Doing Mitzvot or Tikun Olam are part of our adult responsibility as Jews.
Our children, who are becoming a Bar/Bat Mitzvah, can take the first steps
in accepting this responsibility in the form of a B'nai Mitzvah Project.
Acts of Loving Kindness
Repairing the World
Son/Daughter of the Commandments

What constitutes a B'nai Mitzvah Project?

It is not a mandatory requirement of the B'nai Mitzvah process but, a social action that is individually decided upon by each B'nai Mitzvah family. Some families may chose to participate in a charitable event, such as a walk-a-thon or other fundraising activity, asking friends and family to sponsor them.
Other ideas are to collect items (clothing, jewelry, instruments, etc.) to be donated to a specific organization. Collections of items cannot simply be done at the synagogue with a drop off box. Our synagogue offers many opportunities for families and children to volunteer. Helping out at any of our events with set up or clean up can be a great way to perform a mitzvot.

Families looking for ideas for a mitzvah project, should feel free to speak to the Rabbi and Cantor for guidance.

Rebecca Kilcoyne
July. 2009

 As most of you know, every year since my mom's close friend Cindy died, my family & I participate in the Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Walk in New York. We celebrate Cindy's life and hope to help many other families.

This year I decided to do more to support The Lustgarten Foundation. I am volunteering at the New York Walk and will be assisting with the setup and refreshments. I am also raising awareness in my community by selling bracelets and handing out informative pamphlets. I created a web page to raise additional funds, and every dollar raised will go to research in hope for a cure.

Please join me in the fight against Pancreatic Cancer. If you would like to purchase a bracelet please send me an email or visit my website.

Andrew Woller
Sept. 2008

 Andrew's Mitzvah Project includes collecting clothes, shoes, and non-perishable food items for a local family in need of assistance.
Cory Levine
August 2008		 Cory has chosen a Bar Mitzvah project to help raise money to fight childhood cancer. He was very interested in the Alex's Lemonade Foundation when they came this past year to speak to the children in Religious School and has hosted one Alex's Lemonade Stand so far, which raised money to support this foundation. If anyone is interested in making a contribution, they may do so by writing a check made payable to Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation and leave it in an envelope in the office or contact him directly.
Geoffrey Watman
May 2008		 I will be participating, along with my family, in a National Kidney Foundation's Kidney Walk, sometime in June. My grandma, Carole Kalish (a B'nai Tikvah member) may be in need of a kidney transplant. I wanted to be tested to see if I could be her donor match but, my grandma's doctor said I was too young. I contacted the National Kidney Foundation, and they sent me materials on kidney disease. I had asked my contact at the foundation if they could do a screening here at B'nai Tikvah, but they are booked up through 2009. That's when I learned about the foundation's Kidney Walk. The walk presents an occasion for dialysis patients, organ transplant recipients, donor families, living donors, the medical and business communities, and the general public to celebrate life and create lasting community and long-term support for the foundation's mission.

Lets hope that one day people will not have to suffer with this disease. I thank you for your support.

Matthew Baratta
May 2008		 I am raising money for "Chai" (Concern for Helping Animals in Israel). Israel has a tremendous stray cat and dog overpopulation because of a lack of spaying and neutering education and facilities to carry these procedures out. The few small animal shelters receive little or no government support and survive on donations made by caring citizens. Medicine and supplies are costly because they must be imported. When people are evacuated from their homes in Israel, Chai and its sister charity Hakol Chai are on hand with mobile clinics, veterinarians, staff and volunteers rescuing the animals that get left behind. These people work in dangerous conditions, night after night, to help these animals providing food, water, medical help and shelter.
Sarah Safeer
February 2008		 For my Bat Mitzvah project, as did Moshe, in the Parsha Terumah, I am collecting unwanted gold jewelry from any one whose heart is so moved. Do you have one earring and you can't find the other match? Or broken necklaces or bracelets that you will never get around to fixing and that you don't want anymore? Or rings too small to fit or that you will never wear again. I'll be collecting these items over the coming months. With the total amount of money that I collect, I will be purchasing food to make bagged lunches for those less fortunate than you and me.
Shawn Kilcoyne
September 2007		 I am selling bracelets to raise money for the Foundation Fighting Blindness. The bracelets are $3.00 each and 100% of the money raised will go to the foundation.

The primary mission of the Foundation Fighting Blindness is to drive the research that will provide preventions, treatments and cures for people affected by retinitis pigmentosa (RP), macular degeneration, usher syndrome, and the entire spectrum of retinal degenerative diseases. The foundation also provides resources and education for people with these diseases and their families.

Daniel Levin
March 2007 		Got instruments? Do you, or anyone you know, have a musical instrument that they are no longer using, whether they have upgraded instruments, changed instruments, or stopped playing in general? If so, instead of having them just sit around your house, you can donate them to the New Brunswick school system, which is starting up a band program after not having one for 20 years. All you need to do is drop the instruments off at the Cantor's office, and I will take them to New Brunswick for my Mitzvah Project. These donations are tax deductible.
Kyle Spivak
March 2007 		Pookas for Peace . Purchase a necklace to help with Kyle's Bar Mitzvah project. The pooka shell necklaces & bracelets combine the colors of the flags of Israel and Lebanon as a symbol of PEACE for the region. All profits are split equally to support Israeli and Lebanese charities.

 


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