Holidays
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Holidays 〰️
Shavuot With BHC
SUN Jun 1, 2025
MON Jun 2 brief evening service 7:30p
dairy dessert interlude 7:50p
leil tikkun [special study] Book of Ruth approx 8p MINYAN NEEDED 10a festival shacharit, Torah
service including Ten Commandments, YIZKOR
Shavuot ice cream social
Come celebrate Shavuot and the promise of a land of milk and honey with a creemee from the Vermont Maple Creemee Company Truck! There will be several flavors of creemee plus toppings. Dairy free and gluten free options will be available.
Join us for one or both events!
Shavuot On The Mountain
11th Annual Shavuot on the Mountain
Join our multi-generational hike (or drive) to the Mountain Chapel on Mt. Mansfield to prepare for Shavuot, the holiday of first fruits and receiving the Torah. On the hike, enjoy community, contemplation, and the beauty of nature and Vermont’s first blooming wildflowers. Once at the Mountain Chapel, we’ll share in song, a community Torah reading, crafts, and a bikkurim (first fruits) parade.
Details:
10am For the hike, meet promptly outside the Mansfield Lodge at Stowe Mountain Resort.
11:15am If driving (not hiking), meet at the free Toll Road parking lot to be paired for carpooling up the chapel.
Hike is 1.5 miles each way. For those that are active hikers this is a moderate hike (steep at times); For those that do not engage in regular vigorous exercise this is a strenuous hike. Families and kids of all ages have done this hike annually.
Prepare to be on the mountain for about 4 hours.
Event will run rain or shine!
If driving, it is important to let us know you are planning to do so, as there are limited spaces available, so carpooling is encouraged.
What to bring: filled water bottles, backpack, bug repellant, rain gear, hat, sunscreen, snacks
We will provide: fun and reflective programming along the way, community building, songs, Shavuot teachings, smiles, fruit, chocolate, and blintzes made by the JCOGS teens with Amy Rosenthal
Co-sponsored by: Jewish Communities of VT, Beth Jacob, and Jewish Community of Greater Stowe (JCOGS).
Registration Coming Soon!
A FIRST HAND ACCOUNT OF THE SHOAH
Rena Bernstein returns to Israel Congregation to share her story, open up to you for questions and to discuss her feeling about the rise of worldwide anti-semitism in the wake of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Refreshments will be offered following the presentation
Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Memorial Event
Please join us for this important event. We will begin with Introductory remarks by Rabbi David Edleson and Rabbi Aaron Philmus. Then we will explore museum exhibits provided by Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Israel. There will be docents available to answer questions as you walk through the following exhibits:
Heroism and Resistance: Rescue by Jews during the Holocaust
Spots of Light: To be a Woman in the Holocaust
"They Say There is a Land" Longings for Eretz Israel During the Holocaust
Yom HaShoah Commemoration
Yom HaShoah Commemoration with speakers Ari Gradus, Ellie Roden & Tony Eprile
Yom HaShoah Memorial Service
Join us on Wednesday, April 23rd, at 5:30 PM in the College Chapel for a Yom HaShoah Memorial Service.
Together, we’ll honor the memory of those lost in the Holocaust through reflection, readings, and yahrzeit lighting as we commit to remembrance and resilience.
Yom Hashoah-Holocaust Remembrance Day Commemoration
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.
BAJC Community Seder
This year’s Seder will again be catered by Chef Gretchen Hardy from The Porch with a bit of help from some of us. Below is the registration / reservation form, the Shalom Cloud payment link and a Sign Up Genius link for items not provided by The Porch – such as Charoset, Gefilte fish, karpas, maror, desserts, hard boiled eggs, horse radish. Due to the caterer’s increased supply chain costs our costs have gone up. Based on an estimate of 65 participants, the actual cost per person including security and space rental is $68.00 but we are only asking $35 for adults. The net difference (> $2000) will be partially covered by BAJC’s Pesach budget ($1000). We hope to make up the remainder with a grant from the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, but there is no guarantee. If you’d like to contribute more than $35, BAJC will be grateful.
Online registration and payment information at this link.
Or register & pay via snail mail as described below. You need not sign up for a specific entree. As was the case last year, everyone may have some of each dish.
Annual Community Second Night of Passover Seder
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.
Community Passover Seder: A Journey to Freedom
Ruach HaMaqom Presents
Community Passover Seder: A Journey to Freedom
Led by Rabbi Lee Moore
Join Our Earth-Conscious Vegetarian Potluck Seder!
Experience a soul-stirring ritual where ancient wisdom meets song, story, and joy. Guided by Rabbi Lee we’ll explore dimensions of liberation and reinvigorate our commitments to end oppression. We'll use "The Promise of the Land" Haggadah by Rabbi Ellen Bernstein, weaving together the themes of freedom and ecological connection.
Eco-Conscious Potluck Contributions (Vegetarian Only)
Please bring a dish based on the first letter of your last name:
A-J: Bring a main dish
K-O: Bring a dessert
P-Z: Bring an appetizer
Earth-Honoring Dietary Guidelines:
Strictly vegetarian (milk, eggs, cheese allowed)
NO chametz: wheat, rye, barley, oats, or spelt
Gluten-free options welcomed
Locally-sourced and organic ingredients encouraged
Consider bringing your own reusable plates, cups, and utensils
Bring an ingredients list to place beside your dish
As we invite liberation from narrow places, we call in the Divine presence in all Creation. Bring family, friends, and open hearts to journey through the Red Sea together and beyond, traversing our ancient freedom songs along with contemporary visions for wholeness and justice.
RSVP by April 5th
Questions?: [contact@ruachhamaqom.org]
Community Seder for Passover
Saturday, April 12 beginning at 5:30 pm, the Rutland Jewish Center will hold its annual Passover Community Seder. Celebrate the first night of Pesach by joining in the community fun. Reservations are required. The cost for the catered meal is $50 per adult and $25 for children 6—12, it is free for children under 6.
As the meal is catered, you must RSVP by Tuesday April 1, to Jane Kierstein by phone or email.
JUDA Kids Club's Great Model Matzah Bakery!
Happening Sunday, April 6th from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm at Chabad of Burlington! RSVP at www.chabadvt.org/juda
JCOGS Passover Palooza
In partnership with PJ Library and Stowe Free Library.
Storytime, crafts, music & fun for kids birth to 6 years old and families at the Stowe Free Library! Join Shabbasaurus and Tzipi the Curious Bird and special guest for a sweet Shabbat morning learning all about Passover. With special treats!
For families with kids from birth to six years old.
In partnership with PJ Library and Stowe Free Library.t
Runaway Matzo Ball
Tot Shabbat with Anna Sobel’s Talking Hands – pre-Passover program: The Runaway Matzo Ball, followed by Pizza
BJ Purim Party!
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.
Family Purim Party
Carnivale-inspired puppets get folks up and moving with games, parades, rhythm, and dance, while smaller hand puppet versions of the characters handle the story of Queen Esther.
Family Purim Celebration
Celebrate the joyous Purim holiday with the entire family with a day filled with fun, laughter, and community spirit! Here’s what we have planned for this amazing day:
10:15 – 10:30 AM:
We’ll kick things off with a delightful Preschool Storytime with Clergy, where little ones can hear the Purim story come to life in an interactive and engaging way.
10:30 – 11:00 AM:
Join us for the Megillah Reading and Costume Parade! Everyone is encouraged to dress up in your favorite costumes as we read the Megillah together and parade through the celebration.
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM:
The fun continues with our Purim Carnival! There’s something for everyone, with games, crafts, prizes, bouncy castle, and more! Be sure to check out all the activities, including:
Mishloach Manot Making to share with friends and family
Delicious Hamantaschen to enjoy
Fun Face Painting to get into the spirit of the day
A fabulous Raffle with great prizes!
We’re so glad you’re here to celebrate with us—let’s make this Purim one to remember!
Suggested Donation – $18/Family
Purim Speil & Party
Join us in celebrating Purim and Cantorial Soloist Mark Leopold!
Set to music from Man of La Mancha, this original and ambitious show is a must see.
Long-time Cantorial Soloist Mark Leopold celebrates his retirement by donning the silly king’s crown—his first time ever in the role. Bring your groggers and cheer on our talented community as we transport you to a Persia set in seventeenth-century Spain for music and merriment and where the impossible dreams come true!
The Purimspiel starts at 6:00 and has a runtime of about one hour. It will be streamed on Zoom.
Note: In accordance with Ketuvim, some characters in the Purimspiel will portray excessive drinking. That aside, the show is family friendly.
Purim Party
The Purim party begins immediately following our performance and will have family-friendly activities and sweet treats. Costumes optional but encouraged.
Purim Palooza
Costumes Encouraged! Fun For All Ages! Free!
Donations Appreciated
Music & Dancing
Hamantaschen & Refreshments
Craft Projects
Juggling Workshop & More!
Tot Shabbat and Young Families Purim Party
There will be a Tot Shabbat service in the sanctuary starting at 9:30 am. Then we will move into the social hall for crafts, toys, face painting, and a photo booth.
Costumes are encouraged!
Please register by clicking on the button below so that we will know how many Purim baskets (Mishloach Manot) to make!
Contact Aimee Hutton for questions and more information.