In This Issue:

1. MOTAS SHABBAT – FR 1/10
2. MOTAS MONTHLY MEETING – SU 1/12
3. DINING OUT AT LEMON ZEST – MO 1/13
4. DECEMBER MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES
5. IN CLOSING

(* indicates updated items)

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From the Editor: The goal of the Weekly is to get MoTAS members the information they need on upcoming activities, and then get out of the way. If you have any information on MoTAS activities you need to get out to the membership, please contact the Weekly Editor at cybermaven@tasnorthridge-motas.org. We are now in our summer hiatus, so the weekly will be every 2-3 weeks, depending on upcoming events.

1. MOTAS SHABBAT – FR 1/10

As you are aware, every year MoTAS has an opportunity to lead the congregation in prayer.  We also give the temple our unofficial “State of MoTAS” address, and announce our Man of the Year.  In past years, interested men were able to participate in the service, by reading sections in English, prayers in Hebrew, singing in our “choir,” or making brief reflections on their experiences with MoTAS.

This year, our service will be held on Friday, January 10, 2024, 7:00 PM. Although it will be streaming, it will NOT be on Zoom. You must be present to participate.

Please contact Bob Levine, at tasboblevine@gmail.com if you are able to join in, and what you would like to do.  If you are unable/unwilling/not available, please let Bob know as well.

More information regarding what you would be doing will be sent out as soon as the service is put together.

2. JANUARY MOTAS MEMBERSHIP MEETING – SU 1/12

Our January Membership meeting will be Sunday, 1/12, at 9:00am. A full breakfast, including bagels, lox, and eggs, will be available starting at 8:45am. Join us for our usual business review, and learn what is happening with the temple. Our speaker will be Rabbi Becky Hoffman.

3. DINING OUT AT LEMON ZEST – MO 1/13

Would you like an easy way to help MoTAS financially? How about taking your family to lunch or dinner. The MoTAS “Dining Does Good” allows you to go out to lunch or dinner, and have the restaurant donate a portion of your check support the Men of TAS. Our January Dining Does Good” will be Monday, January 13, 2025  at Lemon Zest, 9610 Reseda Blvd. Northridge, CA 91324,  (818) 818-6164. You can find a flyer for the event at https://wp.tasnorthridge-motas.org/activities/dining/ or download it directly from our Box account. Once you are at the Box version of the flyer:

• If you are on a PC or Mac using a browser: (1) click on the white DOWNLOAD button; (2) there will be a pop-up about logging in to do more — ignore that – just close the popup box; (3) You will be prompted on where to save the download, or it will go into the downloads directory; (4) when the download is complete, open the PDF and print it. DO NOT right click and attempt to print from the Box page.
• If you using a browser on an Android phone: This takes you directly to the PDF. You can download or print from there.
• If you are using some other method, please send it to me and I’ll include it on this list.
• If you can’t figure this out at all: Drop me an email at cybermaven@tasnorthridge-motas.org , and I’ll send you the PDF as an attachment.

We really encourage you to come and support these events: we raise a little extra funds for our work, but more importantly, we come together and break bread as a Temple family on a regular basis. It is a real joy to walk into a neighborhood restaurant and see your Temple friends, to sit down and share a table and talk. This is the heart and goal of MoTAS: Building Relationships.

4. DECEMBER MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES

Date: Sunday, December 8, 2024, at TAS

Presiding: President Larry Hoffman

Members Present: Larry Hoffman (President), Hal Bass (Secretary), Bill Bigelson, Les Birken, Bob Brostoff, Jim Eblinger, Scott Gore (VP), Al Lapides, Gordon Lester, Bob Levine, Roger Lowe (Treasurer), Joel Lowell, Barry Mann, Howard Miller, Chuck Mondrus, Jeff Neiman, Larry Pfefer (Immediate Past President), Howard Schnee, Bill Shapiro, Mike Thornhill, Marshall Waldman, Scott Yollis (VP)

Guests: Dorothy Hoffman, Diane Levine, Judy Stehr

Coffee & Breakfast: Bob Levine, Roger Lowe, Mike Thornhill, Scott Yollis

Question of the Day: What is on your wish list?

President’s Report:

• Dining Does Good coordinator Barry Mann said due to diminished interest in the monthly program, he plans to offer a Dining Does Good experience in alternate months. He is currently looking into a new venue for January.
• The newly landscaped area near the entry and offices, which Howard Miller arranged for and MoTAS supported financially, will be formally dedicated on Sunday, December 15, at 11:30 am.
• Larry Pfefer thanked Bill Shapiro whose firm provided new lighting fixtures.
• We are currently running a deficit on breakfasts served at MoTAS meetings. Please consider increasing donations to adjust for inflation. Members can use the Venmo or Zelle option.
• MRJ is planning a regional retreat in Running Springs, near Lake Arrowhead. Tentative dates are June 6-8, 2025. The cost is $360 per person. Larry asked for a show of hands from those interested in attending the retreat, and there was no response. One reason may be that our annual congregational meeting is scheduled for Sunday, June 8th.

Roger Lowe’s Treasurer’s Report as of 12/05/2024:

• See Emailed Version

New Business:

• Due to a dearth of reservations, the Poker Tournament organized by Howard Miller and originally scheduled to take place Sunday, November 17, has been postponed until Sunday, March 9, 2025.
• Brian Hatkoff sent word that Men of Reform Judaism will hold a webinar by Zoom on Thursday, December 12, at 5:30 pm Pacific. The topic is Antisemitism Here and There and will feature former Democratic Rep. Ted Deutch, a lifelong Jewish and pro-Israel activist, who became CEO of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) on October 1, 2022. He joined AJC after more than 12 years in the House of Representatives, representing Broward and Palm Beach counties in Florida. In Congress, Ted served as chair of the House Ethics Committee, was a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, and a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on which he served as chair of the Middle East, North Africa, and Global Counterterrorism Subcommittee. Here is the link to register for the webinar: Webinar Registration – Zoom
• Chuck Mondrus announced plans for dinner on Wednesday, Dec 25, at 5 pm, at the Hot Wok in Northridge. Family members are invited. The cost is $26 per person including tax and tip. Reservations must be made and paid for by Friday, Dec 20, at noon. No exceptions and no walk-ups. If not paying online, your check must be received by the close of reservations on Dec 20. You can reserve online and pay via Venmo or Zelle to treasurer@tasnorthridge-motas.org. To reserve online, go to https://tasmotas.ticketleap.com/24-12-motas-jewish-xmas/ .
• The annual MoTAS Shabbat will take place Friday evening, January 10, 2025. It is at this event that we introduce our Man of the Year. A sign-up sheet for participants was circulated.
• There will be a joint Trivia Night with the Sisterhood on Thursday, January 30. Members agreed to share security costs with the Sisterhood.
• At our February 9 general membership meeting, Scott Yollis will discuss historical aspects of gun control.
• The regional 2025 Men of the Year honorees dinner will be held Saturday evening, March 8, at Temple Beth Tikvah in Fullerton.
• The Sunday, March 9 MoTAS meeting will be abbreviated so members and other congregants can watch a film about racial discrimination based on the best-selling Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson.
• L’Dough V’Dough, a joint activity of MoTAS and the Sisterhood, on Sunday, March 16, will feature a speaker from the Museum of Tolerance plus challah preparation.
• The TAS-Beth Hillel Men’s Passover Seder will be held at TAS Sunday, March 30.

Educational Presentation: Diane Levine, long-time TAS member and retired professor of Anthropology at L.A. Pierce College, spoke about “Why the Brain Believes: Why Do We Believe in the Supernatural?” She said that she doesn’t believe in the supernatural – but believes in the natural world and empirically verifiable phenomena. But why does every culture have beliefs about the supernatural and why do most people believe in the supernatural? And how did she find herself experiencing the supernatural when she didn’t believe in it? Topics Diane covered were brain evolution, formation of stone tools, language characteristics, superstition, dreaming (which may include long-deceased family members or others), and the social cohesion promoted by religion. Diane’s presentation was greatly appreciated and well received.

The next General Membership Meeting will take place Sunday, Jan 12, 2025, at 8:45 am. Rabbi Becky Hoffman will be the guest speaker.

Respectfully submitted,

Hal Bass/Secretary

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. Join the MoTAS Google Group at https://groups.google.com/g/tas-motas (you may need to be logged into your Google account, if you have one). Come be part of the Men of Temple Ahavat Shalom!