You are at our new website. Now use it

10/1/2013

You've found our blog, now bookmark it!

Could it be any easier?

Use it to submit YOUR STORY. We want to know why you belong to OPT. How you found us. Why you stay. These stories will be posted on the website, and possibly edited into a book.

Use it to make a donation to the Sesquicentennial Fund. All donations will be used to underwrite the activities we are planning in celebration of our important anniversary. Donations will be acknowledged in the Messenger and much appreciated as we are hoping to keep the costs for attending events to a minimum.

Use it to keep up to date on our event schedule once it goes live.

Use it to make suggestions.

Use it to tell us how we are doing.

Just USE IT!

Lauren Levrant – slevr@aol.com
Deborah Spector – landsleit@comcast.net

1 Comment

Lori Rothman

10/5/2014 04:37:12 am

How I Found Oak Park Temple
It was easy to find Oak Park Temple as I live one block away! In all seriousness, when my husband and I moved from Michigan to Oak Park, we lived on the east side of town. I had decided to rediscover my 'Jewish self', although I was not entirely sure what that meant. I took Rabbi Gerson's Sunday morning Jewish history/life/religion classes and attended High Holiday services but I was not ready to commit. We moved to the west side of Oak Park and had children. In deciding whether to join Oak Park Temple or West Suburban Temple, I went to one Saturday morning service at West Suburban and heard about 'the scourge of intermarriage,' As my husband is not Jewish, I decided that that synagogue was not for me. Plus I did not want to cross Harlem Avenue. So we joined Oak Park Temple. The kids went to preschool, Hebrew school and summer camp at Oak Park Temple. One of my sons was a summer camp counselor and Hebrew school helper. I served on the pre-school board, worked at the Purim carnival and took all the Hebrew classes offered at the time. We joined a Chavurah that still meets after 20 years. My older son and I twinned for his Bat and my Bar MItzvah celebration. I worked with one of the Temple educators, who became my biblical Hebrew tutor to translate the parsha for my Bat Mitzvah. It was so meaningful to study the prayers along with my son and Julie was wonderful to work with. My husband was always warmly welcomed when he attended services or Temple events. We took the trip to Israel with Rabbi Weiss and family.There were 30 of us, from young to old-one big family. I was concerned that we would not be able to do adult activities (whatever that means), because of the children. That could not be farther from the truth. The kids were well behaved and whenever there was a moment of crankiness (rare indeed), I thought of it like you would when a family member is a bit cranky-no big deal. It was a wonderful trip. Now I find that since the kids are 'gone' to college and beyond, and as I do not attend services regularly, I have less reason to enter the building. I give now financially but not of myself. Listening to the Temple President's Yom Kippur sermon, I realize that it is up to me to continue to find meaning in this community. I am not sure what this means for me at this juncture in my life but I will certainly think about it.

You are at our new website. Now use it

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