I’m not just dropping them off, tell-ing them to go and do their thing. I’m actually participating with

them. They see me go to a class, they see me doing Bible study, and they see that it’s something that’s impor-

tant to me as well.

So I’m not just telling them what to do, I’m leading them by example.

It feels happy and good. We learn about each other. Not only about God, Moshe, and Sh’mot. We learn

about each other.

Family Kehilla has had a very good effect on the relationship with our children. We’ve asked our children

to be committed to their Jewish edu-cation. And we show them our com-

mitment by being with them.

Do I feel closer to God after Family Kehilla? I do because I did not have a great Jewish education, so I feel

that I’m learning a lot as my child is learning. And it opens up discus-sions about God, about religion,

about Torah that we would have otherwise not had.

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Creating Impact in Congregational Learning

Since we have been doing this LOMED program, our teaching style

has changed so much. Everything has become so much more experien-

tial than it ever was before.

We’re not just educating the chil-dren about Judaism; we’re creating Jewish lives. We’re not just teaching them Torah; we’re creating people

who live Torah.

Our involvement with the religious school has made many of these chil-dren much more well known to us and made us more well known to

them. And I think that’s very impor-tant for their understanding of their

connection to Temple Israel.

It’s so important for the children we come in contact with to look at us

and say, “Wow that’s my rabbi.” It’s important for these kids to know

that they can look to us and know that we’re not just the clergy for the grownups, but that we are also their

rabbis and their cantor.

I think that what was so powerful for me over the last two days [of the Summer Institute] is having part-

ners from different segments of the congregation who see the possibili-

ties, who see how the work that we’re doing in education could be contagious and could change the

way we do things in the synagogue as a whole.

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Lynn LancasterLynn Lancaster Educational DirectorEducational Director