Join renowned storyteller, scholar, and rabbi Dan Judson for a thoughtful lecture and interactive conversation on The Past and Future of Liberal Zionism. At this moment of crisis in Israel, the very possibility of a Zionism that is grounded in liberal, humanistic values has come into question. In this lecture, we will define what liberal Judaism means in today’s context, explore some of its history, and ask what the future holds for liberal Zionism. Catered dinner and desserts served.

6:00pm Dinner and 6:30-8:00pm Lecture 

This event will be on Zoom starting at approximately 6:30pm.

Rabbi Dan Judson, Ph.D. serves as the Provost of Hebrew College in Newton, MA where he is also a lecturer in Jewish history. Rabbi Judson received his doctorate in Jewish history at Brandeis University and his book, Pennies for Heaven: The History of American Synagogues and Money (University of Chicago Press, 2018) was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. He is presently working on a book about American Zionist history, When America Became Zionist: The Lodge-Fish Resolution of 1922 and the Surprising Group of Politicians who Changed American Policy Towards Israel. His research and writing on new models of synagogue finance have appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Haaretz, Reform Judaism magazine and many other Jewish publications. He is also a storyteller who has appeared on the MOTH national radio hour.

This program is funded in part by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation     

Young families join Rabbi David and Beth in the JCOGS Mitzvah Garden for our final gathering of the year.  We'll dance and sing and hear the classic story, Eliezer and the Gezer, about a stubborn carrot and then plant carrots to eat  next year.  Followed by a lite nosh.

For kiddos birth to 6 years old and their grown ups.
With thanks to PJ Library in Vermont for partnering on this event.

Starting in silent movies and extending to today’s hit series “Menasha” and “Unorthodox,” Yiddish language films started as an attempt to entertain the Jewish masses only to become a powerful visual and esthetic record on 20th/21st century Jewry.

Covering over a dozen films all with newly composed sub-titles, author/producer Henry Sapoznik and Rick Winston, Vermont's favorite movie maven, talk not only about the great stars of the Yiddish stage and screen (Molly Picon, Maurice Schwartz) but also shed light on the nearly lost legacy of pioneers like producer/director Joseph Seiden and director Edgar G. Ulmer (better known for his gritty, low budget film noirs) who helped will Yiddish films into existence despite tremendous odds during its brief “Golden Age” In addition to films made by and for the immigrant Jewish community, their talk will also focus on how Yiddish was presented in mainstream Hollywood films featuring James Cagney, Joe E. Brown and the Three Stooges.

The Jewish Community of Greater Stowe with our interfaith partners in Lamoille County join together to commemorate Yom HaShoah-Holocaust Remembrance Day.

This year's theme is: The Holocaust is Personal, as the event includes the tragic, heroic, and uplifting stories of JCOGS members Marcie Scudder and Edee Simon family histories during the Shoah. This event will also include traditional memorial prayers, readings, and candle lighting. Lite refreshments will be served after, as we gather together in community connection.

All are invited to attend this in-person, interactive, Kosher-for-Passover, and musical seder led by Rabbi David. Passover resources for youth will be provided.

Welcome to our 2025 Community Seder!

Our Seder will begin at 5:00pm, with potluck dinner being served around 7:00pm.

Kosher-for-Passover vegetarian or dairy dishes are welcome! Matzoh ball soup will be provided. Regular and gluten-free matzoh will be available. Space is limited.

Registration is required by April 6.

In partnership with PJ Library and Stowe Free Library.

Celebrate early spring in the sugar bush!

Join us as we gather in the Living Tree sugar bush to wake up Mother Earth and honor the Jewish month of joy and Vermont’s great miraculous thaw. Hibernation season is over, so let’s celebrate!

We’ll have lots to do at this all-ages seasonal celebration:

• See an old-school maple sugar operation run by the Crowley family at Living Tree

• Have fun with flower wreath making and face painting

• Enjoy music and food by the fire

• Revel in our community theater pageant—an “everyone plays a part” production

• Share in the joy of fresh sap, syrup, and the new season 

A few more details:

• Admission is by pay-what-you-can donation ($18-54 suggested)

• Be prepared for lots of mud (muckboots and waterproof pants recommended), as getting to the sugar house involves a walk.

• Fresh maple syrup will be available for purchase—cash only! 

• Please leave your dogs at home

This event is co-sponsored with Jewish Communities of Vermont, with generous support of Harold Grinspoon Foundation. 

Register

Come celebrate Purim with us!

Our annual Purim Party is fun for all ages. Come in costume (if you want!) Get ready for tzedekah box decorating, listening to a portion of the megillah in both English and Hebrew, and of course, stay for pizza and hamantaschen!

Registration is required.

“Understanding Roots" is a presentation given by a pair of Roots leaders - one Israeli and one Palestinian - who tell their personal stories and offer inspiring accounts of inner transformation as a result of face-to-face contact with the other side.

This is an online only event that will feature a Q&A after the presentation.

Registration is required to get the zoom link.

Join us at Beth Jacob for a Hebrew reading of the megillah with a guest reader from Chabad in Burlington. Stay for a hamentaschen (or two!) RSVP below!

Come and join us at JCOGS for this annual Family Purim Party. Expect games, songs, Persian potluck, Megillah reading, and a silly spiel. Come in costume or dress up on sight.

Are you ready to make a difference, both within yourself and in the world around you? Join us for a transformative monthly series that blends self-care, spiritual exploration, and community action. This series invites you to integrate your personal growth with your commitment to social change, cultivating inner awareness that makes us better community members and more effective agents of tikkun olam. 

All are welcome, including mitzvah students and their families!

Session Themes & Schedule
Structured around Jewish holidays, each month will focus on a theme that connects spiritual insight with action.

March 4 – From Purim to Pesach: Freedom and Transformation

Upcoming sessions: 

April 1 – From Pesach to Shavuot: Liberation and Wisdom

May 6 – The Omer: Counting and Spiritual Development

June 3 – Revelation, Reflection, and What’s Next

Welcome Vermont Forest Cemetery board member and natural burial advocate Jim Hogle for a screening of our documentary From Earth to Earth: The Lost Art of Dying in America at the Beth Jacob! As Jews, our death and burial law is rooted in returning back to the earth "dust to dust". Join us for this beautiful film!

Following the screening there will be a Q&A session to answer all of your natural burial questions.

If you are not familiar with the Vermont Forest Cemetery, you can find more information here.

Light refreshment will be served during screening. Donations are welcomed!

Members, non-members, Jews and non-Jews are all welcome in this space.

Register

Beth Jacob is hosting an all ages/ all-levels snowshoe hike with Sarah Villanueva from 10:00am-12:00pm at North Branch Nature Center. Join naturalist Fiona Modrak for a guided hike where we discuss the local ecology of central Vermont and discuss how animals endure our winters! Take some trail mix home, each ingredient with a different intention as we bring in Tu B'Shvat together!

Gentle disclaimer: this is not a boots hike. Trails are maintained for those using snoeshoes/cross country skiis, and divits in the snow disrupts this. Snowshoes are available for rent upon arrival. Registrants are responsible for renting their own shoes. Bringing your own is also welcome!

Registration required for snowshoe count. We hope to see you there!

https://www.bethjacobvt.org/event/34shoe-b39shvat34-nature-walk-in-person.html

Celebrate the deep beauty of mid-winter with Living Tree Alliance as we gather to honor the holiday of Tu BiShvat, the birthday of the trees. With programs for all ages, we’ll build our relationship with the earth and with each other.  

Program includes: 

• 4:30 p.m. Sledding down the big hill

• 5 p.m.: two programs offered in the field at dusk

• Family Outdoor Tree Celebration with games and observations

• Adult Contemplative Sunset Tree Connection with prayer, song, and reflection

• 6 p.m.: Shabbat candle lighting & tree poetry at the Common House, followed by dinner and deepening our commitments as earth stewards as part of the birthday for the trees and mini Tu BiShvat seder.

A few more details:

• Be sure to dress warmly for outdoor activities from 4:30–6 p.m.

• Bring sleds, skis, and snowshoes for outdoor fun on the property.

• Soup, salad and challah will be provided for dinner. You are welcome to bring a vegetarian side dish to share. 

Please join us!

Tu BiShvat falls approximately halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. As the trees become another year older, this holiday invites us to consider the ways we can live in reciprocity with Mother Nature. 

On Thursday, February 13th, at 6:30 pm, on what is also the holiday of Tu B’Shvat, we’ll be hosting a Challah Baking Workshop. Learn how to make your own Challah, or if you know how, join us in whipping up a big batch to share with the Waterbury Common Market (previously known as the Waterbury Area Food Shelf.)

We’ll have a delicious Tu B’Shvat spread and celebrate the holiday as we get covered in flour for a good cause. Send a RSVP to sara@chabadofstowe.com so we can be prepared with materials for you.

Join us for our Tu B'Shvat Seder at Beth Jacob! We will be seated and starting at 5:30pm.

Registration is required and by sliding scale $5-$10. Please reach out to Sarah if cost is an issue - we do not want anything preventing you from celebrating with us!

Allergy disclaimer: almonds, walnuts. 

Register

All are welcome to an evening of food provided and discussion with Pastor Dan Haugh of Stowe Community Church, Pastor Becca Girrell of United Community Church of Morrisville, Father Rick Swanson of St. John's Episcopal Church, and Rabbi David Fainsilber of Jewish Community of Greater Stowe. In honor of the legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Suggested donation: $20

Honor Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy through service, community, and care.  

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Join us for an afternoon of Tikkun Olam (repairing the world) from 12:30-4:30pm, followed by community soup meal from 4:30-6pm. Projects for all ages!

Activities include:

• Cooking and baking for local shelters

• Donating, sorting and delivering winter gear to local agencies

• Creating Tikkun Olam T-shirts

• Visiting or calling JCOGS members through our Chesed Circle of Care

• Helping with the community soup meal ( or just attending!)

• Volunteering at the UCC Morrisville Church warming shelter

• Supporting other JCOGS initiatives

Whether you’re in Stowe or contributing remotely, there’s a way for everyone to get involved.

Sign up here: https://forms.gle/gugrQa5wVZSebBf46

Explore all opportunities to engaging in Tikkun Olam with JCOGS this Mitzvah Day!

~~~~~~~~~

Mitzvah Day – What You Can Bring!

If you're coming to Mitzvah Day, here’s how you can help:

1. Bring a T-Shirt to Create Tikkun Olam T-Shirts!
   (T-shirts will also be available for sale. Proceeds go to our Tikkun Olam Fund for future projects.)

2. Bring Donations by 2:30 PM (or bring them in advance)!
   We’re collecting:

   • Winter gear

   • Gently used men’s & women’s pants

   • Winter boots & snow pants (all sizes)

   • Sneakers & hiking boots

   • Gently used bath towels, washcloths, & hand towels

Thank you for your generosity and support!

Learn more here

We'll gather at Living Tree for an intergenerational celebration including:

• Community crafts and games for all ages—you don't want to miss the infamous Maccabee fort, human dreidel contest, and gelt stacking!

• A special music performance for the little ones with Miss Andrea of Musical Munchkins

• Menorah lighting—feel free to bring your own!

• Chanukah storytelling

• Cozy potluck dinner—Latkes and Soup will be provided - bring a vegetarian dish to share

• Seasonal song circle around the bonfire with Musicians Avi Salloway and Emma Back.

Co-sponsored by Jewish Communities of Vermont, PJ Library VT and Living Tree Alliance

Pay-what-you-can donation ($18–$56 per family suggested). No one turned away for inability to pay.Donations for this event will be split between LTA's end-of-year fundraising goals and the Good Samaritan homeless warming shelter in Montpelier.

MENORAH LIGHTING AND STORY TIME WITH THE GOVERNOR

Kids of all ages come celebrate Hanukkah with the catchy pop tunes of Grammy winner Joanie Leeds! Latkes, dreidels, and lots of Hanukkah fun as we light the second candle together.

This is event is free and open to all thanks to JCVT and a generous grant from the Covenant Foundation.

Join us for our annual Film & Asian Food Night! Dinner will be provided from Capitol Pho with options to choose from below. Film to be announced shortly!

Registration is required for ordering the correct meals. RSVP below!

Join us for our annual Chanukah Party on December 22 at 3:00pm! Latkes and other refreshment are potluck style. Please email Sarah if you are intending to bring latkes/condiments! Other vegetarian dishes are encouraged as well. Registration is encouraged