> Committees

Temple Har Zion is proud of its many committees, providing members a wide variety of ways to volunteer and be involved in Temple life, and opportunities to help make new friends, while playing a role in building and shaping our Temple community.    

The following is a listing of our key committees, with a short description of their roles.  Please contact the Temple office if you would like more information or would like to get involved in any of their activities.  

Adult Education

Catering and Fuctions

Chesed (Caring) 
Chesed Committee members, who have training in friendly visiting, support the clergy by visiting Temple members who are in hospitals, in extended care facilities or who are confined to their homes.
A name bank links individuals who have experienced a life-crisis or loss, to those newly suffering such a problem. In addition, this committee maintains a collection of reference material in the library

Communications

Festival

Fundraising
Fundraising is a critical requirement in the life of a religious and community institution such as Temple Har Zion. The growing demand for extensive programming and services has required us to engage in a variety of activities to produce revenue. We seek people with a gift for talking one-on-one, people who have interesting ideas and people who are motivators. This is vital work and we encourage your participation.

Golf Tournament
This groups organizes, coordinates and promotes our annual golf tournament.  This year's tournament is taking place on Monday June 6th at Wooden Sticks Golf Course in Uxbridge.  Please contact the Temple office for more information or if you would like to help out at this great event.  For business owners, there are great opportunities for hole sponsorship, silent auction donations, fantasy auction donations, lunch and dinner sponsors etc...  Join us for a great day out!!

House

Israel

Library

Mitzvah

The only goal of this self-motivated team is to try and help our Temple family during their time of need. If you are proficient in Hebrew & would like to volunteer your time to this very worthy cause, please contact the Temple office and we will be happy to welcome you.  It truly is a Mitzvah!

Members Helping Members

Membership

Music

Out of the Cold

The Out of the Cold Programme at Temple Har Zion is an excellent way to fulfill the mitzvah of Gimilut Chasadim – performing acts of love and kindness. 

The volunteers at the Out of the Cold Programme at Temple Har Zion work lovingly, tirelessly and as a team to feed, provide clothing and shelter to homeless, needy and socially isolated people in the community.

On Wednesdays, beginning in November, we welcome over 65 guests for dinner, with up to 30 sleeping over.  The guests who come to our synagogue are treated with respect (kavod) and compassion (rachamim).  They are welcomed to our synagogue as they were part of the Temple Har Zion community.  The programme runs for eight weeks.

There are many ways to become involved in the Out of the Cold Programme, including collecting clothing/toiletry donations, helping in the kitchen, sorting clothing and a myriad of jobs during the times the guests are in our synagogue for dinner and overnight.  There is an Out of the Cold volunteer training for new volunteers. 

If you are interested in volunteering, please visit our website the last week in October to fill in a volunteer registration form.  For more information about the Out of the Cold programme, please contact Susan Berger at susanberger@rogers.com

Passover 2nd Seder

Religious Education

The Temple Har Zion Religious Education Committee is comprised of congregants – usually parents with children in our school – as well as our Director of Education and Hebrew Coordinator. We are a very active committee that meets 6 (six) times a year. The mandate of this committee is:

1. The Religious Education Committee acts on behalf of the Temple community to support the Temple Har Zion Religious School in reaching its goal of providing the building blocks for students to develop and deepen their Reform Jewish identity.

2. The Committee works with the Director of Education to develop and implement the school’s vision and curriculum and recommends policies for the Temple Har Zion Religious School to the Board. The Committee provides input on any program changes brought forward by the Director of Education.

3. The Committee acts as the voice of the parents and the Temple Har Zion Community to provide input to the Director of Education regarding curriculum, policy or any other matters relating to the Religious School (including the Hebrew component thereof), to set expectations of the Religious School and to promote desired learning outcomes. The Committee collaborates with the Director of Education to evaluate whether expectations are being met and whether changes to curriculum and policies are needed/required.

We make every effort to include parents of children in many (or all) grades of the Religious School on our committee. We always welcome new members as they are the life blood of the committee. If you are interested in joining this fun and dynamic committee please contact the committee chair, Paul Stancer at pstancer@rogers.com or our Director of Education, Susan Sermer at susansermer@templeharzion.com

Shiva Service
A long-standing and dedicated Temple group, Shiva Service Committee members are trained lay-leaders who provide services and Minyans for those in mourning. When Temple members are dealing with grief, the individuals in this group offer support when it is most needed.

Social Action
Temple Har Zion has a long commitment to helping the larger community. From easing the plight of Jews throughout the world to helping the poor in our midst, this committee responds by raising funds, offering a helping hand and by raising issues where some response makes a difference. Over the years, the committee has established regular activities including support for Mazon, A Jewish Response to Hunger and Out-of-the-Cold. Social Action also focuses on Holocaust remembrance and campaigns for local and international issues.

Social Events
A temple is also about the development of community. People, who enjoy themselves and enjoy meeting and being together, build community. The Social Events committee combines this worthwhile goal with activities from trivia nights to dances and picnics.

Sunday Morning Programming

Twinning Project

Worship

40th Anniversary