Havurah Sample Calendar

Sample One Year Program for a V.B.S. Havurah

SEPTEMBER

• Rosh Hashanah sweet table
• Break Fast with families
• Discussion on "Changing Values"
• Discussion on "How to Improve Family Togetherness"

OCTOBER

• Build a Sukkah
• Brunch in Sukkah with children
• Dinner in Sukkah (adults) followed by discussion
• Attend Sukkah Dinner at Temple as a group

NOVEMBER

• Thanksgiving celebration as a Havurah
• Shabbat dinner at a members' house
• Discussion on kashrut
• Collect food for food bank

DECEMBER

• Channukah celebration
• Help at Channukah faire
• Discussion on "Interfaith marriages and conversion"
• Collect food and deliver to valley shelters

JANUARY

• Attend Saturday morning service and have lunch at a Havurah member's home
• Discussion on "Belief in God"
• Visit Chabad House for a Shabbat dinner and service
• Play the game "Traditions" (Jewish Trivial Pursuit)

FEBRUARY

• Discussion on "Jewish Music"
• Discussion on Cult groups (speaker from Temple or Jewish Federation)
• Go to a movie or play and return to a member's home for discussion and refreshments

MARCH

• Havurah retreat (Brandeis, Ramah, Highland Springs, etc.)
• Discussion on "Ethical Wills"
• Serve a dinner at Valley shelter
• Havurah dinner at Temple

APRIL

• Third seder - "What Passover means to me"
• Discussion on the Middle East (Arab) situation
• Visit Skirball Museum
• Collect food for Passover baskets at VBS

MAY

• Discussion on the Holocaust
• Speaker from Simon Wiesenthal Center
• Shabbat dinner together (maybe divide into two or three groups)

JUNE

• Attend Shavuot services and late night study
• "Hag ha Bikurim" - Festival of First Fruits - go cherry picking!
• Discussion on a significant movie, book, play, etc.
• Video and discussion (video available at Temple)

JULY

• Hollywood Bowl picnic and concert
• Unfinished sentence activity
• Bring a significant Jewish artifact and discuss its history

AUGUST

• Barbecue/Picnic
• Re-evaluate Havurah activities
• Plan year's agenda

 

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Sample Calendar (for Havurot with Children)

January: Picnic in the park with the kids.

February: Invite a speaker, perhaps a Rabbi, for an "Adults Only" discussion on the absorption of Ethiopian Jews into Israeli society (or any other topic of interest).

March: Attend the Temple Purim Turnabout service together and the Purim Carnival. Have a table at the Temple Havurah Shabbat.

April: If you are ambitious, host a second or last night Passover Seder.

May: Adults only meeting to evaluate how the Havurah is functioning. (Are the activities successful? Is everyone doing their share of the work?).

June: Beach party with the kids.

July: Saturday night BBQ with the kids. Include Havdalah service.

August: Shabbat Potluck dinner (you can reserve a room at the Temple) and then attend Family Shabbat services.

September: Adults only evening. Share stories about your varied Jewish upbringings. Perhaps invite a speaker from the Jewish Genealogical Society, and/or Break Fast after Yom Kippur services.

October: Build a Sukkah in a family's backyard and have dinner in it.

November: Volunteer to prepare and serve food to the homeless (Check with the Temple Ethical Action Committee for other volunteer projects)

December: Channukah party with the kids.