Belong. Connect. Grow.

The Sisterhood of East End Temple welcomes anyone who identifies as female, nonbinary or gender-fluid. Consistent with our longstanding legacy of women’s empowerment, whenever the words “woman” or “women” appear, we understand them to include all of these individuals. We listen to the voices of our membership, promoting their interests, passions, ideas, and concerns, and develop communities, friendships, and leaders.

Together we engage in tikkun olam by producing timely and relevant programming, fundraising, and advocating for social justice, while nurturing our spiritual and intellectual growth and the life of the congregation, leaders, and the community at large.

This philosophy aligns with our affiliate, Women of Reform Judaism.

Click here to join Sisterhood today!

Click here for a gallery and a review of our 2023-2024 programs

~ To read the latest columns and messages from Sisterhood, please see the Sisterhood Columns page ~

2024-2025 Programs

We offer a number of programs in different formats — in person, on Zoom and hybrid.  Unless otherwise stated, the entire community, friends and family, is welcome to join us! Please send any questions and RSVPs to sisterhood@eastendtemple.org, except where noted.

Ongoing Programs

Food For Families
Sundays at 12:00pm: Feb. 2, March 2, March 30
For over 30 years, multiple generations of our community have made meals to feed hungry New Yorkers. Advance sign-up will be required (look for the link in an upcoming eblast). All participants must be age 12 or older (ages 12-15 must be accompanied by an adult). Each participant should bring five loaves of whole wheat bread and 16 pieces of fruit (preferably apples and oranges) and wear a hat to comply with Department of Health regulations.

Mah Jongg Weekday — Play/Learn in Person
Select Thursdays from 11:00am to 1:00pm: Dec. 12; Jan. 9, 23; Feb. 13, 20; March 13, 27; April 3, 10; May 8, 22
Interested in learning to play mah jongg or finding players? Cash donation of $5 to play, $15 for a lesson. Coffee, tea and snacks available. Please register or let us know your interest by completing this form

Shake Your Soul — The Yoga of Dance (in person)
Tuesdays from 10:30-11:30am, starting November 12 (no class on Dec. 31)
Relax your nervous system, energize your body, and awaken the soul through a powerful, fluid dance repertoire set to world music. Participants are encouraged to listen to, feel and move to the music, either by following the moves offered, or tuning into themselves. It incorporates yoga breathing, mindfulness, qi gong, dance movements, partner exercises using mirroring/reflecting, movement dialogue, and group circle movements as well. It’s a fun way to exercise and form authentic connections.

• Bring water and a yoga mat, and wear sneakers and comfortable clothing.
• $10 suggested donation per class

Getting to Know Our Community — Monthly Wednesdays Lunchtime Speaker Series (Zoom)
12:00-1:00pm: Jan. 15, Feb. 5, March 5, April 2
Bring your lunch and join us as we introduce a fascinating member of our community.  Speakers to be announced.

Jan. 15: Susan Schwalb, an artist recognized as one of the foremost experts in silverpoint and metalpoint drawings, will join us. Learn about her techniques, paintings, and interests. Susan had an exhibit in East End Temple’s Social Hall last year.

Feb. 5: Tehilah Eisenstadt is busy working in our East End Temple community this year sharing her knowledge, spirit, and expertise in Judaism. Join us and learn all about her life, education, experiences, and interests.

• Email sisterhood@eastendtemple.org for the Zoom link

Claim Your Hebrew Name — beginning in January 2025
Do you have a Hebrew name? Have your children been named yet? Have a Hebrew Name you want to change? Now in its second year, the Sisterhood of East End Temple, under the leadership of Fran Kolin, can help guide you through the process, which can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish. Simple, as in choosing a Hebrew name you like that may start with the same letter as your English name. Elaborate, as in researching your family history, visiting the graves of your loved ones, or choosing the name of a figure in the Torah that you admire. And, on Friday, April 25 at a special Simchat Shabbat service, you will be invited, with other newly named members, to stand on the bimah and receive a blessing from the clergy, the congratulations of your fellow congregants, and your certificate signed by the clergy. Please email Fran Kolin at thekolins611@yahoo.com to set up a meeting after the secular new year.

Rosh Chodesh Study and Discussion: “The Genesis Finale” (in person and via Zoom)
Sundays at 10:30am: Jan. 12, Feb. 2, March 2, March 30
Rosh Chodesh, “the head of the month,” is the phase of the lunar cycle when the first sliver of moon appears, a time for renewal. Talmudic and modern-day interpretations connect the holiday to women. As such, Rosh Chodesh has been marked as a time for women to gather, study and pray (click here for more information).

Please join us this season for an in-depth exploration of the ”Leah v’Rachel” or “Rachel v’Leah” debate. NOTE: In the Amidah, “Leah v’Rachel” appears in Gates of Prayer (c. 1994) but in the current Mishkan T’filah (c. 2007), it’s Rachel v. Leah. Why? Fern Stampleman, Elissa Macklin and Laurie Treuhaft lead discussion, we all participate and, if you join in person, we share a potluck brunch.

• Click here to register for January 12, when we will discuss “A Tale of Two Sisters: It Begins at the Well”
• No prior knowledge necessary! Reading materials will be emailed to registrants as needed.

Stitch-A-Thon
Sundays at 1:00pm: Jan. 12, Feb. 2, March 2 (in person)
Gather for a while with other stitchers. Show off your latest projects; get help from our experts; make a hat or scarf for our Cold Weather Project for donating to New York’s needy.

Sisterhood Board Meetings (Sisterhood members only)
Thursdays at 6:30pm: Dec. 11, Jan. 29, March 12, April 23, June 4 (in person and via Zoom)
All Sisterhood members are invited to join our bi-monthly board meetings when we review programs and social action initiatives, discuss how we can support each other and the EET community, and hear guest speakers on meaningful topics. RSVP requested to sisterhood@eastendtemple.org.

Scheduled Programs

Morning of Mah Jongg Fundraiser
Sunday, December 15 from 10:00am-2:00pm
Join us for four fun-filled hours of brunch, tournament-style games and prizes. Entry $36, plus raffle tickets available for great prizes.  Sign up here.

Hamantaschen For Purim
Mid-February
We continue to sell boxes of yummy hamantaschen in time for Purim.  These sales help us supply hamantaschen for the Religious School, Oneg Shabbats and Shalach Manot (“And they should make them days of feasting and joy, and sending portions one to another, and gifts to the poor” (Esther 9:22).) More information to come.

Macaroons For Pesach
Mid-March
Watch for reminders of sales of delicious chocolate covered macaroons in time for Passover.

Helene Spring Library Event 
Sunday, March 16 at 2:00pm
Our featured speaker for our 21st Helene Spring Library Event will be Elizabeth Graver. Elizabeth is a 2024 National Jewish Book Award winner for her outstanding novel Kantika, which she will discuss at our event. The novel is a beautifully written multi-generational saga that follows a Sephardic family in the early 20th century as they move from Istanbul, where they have been a wealthy privileged part of the Sephardic elite but now find themselves victims of unexpected, unimaginable loss, to Barcelona, to Havana, and finally to Queens, New York. It is a tale that explores loss, displacement, endurance, and family as home, a story of reinvention, healing, and love. The main character, self-reliant Rebecca Cohen, ties the story together with her tenacity, through grief and hope, as she faces multiple challenges yet manages to hold the family together and maintain its faith and traditions. We have a copy of Kantika in our library, and we will sell copies of the book that Elizabeth will sign at our reception.

Sisterhood Shabbat (in person and Livestream)
Friday, March 21 at 6:15pm — more information coming soon

Docent-Led Tour of the Museum of Jewish Heritage
Sunday, March 23 at 11:15am
Co-sponsored by the Men’s Club, join us on a tour of the museum. More details, including costs and registration, to come.

Lilith Seder
Thursday, April 17 at 6:00pm
Sisterhood members, plus one guest,  are welcome (ages 13 and up)
Join us for our annual potluck seder! Everyone participates in reading from a Haggadah written especially for the Sisterhood of East End Temple, focused on the women’s role in the Passover story, including prayers using feminized Hebrew. We sing songs written by Debbie Friedman, dance with tambourines, honor women of valor, use a Miriam’s Cup for water and place a symbolic orange on the seder plate. 

• Pre-registration required (coming soon)

Celebration of New Hebrew Names
Friday, April 25 at 6:15pm
Join us for a special Simchat Shabbat service where we will honor those who worked with Fran Kolin over the year to obtain a new Hebrew name. Join in special prayers and songs, led by our clergy, as these honorees are called up to the bimah for special blessings and a certificate.

Nechama (Comfort) Post-Abortion Care Packing
Saturday, April 26 at 2:00pm
Spend Shabbat doing a mitzvah!  Fill bags with comfort supplies which will delivered to women who have had an abortion.  More details to come.

Spring Picnic With Men’s Club
Sunday, May 4 from 11:00am-2:00pm
Details to come.

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Engaging in tikkun olam – our fundraising and advocacy programs
Sisterhood supports a number of worthy causes for those in need as well as temple staff, clergy and building projects.  If you are interested in donating to any of our funds and/or honoring a loved one, please refer to the Contribute page.

Birthday Fund
In its 13th year, this outreach fund is supported by donations honoring Sisterhood member birthdays, the birthdays of their loved ones, and other life events. Monies are directed to local organizations selected annually that support the lives of women and girls. Jodi Malcom is joined this year by Andrea Viders, who will reach out to our members and research meaningful recipients. Recently, donations were given to the Girl Scouts Of America Troop 6000, a unique program serving families living in NY’s shelter system, providing weekly meetings where girls make friends, earn badges and learn skills at no cost, and to City Living NY, which supports and empowers 21-year-olds who have “aged out” of the NY foster care system with mental health counseling, safe furnished apartments, and college and job assistance.

Food For Families Funds
Led by a team of Sisterhood women for over 30 years, we gather to make meals to feed hungry New Yorkers, which are picked up and distributed by City Harvest. Donations to these funds are used to buy the meal-making ingredients and materials.

Helene Spring Library Fund
A jewel of the temple, our library houses an extensive collection from which temple members may browse and borrow. Named for one of EET’s founding members, who is both a past temple president and Sisterhood president, we raise funds to keep our library beautiful and well-stocked.

Sisterhood Leadership Development Fund
We are dedicated to creating leaders who can develop programs to enhance our EET community and to raise funds to support meaningful projects.  Women of Reform Judaism, along with other leadership organizations, provides us with access to many development tools, from conferences to training presentations.  Monies in this fund will be used to take advantage of those tools in order to support the enhancement of leadership skills of current Sisterhood members and to develop future Sisterhood leaders.