“Viva CBI: A Night in Vegas” is coming to town. On Saturday, December 16, at 6:30 PM, the Congregation B’nai Israel (CBI) campus will transform into a bustling 21 and over Vegas wonderland. Incredible prizes will be drawn throughout the evening, which supports education and youth programs. Entry fee is $54 in advance, which includes soft drinks,, appetizers, dessert, $150 in chips to play games, and 2 tickets for adult beverages. Entry fee price will increase at the door. For reservations, click on https://cbi18.shulcloud.com/form/casino-night.html
Gan Laguna, a home-based Jewish learning and living experience for families with young children. is based in Laguna Beach but welcomes families from all over OC. Gan (rhymes with John) means “garden” in Hebrew, but it also means preschool or kindergarten. Perfect for a group of young families that gathers (mainly) outdoors in a garden. The group will hold an event called Gann Laguna: the Nine Days of Hanukkah on Saturday, December 16, at 3 PM. To register, click on https://www.jewishcollaborativeoc.org/gan-laguna1.html
Dr. Julie Harris, live on Zoom from Chicago, IL, will present “A Leap of Faith: Isaac Caro’s ‘Tefillin Case’ and the Quest for Sephardic Material Culture on Wednesday December 20, at 12:30 PM. A specialist in the art of medieval Iberia, she will highlight a small, shield-shaped brass object in Toledo Cathedral’s Sacristy which has been presented in several publications as the tefillin Case of Yitzhak Caro (b. Toledo 1458, d. Ottoman Empire, 1535). Dr. Harris will question the object’s antiquity, its identification as a tefillin case, its connection with Caro, and offer an alternative scenario. To sign up, click on https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZElcO6qqzgrG9DOncfNmE_OYB6mU-rHSYvA#/registration
December 25 – Kindness the J Way – offers a variety of mitzvah projects to do on or before December 25 through the Merage JCC. Make and deliver meals, drop-off gift bags to home-bound seniors, donate blood, donate food, assemble and deliver hygiene kits, and deliver holiday cheer to community heroes and those in need. On December 25 at 9:30 AM, parents and children will be baking brownies and decorating cookies for firefighters. This is a great event for families with little kids. To register, click on https://www.jccoc.org/events/2023/12/25/jcc-cares-social-action/december-25-kindness-the-j-way-baking-brownies-for-firefighters/