MoTAS Weekly 10/21/20: TAS Veterans – Sign Up Now for the Veterans Shabbat

In This Issue:

1. November 13: MoTAS Men’s Shabbat Honoring our Veterans

Rabbi Becky and MoTAS (Roger Lowe, Hal Bass and Bob Levine) are planning a shabbat service to honor our temple veterans. The evening service will recognize all temple veterans who have served our country. If you are a current TAS members (or immediate family) who is a veteran (active duty, National Guard, Reserves) please complete the form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScI5U43LJBlMskyHJ7QvjkMutrTZ_i5UmhvpKBUwtF3zWQp2A/viewform. We need to know the veteran’s highest rank, branch of service, years served, and whether they plan to attend services Nov 13. MOTAS looks forward to honoring our veterans. (Return to Top)

2. November 15 Meeting Program – The Homeless Crisis for Military Veterans in Los Angeles

Janet Rice (of TAS), Western Region Managing Director for The Kraddock Group and member of the TAS Board of Trustees, will describe the ongoing homelessness crisis experienced by many military veterans in Los Angeles and current plans to improve the situation. The plight of many veterans is quite sad in America and locally, as many cannot afford housing, medical care, or find jobs. Janet is working on a project that will help alleviate this situation for many such veterans in the Los Angeles area.

Join Zoom Meeting: Contact Howard for Zoom meeting information (Return to Top)

3. OCTOBER MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES

Date: Sunday, October 11, 2020 via Zoom due to social isolation related to the pandemic

Presiding: President Howard Miller

Members Present: Howard Miller (President), Hal Bass (Secretary), Steve Berlin, Bill Bigelson, Les Birken, Joe Blachman, Bob Brostoff, Ian Carson, Mike Doner, Daniel Faigin (Past President), Ken Feldman, David Goldstein, Scott Gore, Brian Hatkoff, Fred Kimmel, Al Lapides, Ed Lapporte, Bob Levine, Roger Lowe (Treasurer), Joel Lowell, Fabian Malinovitz, Barry Mann, William Moalem, Chuck Mondrus, Mark Moskowitz, Jeff Neiman, Larry Pfefer (VP), Russ Rapoport (VP), Bill Shapiro, Wil Simpson, Bernie Singer, Benn Tenn, Mike Thornhill, Les Wieder, Ken Wolf

Guests: Joel Berman, Phyllis Bigelson, Mel Birken, Andrew Chait, John Clark, Karen Davis, Harrison Gore, Jacob Gore, Cheryl Hatkoff, Anita Hoch, Jim Jackman, Helene Kimmel, Fran Lapides, Debby Lieber, Andy Mann, Laraine Miller, Kathy Pullman, Sheila Reback, Andrea Rosenthal, Karen Schnee, Barbara Shapiro, Tammy Singer, Cindy Tenn, Laurel Wolf

President’s Report:

Howard began the meeting by asking MoTAS members to tell about any new hobbies they’ve pursued during the pandemic.

Current temple membership and religious school attendance are close to falling within budget.

The lease of our school building to an outside high school began October 1. Brian Hatkoff took the lead in finding the tenant and arranging the lease. Howard congratulated Brian on being named 2020 Realtor of the Year by the San Fernando Valley Association of Realtors and its over 10,000 members.

On Sunday, October 18, at 2 pm, Sisterhood will present a discussion of ballot propositions led by Fran Lapides, who has long been active with the League of Women Voters.

The Sisterhood Hanukkah Boutique this year will be a virtual event from November 1 thru December 31.

Howard is hopeful that MoTAS can arrange an online poker tournament in the spring.

Howard requested that members contact him with ideas for additional initiatives.

Howard introduced Ben Tenn, who encouraged MoTAS members and their spouses to complete an online questionnaire about TAS membership prepared by students from CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics.

A Shabbat service to honor veterans (active duty, reserves, National Guard) will take place on November 13. Hal Bass, Bob Levine and Roger Lowe are handling the arrangements. Hal noted that an online form prepared by Aaron Solomon for veterans to identify themselves is available in the blast email sent to temple members on Friday, October 9. Hal will also ask Rabbi Becky, Cantor Ken and Aaron about playing a YouTube video with a medley of patriotic songs representing each branch of the military.

Treasurer’s Report, as of 10/07/20:

Annual MoTAS Obligation to the Temple: $5,000

Income: $180 early MoTAS annual donation

Expenses:

Sukkah Luminary Oneg Shabbat: $120

Sports Squares Distributions:

Exit sign lighting upgrades not covered by DWP: $1,500 (funds not yet allocated)

WiFi upgrade: $5,000 ($2,000 WiFi cabling, $1,200 circuit breaker purchase & installation, $1,800 additional TAS support)

Sports Squares:

Prior Years Sports Squares funds: $5,995

2020-21 Football Squares:

Income: $4,728

Winners paid out: <$350>

Net: $4,378

Total Sports Squares Funds Available for Distribution: $10,373 ($5,995+$4,378)

New Business:

Educational Presentation: Scott Gore is an MIT graduate and TAS member who moved to Southern California with his wife, Andrea Rosenthal, and their two sons in 2017 after 30+ years at Raytheon in Massachusetts. Scott is now at JPL, where he is the electronic parts supervisor for NASA’s journey to Mars.

Scott explained that Mars is the most accessible planet, has an atmosphere and may still hold water. As such, it may contain microscopic life. He traced the history of the orbiters, one of which still functions after 19 years. Among the rovers, Curiosity is 9 years along and the rover Insight landed in 2018. ExoMars, developed in Europe, has been delayed until 2022. Perseverance was launched on July 30 and is on a 7-month journey to Mars.

The various rovers analyze the Martian atmosphere, measure temperature, record seismic activity and obtain soil samples. Scott also touched upon current and future missions to other planets and moons within the solar system.

Attendance was excellent for Scott’s talk, which was followed by many good questions.

Adjournment and Next MoTAS Meeting: The next meeting will be held by Zoom on Sunday, November 15, 2020, at 9:00 am. Our guest speaker will be TAS Board of Trustees member Janet Himler Rice, who will discuss veterans’ homelessness.

Respectfully submitted,
Hal Bass/Secretary (Return to Top)

IN CLOSING

As always, remember that the Men of Temple Ahavat Shalom is *your* organization. Keep up to date on our activities at http://www.tasnorthridge-motas.org/ and participate. Sign up for our action alert list at http://tinyurl.com/motas-action-alert. We want to serve all the men of Temple Ahavat Shalom and welcome new participants from the TAS membership. Join our Facebook group and “follow” our website. Come be part of the Men of Temple Ahavat Shalom!

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