Artwork by Leon Skolnick - Chavurat Shalom Member

Chavurat Shalom is a welcoming community in Southwest Florida
committed to the study and celebration of our Jewish cultural heritage and religious traditions in order to enlighten and enrich our lives.

Chavurat Shalom​ is saddened to announce the death of its beloved president, Leonard Minsky, on February 21, 2022. May his memory be a blessing.

Artwork by Ellen Feingold - Chavurat Shalom Member

Chavurat Shalom (Fellowship of Peace) is an informal group from every Jewish religious tradition that meets to worship and learn together. We welcome people of all faiths from Sanibel, Fort Myers, other Southwest Florida locations, and from all over the country. We are not affiliated with any Jewish organized movement. Our group is community-led. Each person has an equal voice in it and may participate to whatever extent desired.

Presently we worship and meet via Zoom. When health risks lessen, we will gather informally in the Sanibel and Ft. Myers area. Our current activities include weekly Shabbat Eve services on Fridays at 7:30 p.m. led by members, with readings, singing, and Torah commentary provided by other volunteers; a weekly Len Minsky Current Events discussion on Saturday mornings at 11:00 a.m.; and a class and discussion led by Chavurat Shalom participants and outside experts on Thursdays at 11:00 a.m.
​Current events topics have included Israeli annexation of territories, anti-Semitism throughout the world, and U.S. Jews’ views about Israel. ​
 
Chavurat Shalom has planned special events for the upcoming High Holiday season. As preparation for the High Holidays, Chavurat Shalom member David Berger will blow the shofar before every Shabbat service via Zoom during the month of Elul. We will also greet the year 5783 with members Rabbi James and Marcia Rudin leading the annual Apples and Honey celebration via Zoom at 7 p.m. on Monday, September 26. On Thursday, September 22 at 11 a.m., Rabbi Rudin will present a program titled “Fate, Family, Fasting: Three Eternal Pillars of the High Holidays” and on September 29 at 11 a.m., Rabbi Daniel Schiff will speak about “Finding Meaning in the Book of Jonah”. Both programs will take place via Zoom. The Chavurah’s annual Memorial Service, led by president Cheryl Fulmer, will take place via Zoom at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday October 2. To join these events, send an email request to chavuratshalom@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link.

​Chavurat Shalom will also plan special events for International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Chanukah, Purim, and Passover.
 
Chavurat Shalom’s beloved past president, Len Minsky, who passed away on February 21st, was formally honored on Wednesday, August 10 by the Minsky family and the University of Maine Foundation. The celebration of his life was held at the Minsky Recital Hall at the University of Maine in Orono. The venue was named after Leonard, an alumnus, and his wife Renee, both avid supporters of the Foundation. Len served on the board of the UMaine Alumni Association, and with Renee, was honored as a life member of the University of Maine Foundation. He was the recipient of the Alumni Association Black Bear Award and Pine Tree Emblem award, and shared with Renee the Vincent Hartgen Award and the Stillwater Award.
 
Chavurat Shalom has embarked on a new project, Community Partnerships. Our first partner is the Florida Gulf Coast University Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies.  An additional special Chavurat Shalom project is the collection of donations from members by our Tzedakah committee.  Thanks to generous donations, last Spring the committee, following the theme of health and welfare of women and children, donated funds to Planned Parenthood of Southwest Florida, Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, The Shelter for Abused Women and Children in Naples, FL, Cycle Forward in Lee County, and Quality of Life Center (Ft. Myers).  The committee also granted funds to the JOINT Distribution Committee, designated for Ukraine.
 
Everyone is welcome to join all Chavurat Shalom events. Send an email request to chavuratshalom@gmail.com to receive Zoom links.

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Outstanding Thursday lecture and discussion topics led by both Chavurat Shalom participants and prominent outside speakers include:
 
Kabbalah 
Spinoza
The Jews of China: Keifung, Harbin and Shanghai
The Other Peace Process: Interreligious Dialogue in Israel and Palestine in the Service of Peace
What Tisha B’Av Means to Us Today
A Rabbi’s Work with the Vatican
 IsraAID: Israeli Humanitarian Aid Around the World
 Kristallnacht was the "End of the Beginning" of German Nazi terror
​and "The Beginning of the End” for Jews in Europe
 The Journey to Preserve the History of Small-Town Jewish Communities
King Solomon and Why He Was Israel's Best King
Israel: A State of the Nation Report
Purim Explained
Across the Square: A Grandchild’s Quest to Find his Grandmother’s Holocaust Survival Story
​StoryWater Quality in South Florida: Challenges and Opportunities
​Anti-Asian Discrimination and Attitudes in the United States
My Journey As a Convert to Judaism

For a complete listing of all past Chavurat Shalom Thursday programs, CLICK HERE
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For more details about our group or upcoming events, or to join us for any or all of these events,
contact us at chavuratshalom@gmail.com or write to
Chavurat Shalom of Southwest Florida, PO Box 722, Sanibel, FL 33957.

Chavurat Shalom is a 501(c) 3 non-profit tax-exempt organization. Your tax-deductible contributions to Chavurat Shalom may be directed to the Tzedakah Fund,  Speaker’s Fund, or General Fund. Please make your contributions payable to Chavurat Shalom of Southwest Florida and mail to:
​
Chavurat Shalom of Southwest Florida
P.O. Box 722
Sanibel, FL 33957

Rosh Hashanah: A Time for Reflection
A poem by Chavurat Shalom member Myra Klahr

Fall equinox
A balance of
Light and darkness
 
Tectonic plates
Always shifting
Beneath us
Create mountains
 
We choose
Mountains of sadness
Of anger
Or of joy
 
This Rosh Hashanah
Take the time to
Feel the warmth
Of the sun
 
Look up at
The night sky
The stars and moon
That light the
Darkness
 
On these holy days
Of awe
And on each Shabbat
We reflect on
 
How to ignite
The light
 
In our world
And in our hearts
As we create
Our journey
Through
Life

Bylaws

OFFICERS

President: Cheryl Fulmer
First Vice - President: Ellen Feingold
Second Vice - President: Kathy Zoss
Secretary: Irene Skolnick
Treasurer: Barry Roth

NON-OFFICER BOARD MEMBERS

Don Bachman
Esta Berger
Evelyn Clark
Marcia Rudin

Contact our officers or non-officer board members using the email link below.

COMMITTEES

Public Relations & Website
Shabbat Service Coordination
Speaker Series
Special Events
Fundraising
​Tzedakah
Membership

To join a committee please email us below