We have the privilege of chairing the 57th Annual Beth El Synagogue Center Dinner Dance, to be held this year on Sunday, May 2nd. We will honor our dear friends David Lacher and Dava Yavetz for their many years of devoted service to our congregation and community. The Ne’emanim President’s Service Award will be presented to our treasured friends, Hazzan Ellen and Graham Arad, in recognition of their tireless commitment and service to Beth El.
For close to thirty years, David and Dava have been involved in the Beth El and New Rochelle communities. Dava has served on the Religious School Board, and in her professional life, is a senior program director for Cultural Care Au Pair, where she counts a number of Beth El families amongst her host clients. David, our immediate past president, has served Beth El in multiple leadership roles since the early 1980s. In addition to his three-year presidential term, highlights of his involvements include Ritual Committee secretary, Nominating Committee chair, synagogue counsel, vice president, executive vice president and twenty-five years of continuous service on the Board of Trustees, with the exception of one mandated sabbatical year. In the larger New Rochelle community, David has also made quite an impact. He has been the recipient of numerous honors and awards; plus, he has served as a member of the Board of Education for the past eighteen years. Given all their contributions, it feels befitting that this year’s Dinner Dance theme is “To serve, to praise, to sing.” II Chronicles 31:2.
For nearly twenty years, Ellen and Graham have made the Beth El community a priority in their lives. As a Jewish educator, Ellen has been a vibrant leader of Torah for Tots, a musical director of our Summer Session, and a teacher in our Religious School. She has also spearheaded and co-chaired a number of initiatives and committees, including Ritual, Youth Activities, Havurah, Limud, ICAR, and Beth El’s memorable centennial celebrations. Ellen joined the Board of Trustees in 2001 and served as a vice president from 2003 to 2009. This past May, Ellen was vested as a Hazzan with a master’s degree in Sacred Music. Graham is a regular Torah and Haftarah reader, and leader of a variety of Beth El services. Graham also makes a lasting impression on our youth and their families by serving as a mentor for the Bar/Bat Mitzvah Institute, and by acting as the adult advisor for our Junior and Teen Congregation services.
Please join your fellow congregants in honoring David and Dava and Ellen and Graham by supporting this year’s Dinner Dance. You can publicly recognize the honorees and award recipients by advertising in our souvenir journal, purchasing a raffle, and/or attending the dinner. Information about Dinner Dance packages, raffle tickets, and journal ads are set forth in the enclosed materials. An invitation to the dinner will follow shortly. Please note that we are offering a special discount for those under thirty-five years of age and congregants who are first-time attendees. In addition, it is possible to earn a complimentary Dinner Dance reservation for every $500 sold in journal ads to outside merchants and businesses. New this year: we are offering an exciting large 50/50 Raffle, where the winner will receive half of all money collected from this raffle*. Also, our small raffle promises to be especially tempting this year with a plethora of worthwhile prizes, including a $500 VISA gift card!
Our Dinner Dance honorees and President’s Service Award recipients have devoted many years and countless hours to enrich Beth El Synagogue Center and our community. With your support, we will have the opportunity to make this year’s event reflect their spirit and commitment to Jewish life, while providing the necessary and important financial resources for our synagogue.
Thank you in advance for your participation, contributions and support. We look forward to a fun-filled evening and successful celebration! Please call upon us if you have any questions or if we can help in any way.
Warmest regards,
Shery and Howard Rosenstein, Dinner Dance Chairs • (914) 632-7448 • s.rosenstein@yahoo.com
*Actual total prize amount available may vary depending on number of tickets sold and applicable package discounts.
To serve, to praise and to sing...II Chronicles 31:2
