Sisterhood

At the heart of the Hebrew Congregation is our Sisterhood. For over 90 years, the women of the Hebrew Congregation have provided Jewish continuity through their education, social, fund-raising and service activities; enriching the lives of our members, our congregation and our community.

Our activities fall under three broad categories: Family and community life; Service to the congregation; and Fundraising. Within the first category we include our meetings which feature a vast array of activities; speakers on topics of Jewish interest; and entertainment. This year, in conjunction with Hadassah, we hold a monthly Rosh Chodesh class and service for women, where we study areas of interest to Jewish women and learn the Shabbat morning service.

Another major component of our family life is our special holiday celebrations. Our Sisterhood sponsors dinners for Sukkot, Purim, Chanukah and a congregational Break-fast. In addition we provide snacks, treats and meals for the children on Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Simchat Torah, Passover and Purim. We also coordinate and help cater special Oneg Shabbats & Kiddush luncheons to help congregants celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, Brits, namings, and other life cycle events.

In the areas of service to the congregation and community, we maintain the only "public" kosher kitchen in the greater Wichita area. Sisterhood annually provides a yearbook, which is a guide to our membership and utilized by our callers to keep the congregation informed of major events. Another area of service is to our joint religious school and educational facilities. Many Sisterhood members have been active in the religious school as teachers, administrators and fund-raisers.

Our library and resource center is supported by Sisterhood fund-raising and maintenance efforts. Our fund-raising activities are varied. We have several ongoing projects and periodically add special events to our calendar. We sponsor the Jewish Community Calendar. This is produced each fall and includes all the Jewish holidays, candle lighting times and scheduled events of our community. It also affords people an opportunity to commemorate a special occasion.

Our annual Donor event held each January gives our members an opportunity to make an annual gift to Sisterhood. Each Donor event is a special occasion of brunches, luncheons and teas with programs of music, plays, speakers, or even our children performing.

Our Gift Shop is an ongoing fund generating and service project. We are an excellent source for a wide array of Jewish ceremonial objects for personal use and for gifts. Available for purchase is our own cookbook, Traditionally Ours, a compendium of favorite recipes from Hebrew Congregation cooks through out generations.

But perhaps the most important role our Sisterhood has played in the life of the Hebrew Congregation is in creating a sense of family. We share happy and sad occasions, we work side by side to achieve common goals and we become more than friends - we become a family.