Find connection, fulfillment, and belonging by joining a Beth Meyer Synagogue group! Browse this directory to discover a host of schmoozing opportunities in your synagogue community. Groups are organized by your fellow congregants and vary in nature and meeting frequency.
Want to start something new? Reach out to our office — we can help you get your group off the ground.
Youth
Contacts: Cathy Kaplan, Director of Religious School & Family Programs; Kim Wicksel, Youth Programs Advisor
Beth Meyer Synagogue organizes regular meetups for kids and teens to develop friendships, grow leadership skills, and experience Judaism outside the religious school classroom. Our Youth programs are open to everyone — you do not need to be a member of Beth Meyer Synagogue for your child to participate.
Nitzanim (seeds) and Mahar (tomorrow) is a K-5 group that meets approximately four times a year on Sunday afternoons for a dairy/pareve brown-bag lunch and a fun activity. Come join us for games, holiday-themed crafts, movies, and social action projects.
Kadima is our youth program for middle-school students and supports their early beginnings as Jewish teenagers. ‘Kadima-niks’ get together monthly for dinners and social outings (our annual road trip to Wet n’ Wild is a winner!).
Beth Meyer USY (BMUSY) is our youth group for high-school students and an affiliate chapter of United Synagogue Youth (USY). Led by our teens, BMUSY meets 1-2 times each month for home-cooked Shabbat dinners, community nights out, holiday events, regional conventions, and group activities. For a fuller view of our offerings for teenagers, read our Teens at Beth Meyer Synagogue publication.
Our shul also hosts Girl Scout Troop 525 on Sunday afternoons. A registered affiliate of the Girl Scouts of the USA, Troop 525 has a Jewish lens — our girls do a Sukkot camp out, celebrate Shabbat, bake hamantaschen, and more. You do not need to be Jewish to join the troop —email Karen Bograd for more information.
Book Club
Contact: Dara Finkelstein, Organizer
Sisterhood has launched a monthly, in-person book club for Beth Meyer Synagogue members enthralled by contemporary Jewish storytelling and nonfiction. Readers meet up on the third Monday of the month in our Library to schmooze, swap reflections, and ask critical questions. Get a head start on the reading list by clicking here.
Caregivers Support
Contact: Rachel Strauss, Organizer
Third Monday of the month at 6 p.m. on Zoom
Our Caregivers Support group is a restorative space for members caring for a loved one who has impaired memory and requires special attention. Whether your loved one lives at home with you, in a facility, or far away, this group is for you! Find solidarity and understanding as you discuss the challenges and rewards of providing care and discover strategies for coping with new situations.
Daf Yomi (A Page a Day)
Contact: Mike Wagner, Organizer
Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. on Zoom
Work your way through the Talmud — a breathtakingly voluminous compendium of ancient writings that spans the full gamut of Jewish law, practice, and tradition — one page a day. Drop in anytime for informal, unstructured discussions and to share your reflections on what you read last week. No need to be an experienced scholar! We are all learners.
Gardens & Grounds
Contact: Madge Cohen, Chair
Calling all green thumbs! Volunteers lead the design, development, and care of our Biblical and Prayer Gardens and nourish the flowers and shrubs growing in our common areas. The more hands, the merrier — from watering planters and beds to clearing out overgrowth, we keep ourselves busy year-round. With loving care, our grounds have truly blossomed into a spiritual retreat.
Mah Jongg
Contact: Shelly Nice, Organizer
Sundays at 10 a.m. in the Library or Conference Room when religious school is in session (late August-early June)
Start your Sundays off right! After minyan, nibble on our continental breakfast fare at Kibbitz and Koffee and stick around for a casual, drop-in game of mah jongg. No need to bring anything, but if you have an American Mah Jongg set and a National Mah Jongg League card, feel free to use them. Email or text Shelly at (954) 658-2129 with any questions.
Progressive Kehillah (Community)
Contact: Sherry Shapiro, Organizer
Progressive Kehillah (PK) is a micro-community that meets at Beth Meyer Synagogue to create space for those concerned with progressive political, social, and moral issues and their safe expression. PK members are committed to infusing our Jewish life with the prophetic call for a world of social justice, human rights and dignity, compassion, and non-violence. We meet to offer opportunities for serious reflection and dialogue on issues that confront us as a shul and a nation while honoring the diversity of perspectives and ideas that make up Beth Meyer Synagogue.
Senior Luncheon Series
Contact: Carole Eagle, Director of Member Services
Select Tuesdays at noon in the Social Hall or Beit Am
Sponsored by the Honey and Perry Levine Memorial Fund for Senior Programs, our popular Senior Luncheon Series convenes Jewish seniors from across the Triangle for catered noshes and learning opportunities. Catch up with old friends (and meet new ones!) over a hot meal and follow along as our featured speakers present topics of interest. Reach out if you need a ride to shul — our members can pick you up at your home.
Social Action
Contact: Deborah Goldstein, Chair
When we act collectively from a soulful place, a place rooted in the deepest wisdom that our tradition has to offer, we can change the world. Social Action at Beth Meyer Synagogue takes seriously the Torah injunction to pursue righteousness through our deeds. Our team creates and spearheads efforts to repair the world and advocate for justice — join us to help power change and dialogue in our community.
Warm Up America
Contact: Dara Finkelstein, Chair
Second Tuesday of the month at 10:30 a.m. in the Library
A program of Beth Meyer Sisterhood, our Warm Up America! chapter contributes crochet and knit blankets and accessories to individuals in need, such as homeless veterans and hospital patients. We work continuously on afghans, which provide extra comfort and warmth. Stop by a meeting to pick up yarn, drop off rectangles, or to chat and crochet or knit with others. Donations of medium weight, acrylic yarn are always welcome!
Living in kehillah, or “community,” is integral to Jewish living and learning. We need each other and we are wired for connection. In a world of rampant individualism and an epidemic of loneliness, our kehillah at Beth Meyer offers us a network of fellow travelers upon whom we can depend, from whom we can learn, and with whom we can seek out meaning in our lives.
