new Educator. She is an amazing worker and has already connected with a number of our families: children and adults alike. Traci has not needed any on-the-job training. She seamlessly fit into BITY and their programming; she ran our madrichim and teacher orientations like a pro, and we are just blessed to have her as part of our team and in our congregation. I have been incredibly impressed with her energy, her enthusiasm, her creativity, and so much more.

High Holidays are upon us. The “Rosh” is 8 days away. But the season really begins with Selichot this Saturday night at 9:00. I hope you will join us for a beautiful candlelit musical service. It sets the mood for all the holidays. Please check the web (www.bethisraelms.org) for our holiday worship schedule. There are many events and services during this time.

Adult Education will begin in October, starting with Rabbi Allen Kraus on October 6, who will speak about Rabbi Nussbaum in context of other Southern rabbis during Civil Rights. We will begin with an Exploring Judaism series. You may choose to join us for the entire series, or “pop-in” on topics that you find interesting. I will also be teaching a 5-session crash course in Hebrew starting October 25th on Sundays after Sunday School.

This year begins another Adult B’nai Mitzvah Class. Our first meeting is this Sunday at 12:15. We still have room for more students.

Dr. James Bowley and I will be leading a trip to Israel (and Petra, Jordan) this summer. It is one of the best itineraries I have ever seen, and we are very excited about this joint Millsaps-Beth Israel trip. More information will be available during the High Holidays, and we will have an informational meeting in October for those who are interested or might have questions.

I mentioned the website earlier – the launch was a big success. Cheryl Katz, Sarit McDonald, and Marsha Rose Davis prepared the food. A huge thanks goes to Allison Spielman, who frantically entered content on to our website. It is still a work in process; we will continually update our site, including adding pictures and videos and other fun stuff.