Community Events
Events listed here are hosted by our community partners and are not sponsored by Temple Israel unless noted.
We encourage you to reach out directly to the event organizers with any questions.
JFCS: Freedom from Addiction Seder. REGISTER BY MARCH 31
Monday, April 6, 6:00-8:30 p.m.
Minnesota Hillel Johnson Center, 1521 University Avenue SE, Minneapolis
$25 or pay what you can
Celebrate our stories of liberation over a meaningful and joyous sober seder celebration! Enjoy a Kosher-for-Passover, slow-roasted, sweet-chili brisket meal. A vegetarian option is also available.
Contact Jennifer Fukuda at jfukuda@jfcsmn.org or 952-542-4837 with questions.
Faith in the Press: Jewish Printing and Printers in The Twin Cities, 1890-1950
Now through Friday, May 15
Elmer L. Andersen Library, 222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis
Open to the public 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mondays - Fridays
For over four hundred years all printed material – from books to newspapers to flyers tacked on a wall – were created through a labor-intensive process: setting the text by hand, letter by letter; transferring the type to a printing press and inking it; and manually feeding paper through the press, sheet by sheet, to be imprinted directly from the inked type. This technique is now called “letterpress printing,” although historically it was just called “printing.” Faith in the Press: Jewish Printing and Printers in the Twin Cities, 1890-1950 celebrates that labor, and the people who dedicated their lives to bringing written words into print, among the Jewish communities of the Twin Cities.
Showcasing materials from the Upper Midwest Jewish Archives, this exhibit focuses on printed material using Hebrew type, produced by Jewish printers in Minneapolis and St. Paul in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Over the course of these sixty years, the printed material flying off Minnesota’s Jewish presses — from Yiddish newspapers and theater posters to Hebrew school report cards and bar mitzvah invitations — captured the transformations of these vibrant and evolving communities.
Elmer L. Andersen Library is currently accessible by UCard and by appointment only. To plan your visit to see this exhibit during open hours, or to set up a private tour, please email the Upper Midwest Jewish Archives at umja@umn.eduor call 612-625-0192. We’d love to welcome you for an individual or group experience of Faith in the Press.
Co-curated by Upper Midwest Jewish Archives Archivist Kate Dietrick and Jewish culture scholar Dr. Noam Sienna.
Minnesota and Dakotas Yom HaShoah Commemoration
Monday, April 13, 7:00 p.m.
Mount Zion Temple, 1300 Summit Avenue, St. Paul
Details and registration for Yom HaShoah Commemoration
This year's annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration, Finding a Home in America: The Holocaust Survivor Immigrant Experience, will highlight the Holocaust survivor immigrant experience.
All are welcome to this free and public service. Registration is required. Please leave bags at home and arrive early for entry and check-in.
The Yom HaShoah Commemoration is co-sponsored by the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Minnesota and the Dakotas, Children of Holocaust Survivors Association in Minnesota (CHAIM), Mount Zion Temple, the Minneapolis Jewish Federation, the Jewish Federation of Greater St. Paul, Generations After MNDAK, and the Micki and Mort Naiman Holocaust Education Fund.
PJ Library Jewish Pregnancy Series
Tuesdays, March 10, March 24, & April 14, 7:00-8:15 p.m.
JFCS, 5905 Golden Valley Rd, Golden Valley
Free, Register for Jewish Pregnancy Series.
If your family is expecting a new Jewish baby soon, join one or all of PJ Library’s Jewish Pregnancy Series events this spring. At this “Customs & Crafting” gathering, we will explore Jewish rituals and traditions around pregnancy and birth. Create your own Jewish protection amulets through beading and/or collage. Meet other expecting parents — your future “village” — with plenty of time for snacks and schmoozing!
This event is open to pregnant people and, optionally, their partners, in the Jewish community. First-time and seasoned parents are welcome. There is no “wrong” way to be Jewish here – the PJ Library community represents all levels of Jewish observance, all denominations, all or no synagogue affiliations, all genders and sexualities, and all multifaith families.
Thank you to our Community Partners: Bet Shalom Yeladim Preschool, Beth El Aleph Preschool, Gan Shelanu Adath Jeshurun Congregation Preschool, HaLev Early Childhood at the J, and Jewish Beginnings.
Center for Jewish Studies
What Did People Talk About in the Warsaw Ghetto? Yiddish Words of the Holocaust
Wednesday, April 15, 7:30 p.m.
Minnesota JCC Sabes Center, 4330 Cedar Lake Road South, Minneapolis
Register for What Did People Talk About in the Warsaw Ghetto.
This event is free and open to the public. Please plan to arrive early at the JCC to allow time to go through JCC security. The JCC requires a driver's license or other government-issued photo ID.
The Holocaust radically altered the way its victims--especially Yiddish speakers--communicated. Finding their prewar language incapable of describing the dehumanization of the Shoah, prisoners added or reinvented thousands of Yiddish words and phrases to describe their new reality. These crass, witty, and sometimes beautiful Yiddish words – Khurbn Yiddish, or “Yiddish of the Holocaust” – puzzled and intrigued Jews who were experiencing the metamorphosis of their own tongue. This talk will focus on the experience of language in the Warsaw ghetto, looking at the new Yiddish words, how people debated their meanings, and why they felt it was so important to remember them.
Hannah Pollin-Galay is Pen Tishkach Chair of Holocaust Studies, Director of the Institute for Holocaust, Genocide and Memory Studies, and Professor of Jewish Studies and History at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is the author of Ecologies of Witnessing: Language, Place and Holocaust Testimony (Yale University Press, 2018) and Occupied Words: What the Holocaust Did to Yiddish (UPenn Press, 2024), which won the 2024 National Jewish Book Award.
Co-sponsors: Center for Austrian Studies, Center for German and European Studies, Center for Holocaust & Genocide Studies, Department of German, Nordic, Slavic & Dutch, Department of History, Institute of Linguistics, Holocaust and Genocide Studies Program at the University of St. Thomas, Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies at the University of St. Thomas.
For the benefit of those who cannot attend, each Community Lecture is recorded. Please allow two weeks for the most recent lecture to be uploaded. Videos may be viewed at: youtube.com/user/JWSTumn/videos
Alan Morinis: The Shabbat Effect
Wednesday, April 29, 6:00-8:00 p.m.
Temple Israel, 2323 Fremont Avenue South, Minneapolis
Register for The Shabbat Effect
Join Dr. Alan Morinis, founder of The Mussar Institute, for an inspiring evening based on his new book, The Shabbat Effect, exploring how Shabbat can bring balance, meaning, and intention into daily life. Dessert reception to follow.
Presented by Living Mussar, in collaboration with Temple Israel and our community partners.
Save the Date: Bnai Emet Reunion and Beyond
Sunday, May 3, 3:00-5:00 p.m.
Yeshiva of Minneapolis, 3115 Ottawa Avenue South
Exciting details to come! In the meantime, contact Jeri Saad at irej@aol.com with any questions.
JCRC Annual Event: Reclaiming Our Story
Sunday, June 7, 5:30-9:00 p.m.
Minneapolis location shared upon ticket purchase
Purchase Tickets for Reclaiming Our Story
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas’ annual event will feature acclaimed author and speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz.
Sarah Hurwitz's latest book, As a Jew: Reclaiming Our Story from Those Who Shame, Blame, and Try to Erase Us, is an urgent exploration of how antisemitism shapes Jewish identity and how Jews can reclaim their tradition.
Space is limited; purchasing tickets early is encouraged.
If you cannot attend, consider making a contribution. The annual event is our single largest fundraiser of the year, and your support is so important.
To become a sponsor, advertise in our ad book, or ask questions, please see the links below or contact our Development and Operations Associate at events@minndakjcrc.org.
TC Jewfolk’s Signature Annual Fundraiser: Stories From the Tribe:
Monday, June 22, 7:00 p.m.
Location shared upon ticket purchase
Tickets and Sponsorships for Stories from the Tribe
Stories from the Tribe is TC Jewfolk’s biggest night of the year — a joyful evening of Jewish storytelling that also fuels everything we do. When you give, you ensure that Jewish voices are heard and Jewish stories are told. Your donation sustains the independent Jewish journalism, storytelling, podcasts, and community connections that TC Jewfolk delivers year round.
For one unforgettable evening, 12 community members take the bima to share their true Jewish stories – about family, the generations that shape us, and the complicated, hilarious, sacred, and sometimes messy experience of being Jewish today.
Once again, Jordana Green, the incredible co-host of The Adam & Jordana Show on WCCO Radio, will emcee an evening that promises to be heartfelt, hilarious, and deeply meaningful.
Thank you for joining with us to amplify Jewish voices. Storytelling isn’t just what we do – it’s how we build Jewish community.
New this year thanks to a generous donor: Community dessert reception to follow
Location details will be shared upon ticket purchase.
The Chai–light Chorus
Ongoing
The chorale is actively recruiting new members! We’ve been in existence since 2000, having produced over 35 productions. We celebrate the joy of vocal performance without taking it too seriously. Anyone age 60 and above is eligible, and there’s absolutely no program fee — a musical “free for all!” Our weekly rehearsals are during the day. For more information, contact Mark Bloom via email at mark.bloomtru2life@gmail.com or by phone at 612-270–1705.
Free Modern Hebrew Language Courses for High School Students and Senior Citizens
University of Minnesota
Ongoing, Virtual
Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Modern Hebrew Language courses are available for free at the University of Minnesota to high school students enrolled at the university through the PSEO program, and to senior citizens ages 62+ auditing courses through the university's Senior Citizen Education Program.
Taught over Zoom by Israeli-born professor, Dr. Renana Schneller, the courses focus on reading, writing, understanding and speaking Hebrew. Contact Dr. Schneller for more information and placement at schne068@umn.edu. For more information, contact Temple member Jeri Glick-Anderson at jerianders@gmail.com.
Jewish Youth Mentoring Program
Jewish Family and Children's Service (JFCS)
Ongoing
The Jewish Youth Mentoring Program (formerly the Jewish Big Brother/Big Sister Program), is a community-based mentoring program for Jewish-identified youth that is designed to promote positive social-emotional-spiritual development and increase engagement in the Jewish community. Since the program’s inception in 1975, it has matched over 400 Jewish youth with mentors.
The program is open to all families! Anyone can benefit from a personal, one-on-one connection with someone who is giving their undivided attention to them.
Participants are matched with carefully screened and selected volunteer mentors based on family preferences, age, gender identity, common interests, geographic proximity and more. Common match activities include visiting libraries or bookstores; arts and crafts; baking; exploring local parks; playing sports; going to museums; playing board games; and attending community events. Mentees are aged 6-12 and mentors are 16 and up, with a valid driver’s license
For questions, contact Dori Gelfman, Jewish Youth Mentoring Program Coordinator, at dgelfman@jfcsmpls.org or 952-542-4835.