Business of the meeting will consist of the election of nominated members of the Board of Directors (to replace the one-third of Board whose term expires), and a review and ratification of the budget for the 2012/2013 fiscal year.  A full copy of the budget will be available for your review in the Administrative Office.

A final agenda and meeting notice along with the proposed slate shall be sent 30 days prior to the meeting.  Any member who desires to bring up an item of business and have said item placed on the agenda at the annual meeting shall notify the President in sufficient time to be included in the final notice mailed to the members of the congregation thirty (30) days prior to said meeting.  No business shall be conducted at the annual meeting which is not set forth in the notice.

If you are a survivor or family of survivors of the Holocaust, please contact Lori Solomon in the office 305-238-2601.  Bet Shira wants to include and honor every member who has been personally affected by this tragic event in Jewish History.

Although my term as Sisterhood President will end in June, I have no intentions of deserting Sisterhood.  For one thing, I remain an officer for another two years – I will be the “Past President,” a title I relish!  In addition, I am committed to bringing Shiragram ordering online, for those who want to do it that way. I will also be supervising the online ordering of Shira Baskets (yes, Rosh Hashana is only 135 days away!)  And I will still be at services every Saturday morning, and may even get to hang around on the bimah once in a while, since I have a “thing” for the Synagogue President, and my successor Suzanne Roberts prefers to attend services on Friday nights.

But I’m not quite ready to start looking back on my two years of living the Sisterhood life.  May is too full a month for that.  On May 9, at our final Sisterhood meeting of the year, we will be allocating funds for the coming year (2012-13).  On Wednesday, May 16, at 10:00 a.m., there will be a planning meeting for a daytime Book Club.  The daytime Book Club will be open to both men and women, will be held at Bet Shira, and will be led by Sharon Glick.  Come to the planning meeting and you can put in your two cents about books, meeting dates, etc.

At our April meeting, we elected our officers for the coming year.  Space limitations prevent me from listing their names in this column, but look for them on the Bet Shira website and in future Bulletins.  These talented and energetic women, along with our 2012-13 Board of Directors, will be installed in their offices at our Spring Tea on May 23.  I hope you’ll all attend this lovely event, put together by a dedicated team led by Zelda Schwebel and Sharon Presby.

For my outgoing officers — Nancy Crair, Carol Stein, Didi Zeichner, Judie Berger, Audrey Stone, Edy Cannon, Velma Papier, Linda Truppman, Eileen Farr, Linda Spiegelman and Sharon Presby – I am truly grateful for your dedication and hard work. Lucy Zelman (Torah Fund), Iane Deutsch (holiday flowers) and Diane Pinchuk (bimah flowers) – my deepest thanks for all that you’ve done these past two years.  A special thank you to Loree Feiler for inspiring me to update our Shiragram procedures, and for making sure we get our Mah-Jongg cards!

I end this column (and in June, my term of office) knowing that I am leaving Sisterhood in the capable hands of President Suzanne Roberts.  Under Suzanne’s thoughtful and enthusiastic leadership, Sisterhood will continue to be a source of blessing for our congregation.

Gail Serota

$10 per person

Please RSVP to Donna Leigh- Tucker at

dtucker@betshira.org or 305.238.2601

Please join us in welcoming Terri Davis,  Overseas Coordinator for Kehillat Netzach Israel Ashkelon as she discusses: Fight For Religious Freedom In Israel: A Personal Account