Braun Library News

To access our Braun Library catalog on-line click here.

Do you want to see what’s in our library? Click on the link for the catalog on this page. Try the “Simple Search” option first. Or select “Advanced Search” from the drop-down menu. If you still need assistance, click on “Help.” Some of the catalog options are not enabled at this time. Additional catalog searching information is available in the library.

Thanks go to The Braun Family and Rabbi Rosenthal who made it possible to install ungraded hardware to link the library catalog to the internet through the synagogue web site. Jacqueline Luna, our library intern, cataloged and barcoded all of our books and DVD’s. Check-in and check-out are now automated,too. Marvin and Elaine Gale provided the initial funding for computerizing the library.

Passover

The Passover seder focuses on our children. The retelling of the story of the Exodus, the lessons of the Four Sons, the asking the Four Questions, and the singing traditional songs are all reminders of our obligation to the next generation of Jews. The challenges of Jewish parenting today are the subject of helpful books in our library.

Parenting Jewish Children and Teens

The Kid’s Guide to Service Projects by Barbara Lewis. A look at small and large projects to help children develop a social conscience. Ages 10 and up.
40 Things You Can Do To Save the Jewish People by Joel Lurie Grishaver. Parenting tips for raising “good enough” Jewish kids. Adult reader.
Parenting Jewish Teens: A Guide For the Perplexed by Joanne Doades. Timeless Jewish parenting wisdom. Adult reader.
Tough Questions Jews Ask: A Young Adult’s Guide to Building a Jewish Life by Edward Feinstein. Thoughtful answers to tough questions. Ages 10 and up.

A special wireless place
The library offers comfortable chairs, tables, internet computers, and a wireless connection. It is a perfect location for individual study or a small meeting.

Library Hours

The library is open Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and Wednesdays from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. when Torah School is in session. The Book Cart is available at the Social Hall after most Shabbat morning services.

The library will close after the last day of Torah School, Sunday, June 3rd. It will reopen when Torah School resumes on Sunday, September 9th.

Donations

We are happy to accept books, DVD’s and CD’s of Jewish interest in good condition. Donated items will be placed in the library or sold at our used book sale to benefit the library.

Five ways you can help our library grow

Join the library committee.
Contribute to the Library Fund. The library is entirely dependent on contributions to add new books and DVDs to the collection. We want to continue adding the best new literature for Jewish children as well as popular and worthy material for adults. A gift to the Library Fund is a heartfelt way to honor someone or express your sympathy. Library Fund donations are acknowledged in the Shofar, a book plate is placed in a new book noting your gift, and an appropriate letter is sent. To contribute to the Library Fund, contact the synagogue office or select the “Library Fund” from the online donation options.
Celebrate a child or teen’s birthday with a Birthday Book Club purchase.
Purchase a book or DVD from our Amazon Wish List.
Let us know what you want in the library.

Contact

The Library Committee

Susan Braun, Chairperson

Susan Hayman, Librarian

Wendy Falcon

Sharon Finzi

Gabi Fisdel

Charlotte Friefeld

Barbara Jacobs

Terri Kitten

Alissa Weiss

Our library’s mission is to provide Jewish books, DVDs, and CDs for the children, adults, and teachers of our congregation.

A Message from the Rabbi about Our Library

The handwritten and printed word has always been central to the odyssey of the Jewish people. Our primary religious document, the Torah, is still painstakingly copied and preserved as it has been for centuries using the rather primitive tools of bird quill and sheepskin. Torah scrolls are treasured in synagogues throughout the world in much the same form as they were at the time of the Talmud. Jews have always prized large personal libraries and one of the questions a Bet Din asks potential Jews by Choice is, “What Jewish books do you have in your home?”

Tifereth Israel has long been the home of the Braun Library, established by Dr. Richard and Sue Braun. For many years the library has been overlooked and underutilized. This summer a devoted group of volunteers has been working to renew and revitalize it. The Braun Library has been moved closer to the Cohen Social Hall, to room #1 in our school building, outdated books have been culled and new ones ordered. Additionally, acknowledging that learning modalities have changed, the Braun Library will also become a resource center with computers and an audio/visual center for our Silverman Preschool and Abraham Ratner Torah School students, as well as the congregation at large. We look forward to the reopening of the newly renovated Braun Library in the coming months.

Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal
The Shofar, November 2009