Mitzvah Opportunities!
FVJN Garden in Geneva — A Great Way to Start the Day!
Sat., Aug. 11, 8 a.m.
All Are Invited!
FVJN volunteers of all ages are needed to help with planting on Saturday, Saturday, Aug. 11, starting at 8 a.m. Meet at the SW corner of Third St. and State St. (Rt. 38)
FVS students and families are especially encouraged to come help as well as learn about the art, design, nature, prayer and more, which all contribute to our garden.
The garden we are responsible for is on the southwest corner of State St. (Rt. 38) and Third St., in Geneva. You can just show up or contact our volunteer garden coordinator: marci@worddesigner.net.
If able, please bring gardening gloves, shovel, trowel, clippers, etc.
FVJN Volunteers at the Food Bank: A Fun Mitzvah! Saturday, Aug. 25, 9 – 11 a.m. FVJN families and individuals will have the opportunity to work a Youth Volunteer session at NIFB (Northern Illinois Food Bank). If you wish to participate please let Rachel know, ASAP (rachely@fvjn.org). For this session, volunteers can be as young as 8 years of age! If you’ve done this with us before, you know how fun it is, and it’s a terrific way to help our greater community! Lend a Hand! FVJN Lazarus House Volunteer Project FVJN Volunteers needed once a month We need your help in continuing to provide dinner the first Wednesday of each month to the guests of Lazarus House, a shelter located in St. Charles. Please consider helping with this FVJN Volunteer Project and sign up, now! Volunteers are currently needed for July, August and September. Past FVJN families who’ve prepared and provided dinners include the Weinbergers, the Kurals, and the Evans families. For info, tips and more, please RSVP to Tammie: tammiew@fvjn.org.
FVJSchool Registration Open!
The FVJSchool is set to open for its third school year this fall, with educational, engaging and exciting Jewish experiences for our students!
FVJSchool is held from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. every other Sunday, during the school year. Hebrew class will be offered from 11:30 to 12:30, on FVJS mornings.
This program has classes for children beginning
at age 3 and continuing through 8th grade.
FVJS welcomes children from those with no formal religious education or Jewish
knowledge, to those who have previously attended religious education
programs. The FVJS program provides a general Jewish education and does not
adhere to any one particular branch of Judaism.
Information and registration forms are available at www.fvjn.org.
or email Barb Anderson: barb.anderson58@att.net.
Recently, while on vacation, I purchased an antique mahjong set. I
have yet to learn the game, but my sister, who has become a participant
in a weekly game, said she would teach me.
My mother, who passed away last December, played twice a week, during
the past few years. My great aunt was also a fan of the game, and had her
own set (with ivory tiles; mine are wood), which unfortunately got lost after
she died.
While the familial connection is an important one to me, I’ve always been
intrigued by this game which crossed the seemingly unconnected cultures of
Chinese to Jewish. How on earth did that happen?
Calling for four players using 152 tiles to make matches and sequences,
this Chinese game of skill and chance has deep roots in the American-
Jewish lifestyle dating back to the 1920s. It also points to parallels between
Jews and Chinese.
“The relationship between American Jews and Chinese-Americans is a very interesting one,” says Andrew Coe, author of Chop Suey: A Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States.
“Most of the direction of the affection seems to go from American Jews being interested in Chinese culture, but there’s a mutual feeling that Jewish and Chinese cultures are both very old world cultures with deep, long-held traditions.”
Much of the interest from American Jews in Chinese culture began in the 1920s, when mahjong swept the US because of widespread interest in the “mysticism” of the East, which also made Chinese food popular.
Mahjong ultimately faded from popular American culture, but both mahjong and Chinese food have remained popular mainstays of Jewish-American tradition.
It’s fascinating to see that China’s favorite game has a history among
Jewish-Americans. It’s another of many links connecting two of the world’s oldest and most continuous cultures. For instance, there are the Jews of Kaifeng, the legacy of the Sassoons of Shanghai, and the Jewish heritage sites still standing in Shanghai as testament to the sanctuary the city provided from the Nazis.
“What’s the difference between Jewish and Chinese mah jong?” the
protagonist of Amy Tan’s “The Joy Luck Club” asks her mother about
the quintessential Chinese game. Her mother replies, “Entirely different
kind of playing…. Jewish mah jong, they watch only for their own tile,
play only with their eyes.”
For additional information, visit: 
July 18, 2012
Mark Your Calendars:
August 10: Shabbat Evening 6:30 p.m. at Peck Farm
August 11: FVJN Gardening in Geneva
August. 12: FVJN Board Meeting
August 14: FVJN Book Club
August 19: Adult Ed. Movie Club
Aug. 25: FVJN at NIFB
President’s Corner
Summer & Shabbat!
It was wonderful to see a number of new faces at our Shabbat Evening this past Friday!
Thank you to everyone who came out, shared in a lovely service (led by Rabbi Fred Margulies) and potluck, and took it all in against the beautiful backdrop of Peck Farm Park.
A special thank you to three new families who came out to see what FVJN is about, and to
meet some new people! We really enjoyed meeting you and certainly hope to see you again soon. Our next Shabbat Evening is August 10th, and we welcome everyone to join us for another wonderful evening service lead by service and song leader Rachel Yackley, plus potluck dinner in the Orientation Barn at the lovely Peck Farm.
In the meantime, stay cool in this heat, and enjoy your late July!
Warmest wishes,
Tammie
Special Note:
After today, you will receive the FVJN eNews once a month, in your
email box. Each week in which FVJN has upcoming events and activities,
you will receive a brief eBlast with details of those specific events.
If you ever have any comments or questions, we’d love to hear from you:
info@fvjn.org.
Thank you!
We have several terrific opportunities which need your help!
FVJN Garden in Geneva
FVJN volunteers of all ages are needed to help with planting on Saturday, Saturday, Aug. 11, starting at 8 a.m. Meet at the SW corner of Third St. and State St. (Rt. 38)
FVS students and families are especially encouraged to come help as well as learn about the art, design, nature, prayer and more, which all contribute to our garden.
The garden we are responsible for is on the southwest corner of State St. (Rt. 38) and Third St., in Geneva. You can just show up or contact our volunteer garden coordinator: marci@worddesigner.net.
If able, please bring gardening gloves, shovel, trowel, clippers, etc.
FVJN Volunteers at the Food Bank
Saturday, Aug. 25, 9 – 11 a.m.
FVJN families and individuals will have the opportunity to work a Youth Volunteer session at NIFB (Northern Illinois Food Bank).
If you wish to participate please let Rachel know, ASAP (rachely@fvjn.org). For this session, volunteers can be as young as 8 years of age! If you’ve done this with us before, you know how fun it is, and it’s a terrific way to help our greater community!
FVJN Lazarus House Volunteer Project
FVJN Volunteers needed once a month
We need your help in continuing to provide dinner the first Wednesday
of each month to the guests of Lazarus House, a shelter located in
St. Charles.
Please consider helping with this FVJN Volunteer Project
and sign up, now! Volunteers are currently needed for July, August
and September.
Past FVJN families who’ve prepared and provided dinners include
the Weinbergers, the Kurals, and the Evans families.
For info, tips and more, please RSVP to Tammie: 
