The High Holy Days are almost upon us: a sacred time of celebration and reflection, a time to think about the year past, and celebrate the promise of the year to come.

This year, Temple Judea is celebrating the special season with our Spread the Sweetness campaign. To participate, you can give a gift of the heart to our crucial High Holy Day appeal, and you can spread the sweetness by giving others a glimpse into what makes Temple Judea so special. We hope that all of us will do both!

On Yom Kippur and the days leading up to it, each of us is encouraged to support our High Holy Day Appeal, one of our most important fundraising campaigns of the fiscal year, and a time-honored tradition in American synagogues across the country. Every dollar we collect sustains our community, our programs, and our strong presence as a safe, thriving home for reform Jews in the San Fernando Valley. This year, we are also encouraged to support the campaign in another way: by sharing the gift of your own Temple Judea story. 

Temple Judea is a place where Judaism comes to life for each of its members, through the traditions, relationships, and moments of Jewish joy that we all share. Whether you’re singing Shabbat songs with friends, watching your child proudly take the bimah, discovering something new in a class, celebrating a simcha surrounded by people who know and love you, or finding support when you need it most: for all of us, Temple Judea is our second Jewish home. It’s the familiar faces, the traditions we pass from one generation to the next, and the moments that remind us how meaningful it is to belong to a Jewish community.

Throughout the High Holy Days and the Festivals of Tishrei, you will find tables set up throughout the campus, fitted with pens, pencils, and special “share the sweetness” cards. Take a moment to visit one of these tables and share your own sweet Temple Judea moment: a memory, a person, a tradition, or an experience that has stayed with you. Or, scan the QR code we’ll have on display and submit your story digitally. We’ll be collecting these stories and sharing some of them with the wider community in the weeks and months ahead.

There are so many things that make Temple Judea special, from our award-winning Jewish education to our musical worship services, to the simple feelings of belonging that we feel when we gather together as one, extended Jewish family. Share what resonates with you and add your own story to the collection of moments that make our community what it is. There will be many more opportunities to spread – and sustain - the sweetness this year, so stay tuned!