A CARING COMMUNITY at FAIRMOUNT TEMPLE

The Largest Small Synagogue in Cleveland

Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple congregants, staff, and Board members have been engaged in the process of developing a Strategic Plan for our future, Envisioning Together.  This plan will enable us to take a fresh look at the pillars of our congregation, Lifelong Learning,  Worship and Social Action and Deeds of Loving Kindness. What kind of community do we want to be?  How do we make our vision a reality?

Our vision includes making Fairmount Temple feel like the “largest small synagogue” in Cleveland.  We are extremely fortunate to have all the advantages of a large synagogue—a beautiful building, excellent learning options for children and adults, and a variety of worship services.  We also have the opportunity to create the culture of a small congregation, with its atmosphere of warmth, caring, and connection.  We hope to deepen congregants’ experience of belonging to a true community in which members take care of each other in difficult times and share in each others’ happiness in times of joy.

We invite you to explore these opportunities to create sacred community in many ways, whether it’s volunteering to help make this world a better place, or gathering together to help grieve and heal together. Together, we can build a caring community.

Congregation-Based Community Organizing
Congregation-Based Community Organizing is a new concept being introduced at Fairmount Temple in which we explore deeper the root causes of problems in our society and how to deal with those causes to create fundamental societal changes. The genius of community organizing is rooted in the nurturing of personal relationships as a starting point for making real social change. 

Congregation-Based Community Organizing uses a “grounds up” approach.  Not brainstorming on what we think are the needs of this community, but by asking through one-on-one discussions, one person at a time. This is where Fairmount Temple’s initiative will begin, by asking, talking and meeting one-on-one with each other and in groups in congregants’ homes. As we get to know each other, one person at a time, we will identify the societal issues that our congregation wants to address. This is where Fairmount Temple’s initiative will begin, by asking and listening.

Volunteer Choir

Fairmount Temple has a wonderful musical reputation and this is an opportunity to share our melodic talents in the community with visits to nursing homes or other places where the sound of music is appreciated. Join the Chesed Singers today!

Community Kitchen

A chance to gather together and cook meals that will be stored and delivered to congregants who may be ill or just returning from the hospital. Volunteers gather in Fairmount Temple’s kitchen to make a hearty soup, homemade cookies and bread, all made with love.

Building Community at Montefiore and the Greens

There is a need in the community for people who might have a little time on Shabbat to share their time with the residents of Montefiore and the Greens.  Here’s how you can help:

Montefiore:

After the Friday Shabbat Service, residents enjoy Shabbat dinner as a community in various dining rooms.  Volunteers are needed (maybe you can do it once a month?) to come in around 5:15 p.m. until around 6 p.m. and chant the Shabbat blessings before dinner for the residents. 

Greens of Lyndhurst

Each Friday at 4 p.m., the Jewish residents of the Greens of Lyndhurst gather for a short service.  There are just a few Jewish residents and they welcome others who might join them in the service.  If you can give a little time on a Friday around 3 p.m., your presence is a present to these residents.

Welcoming Buddy Program

Every year, Fairmount Temple is blessed to welcome new members to our synagogue family.  Some may be new to the Cleveland area, or joining a synagogue for the first time. To ease their transition and to welcome them, we will match new members with “buddies”--Fairmount Temple individuals or families who can help them feel comfortable in their new synagogue home.  If you are a veteran Fairmount Temple member who would like to be a ‘buddy”, or a new member who would like to be matched with one, or if you have questions about what being a buddy entails, let us know.

If you know someone who is ill and could use a little home cooking, or if you can give a little of your time on a Friday to make Shabbat more meaningful to others, please contact Wendy Jacobson at 216-464-1330, ext. 162 or Wjacobson@fairmounttemple.org.

 These are opportunities to build and deepen our relationships with each other and be part of  the largest small synagogue in Cleveland!