5783 Simchat Torah Honorees

We are pleased to announce our Simchat Torah honorees for 5783! This Simchat Torah morning, (Tuesday, October 18), Westchester Jewish Center is proud to honor Beth Jaret as our Kallat Torah (the groom of Torah) and Tracey Levy as our Kallat Bereshit (the bride of Bereshit). On Simchat Torah we finish reading the Torah and immediately start again from the beginning. The Kallat Torah and Kallat Bereshit are honored with the last aliyah in the Torah reading cycle and the first in the next cycle respectively. The honor is traditionally reserved for people who go above and beyond to share Torah with the congregation.

Beth will be representing the outgoing Spiritual Life Committee chairs Beth and Al Sassoon. In their many years at the helm of the SLC, Beth and Al provided important guidance on many issues including the selection and onboarding of Rabbi Jeffrey Arnowitz, the first new senior rabbi WJC has hired in 33 years and the hiring of our Assistant Rabbi Cornelia Dalton. They were also essential in facilitating the quick adaptations WJC made to function during the peak times of the pandemic. Leadership during unprecedented times and periods of transition always presents intense challenges and the congregation, not to mention WJC’s clergy, is forever grateful for their efforts in this and many other areas.

Tracey has taken the helm of the Spiritual Life Committee with experience, passion and remarkable insight. In these first few months in her role she has already overseen several important discussions and decisions related to the clergy, various worship services and the functioning of the SLC itself. The WJC family welcomes Tracey to her new role and is grateful to her for not only accepting this challenging new role, but for her already proven wisdom and commitment.

As we turn the Torah scroll once again from the end to the beginning and call out Hazak, Hazak, v’Nithazek (May we go from strength to strength) we honor our outgoing and incoming Spiritual Life Committee chairs and proclaim, “Hazak, Hazak, vNithazek,” May we too go from strength to strength.

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