Tikkun Olam
Adath Shalom members are actively helping to repair the world.
Chesed (Caring) Committee
Adath Shalom’s Chesed committee focuses on ‘Acts of Loving Kindness’ to help congregants and our surrounding community meet life’s challenges, bringing them our spirituality and compassion.
We work closely with the Rabbi, as well as with individual members, synagogue committees, and synagogue staff to identify needs and organize responses. We hope to lift spirits, alleviate isolation, and re-establish links among our congregational family.
If you know of any congregants who are experiencing a major life change – any circumstances needing support (e.g. surgery or an illness in the family) or a simcha (birth or expecting a child), please let us know. Our community’s joy is intrinsically connected. Any way we can reach out to offer our support, we do:
●meals ● transportation ● visits with kindness and encouragement ●
●phone calls ● personal notes ● small gifts●
We also traditionally do blood drives, toy collections for hospitalized children during holiday times, and we donate to and work at local food pantries.
It’s so important to give others the opportunity to perform this mitzvah, so please allow Adath Shalom to lend a hand! Or consider lending a hand yourself! We always welcome new volunteers. The Chesed committee only requires the time you can commit… It can be just a one-time thing or you can join us for our bigger initiatives.
For more information, please contact one of our Chesed Committee Chairs or Rabbi Rudin.
Mitzvah Garden
Adath Shalom’s Mitzvah Garden was the idea of an 11-year-old congregant, Sam Epstein. In 2014, he approached the Green Team and the synagogue board, gaining approval to build a raised bed garden in Adath Shalom’s back yard.
Sam was inspired after attending Eden Village, a farm-to-table Jewish summer camp, where he learned it was his obligation to take care of the earth. The garden is made up of seven beds in the shape of a Magen David. It is all organic, uses companion planting techniques, and drip irrigation to maximize produce and minimize congregants' workload.
Volunteers maintain the garden, growing tomatoes, beans, herbs, carrots, berries, flowers, and more! The garden donates its harvest to the Dover Food Pantry, along with congregants and synagogue events. During the warmer months, the garden can be viewed from our sanctuary's windows.
Click here to see an article about our garden in the New Jersey Jewish News.
Click here to see an article about our garden in the Daily Record.
Green Team
The Green Team’s mission is to:
- Incorporate environmental stewardship into the maintenance of the Synagogue
- Promote environmental stewardship and awareness in the Adath Shalom community and beyond
- Emphasize through religious observance and in other ways the Jewish teachings and traditions to preserve and sustain the environment
- Promote actions that demonstrate our commitment
In 2013, Adath Shalom's Green Team was the first congregation in the country to earn the GreenFaith Energy Shield. The Green Team’s diverse programs have included two interfaith discussions with members of the Christian and Muslim faiths, a tour of environmentally-sensitive sites in the Ironbound section of Newark, an eco-cruise of the Hackensack River, a program explaining how to green one’s home, a program discussing the protection of New Jersey’s Highlands and an initiative to use energy-efficient lighting throughout our building.
nourish.nj
Adath Shalom nourish.NJ volunteers with Representative Mikie Sherrill
Adath Shalom is a proud supporting congregation at nourish.NJ in Morristown. We prepare and serve a lunchtime meal to guests on the third Friday of each month.
(During the pandemic we are supplying breakfast bags instead of physically serving a meal).
Community Opportunities
Adath Shalom members actively donate their time and money to organizations in the local community. See our Community Opportunities page for some ideas on how you can get involved!