Celia Gurevitch Jewish Community Library

As the library is gearing up for the year 5769, or if you prefer the next school year, we are taking stock of what we need to serve the community even better than we did in the past. We already have great books, movies, music and enthusiasm. What we need is you to tell us what you would like to see in the library happening. Drop us a line any time with your ideas, requests, and questions: library _ at _ bethamisr.org or 360-3006.

For example, we would like to expand our open hours, so you could come in when it is the most convenient for you. To accomplish this we need more volunteers. If you like to help people, if you like books and if you can volunteer your time regularly please join our small but eager team.

We also need funding to ensure our continued existence and develop new programs. Some of the ideas we entertain if we would have the money for include inviting authors to lecture or read form their books, installing a modern computer for the patrons to use with internet connection and built in DVD player, create, index, digitize and maintain an archive of the synagogue records and documents from the beginning to date, purchase more movies on DVD and current Israeli fiction… As you see there is no shortage of ideas it is a question of finances. We are asking for your contribution to support bringing to fruition any or all of these ideas. If you would like to sponsor a specific cause or program we can work out the details with you. We are also grateful for any donation you can offer to the library for our own discretion to use.

Meanwhile the library’s summer filmclub was so successful that we extended it to the month of August. We listened to our patrons and moved the movie nigh to Wednesdays, so you could go to the rabbi’s Torah/Talmud class on Thursdays. Here is the schedule:

• August 6: Walk on Water (2004) [Rated R] - Following the suicide of his wife, an Israeli intelligence agent is assigned to befriend the grandchildren of a Nazi war criminal.
• August 13: Edges of the Lord (2001) [Rated R] - 12-year-old Jewish boy hides with a family of Catholic peasant farmers to escape the Nazis.
• August 20: Monsieur Ibrahim (2003) [Rated R] - In Paris, a Turkish shop owner befriends a Jewish boy in his mid-teens.
• August 27: Keeping Up With the Steins (2006) [Rated PG13] - The story of a 13-year-old boy who uses his upcoming bar mitzvah to reconcile the strained relationship between his father and grandfather.