This was something which my mother preached to my brother and me from the time we were small.  Partly, I believe because she was not given the fortune of the educational opportunities that were available to us.

She also said, as I now say to my children, “it is not how smart you are, but what you choose to do with it that will get you where you want to go in life”.  Choices are thrust upon us daily.  Having the basis from which to make the right decisions comes from acquiring knowledge!

We as Jews are very inquisitive.  After all we grew up believing that we were the “chosen people” which gives us the right to question everything!  As Reform Jews this door has fortunately for me and my children been open to not only men but women and children as well.

I was lucky enough to grow up at Temple Emanuel!  We had just moved to Cherry Hill when one day I said to my parents, “I want to become a Bat Mitzvah.”  My older brother Matthew had already been Bar Mitzvah’d at a conservative synagogue in Philadelphia. My parents who had not yet joined a synagogue began the search to find a Rabbi and a synagogue that would Bat Mitzvah me because in those days it was rare.  They were turned down by both Rabbi Lewis at Temple Beth Sholom and Rabbi Kahn at Beth El. The only one who agreed was Rabbi Yarrish at Temple Emanuel.

That is when my Journey into Judaism began.  I found a home at Temple Emanuel.  A place of belonging.  My love for Judaism grew and my need for a Jewish presence in my life became very strong.

Being a Reform Jew was quite different than my parents had been used to.  My father questioned whether he would ever be comfortable coming to synagogue without wearing a tallis and yarmulke (as we called them in those days).  Rabbi Yarrish told him to come as he wished.  I remember as a small child in synagogue playing with the tzitzit on my father’s tallis during services.  After all, what else was there to do?

Very shortly my father felt comfortable enough to come without the tallit and soon after the yarmulke.  He realized that it was not as important as he had once thought.  It was being there that mattered!

My mother on the other hand was quite glad we did not belong to a conservative Temple. I was the type of student who for the most part “did as I was told’! 

As she saw me become more and more involved in my Jewish heritage, she knew that had we belonged anywhere else, not only would I not be getting the education I was getting, but, if I came home and told her we had to keep kosher, we would have had to keep kosher!  It was very important to her to not be a hypocrite!

I had a Bat Mitzvah unlike anything my friend’s and family had experienced.  Although it was over 35 years ago, I participated in a Friday night service, I read from the Torah on Saturday morning, had a Haftarah portion, and led the sanctuary in many of the prayers, very similar to what our children at Temple Emanuel continue to do today.

I believe at that moment my thirst for Jewish knowledge and the study of the equality of women in Judaism was forever changed. I went on to become confirmed at Temple Emanuel in the class of 1974.

My picture is proudly displayed on “THE WALL” and I did not know at the time that I would have 2 daughters as well as a son who would also experience the wonderful dedication to Jewish education which Temple Emanuel stands for.  They began in the pre-school and they too strive for their picture to hang on the wall.

The pride which I felt when my daughters had their Bat Mitzvahs and when my oldest became a Confirmand this past spring was indescribable. 

When we were here this summer for Joseph’s meeting with Cantor Peter in preparation for his upcoming Bar Mitzvah this January, I saw Marissa’s picture hanging on the same wall which mine is hanging. It brought on emotions which I can not explain.  They will g-d willing be hanging there for posterity!

Temple Emanuel has continued to grow and change. Making sure that the children who walk through our halls are given the Jewish values that will hopefully guide them through their lives is their primary goal.

After confirmation, I was not complete.  I wanted more!  In those days the only option was to leave from The Pennsauken Mart and take a bus, 2 nights a week, to Gratz Hebrew College in Northeast Philly. I attended the IM WISE department for 11th and 12th grade and graduated with a teaching certificate in 1976.

Our children are now fortunate enough to have a wonderful ELITE program in which they can continue their Jewish education right here at Temple Emanuel.  We also have a teaching methodology class in which they will mentor a teacher so that they too will receive a teaching certificate.

I was able to teach at Temple Emanuel while attending college and graduate school and am now fortunate enough to begin teaching once again.

One never knows at what point in life they will have the need and the desire to fall back on any part of their education.

Thanks to Rabbi David, Rabbi Newburge, and Rabbi Cohen, our children receive the best that any synagogue can offer.

We can only educate our children by setting an example.  They will take what they can or want to from it.

I have a daughter who attended the confirmation trip to Israel last year with Rabbi Newburge as well as another daughter who will be attending this year.  What an experience!  A trip of a lifetime!  I am so fortunate that Temple Emanuel has given them this opportunity.

Last year I happened to be here one evening while my children were at Hebrew School and Rabbi Newburge and Rabbi Cohen invited me to sit in on an adult confirmation class.  I told her very proudly that I did not need to, after all I had already been confirmed.  After sitting in on one class I realized that it was actually the perfect time for me to reaffirm my Judaism. It had been many years and much had changed.  Marissa was about to leave for Israel, was being confirmed and Tiffany would be repeating the process this year along with my son Joseph becoming a Bar Mitzvah.

What a wonderful experience I had!  I shared the bima with 3 very wonderful women.  We all entered the class for various reasons and at different points in our lives.  I have absolutely no regrets and would encourage anyone to do the same.

Here at Temple Emanuel, our spiritual leaders may have changed over the years as well as our physical address however our striving for the best Jewish education for our children continues to be of uptmost importance. 

It has been our great fortune that Rabbi Yarrish was succeeded by the late Rabbi Soslow and when we lost him we were fortunate enough to have Rabbi David step in and take us to the next level.  Rabbi David had a vision for our temple which has seen us grow as a leading Reform Congregation while never losing sight of the personal relationships which were the foundation of our congregation.

Temple Emanuel is a welcoming place where many views are accepted.  There is no right or wrong!  There is no gender difference. Whether Jew by birth or Jew by choice, it is a welcoming place for everyone. 

When I was student teaching over 30 years ago there was a young girl with special needs who wanted desperately to become a Bat Mitzvah.  We worked with her, she achieved her goal, what an accomplishment we can be proud of!  

This continues to be a goal of Temple Emanuel today.  There is no one who does not have the right to become a bar or a bat mitzvah and for that we can be proud.

I stand here tonight on the yarhzeit of both of my parents and I am so grateful that they found Temple Emanuel for me to study and grow.  Even after they were gone, Temple Emanuel continued to be a strong part of my life.

Life takes various turns in its path and even for the short time when I was not a part of the congregation I knew that it was waiting for me to return.

My children Marissa, Tiffany, and Joseph have such strong Jewish identities and have found a home at Temple Emanuel as I have.  What more can I want?  I pray that my family may always continue to study Torah, work hard in their secular education, and be blessed through their Judaism.

AMEN