News from Kol Ami

on Sunday, 22 November 2015.

Dear Kol Ami members,
We are writing to update you on a project to beautify our Torahs. The Torah Restoration Project included funds to create four Torah covers. Three Torahs belong to Kol Ami and one Torah belongs to Leo Baeck. The Torahs all reside together in the main sanctuary just like our two communities do. This project has been long in coming. A Torah mantle committee was established in 2014. We met for several months, put a call out for artists to work with, received approximately 20 expressions of interests from artists in Canada, the US and Israel and narrowed it down to three artists. After a hiatus of 6 months while we were in different parts of the world, we reconvened in the spring of 2015 and narrowed our selection to one Judaic artist, Jeanette Kuvin Oren. You can see her Torah cover designs on her website at http://www.kuvinoren.com/

Kol Ami and Leo Baeck have worked together with the artist for five months to create our own design that will be elegant and meaningful for both communities. We have now completed the design phase and Jeanette begins her work creating the four Torah covers. We believe they will be quite stunning. It has been a most wonderful process working together. Our committee, comprised of a Leo Baeck representative and Kol Ami members, has an incredible feeling from this process that is a reflection of our community - hearing all voices, learning, developing a harmonious “rhythm” together and with a spiritual sense that is reflected in the Torah covers. The Torah covers are expected to be completed and arrive by the spring. At that time we will have a dedication to celebrate their arrival as a community. Stay tuned for details of the Torah covers’ arrival and dedication date. We can't wait for you to see them. Please feel free to contact us with any questions.

B’shalom.

Torah Mantle Committee
Anita Small and Reesa Wasser, Committee Co-Chairs
Hedy Moses, Leo Baeck Representative
Heather Baker and Shelley Yampolsky, Kol Ami Members

Rabbi Micah Streiffer, Kol Ami Rabbi
Eric Petersiel, Leo Baeck Headmaster
Mark Wolpert, Kol Ami President