Super Sunday’s wide outreach brings in youth
Outreach is the name of the game for this year’s Community Super Sunday, the big annual fund-raiser of the Jewish Federation of Princeton Mercer Bucks, taking place on Nov. 21 at Rider University in Lawrenceville.
That means an open-armed welcome to people from all parts of the community, according to the organizers, for “a family fun frenzy,” for everyone from “babies to bubbies.”
Susan Weiner, the camp and program director of the JCC of Princeton Mercer Bucks, a cosponsor of the event, has been helping shape the all-day program. “We’re hoping for 500 or more people,” she said, “and we want it to be a day of fun and activity for everyone.”
She pointed out that while the central goal is to raise funds — as many people as possible will be working the phones asking for donations and children will bring their tzedaka boxes filled with bills and coins — much of the program has nothing to do with cash. “There will be lots of things to buy, but you don’t have to spend any money. The entertainment is all free,” Weiner said.
In the morning, when many of the local children are in religious school, the Super Sunday program will offer a workshop for caregivers. After lunch, however, festivities will be geared to families.
They will start with singing — one song each from choirs from various synagogues, and then they will all come together for a musical finale.
There will be a storyteller, Lisa Garwood, relating tales of tikun olam, healing the world.
There will be Israeli dancing by RAK-DAN and a concert by Israeli entertainer Yosi, in addition to face-painting, craft projects, and a balloon artist.
It will also be a chance for youngsters to link up with friends from the summer; the JCC camp reunion will take place at Super Sunday. Weiner said some of the young people will revisit what they did at camp, running fund-raising booths — selling lemonade and snacks and packing parcels for the food pantry run by Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County.
For Yishai Cohen, this is his first Super Sunday in the PMB community. He joined the staff of the federation in August as campaign development director. He said, “We’re hoping to have people of all ages making calls, from early teens up.”
He said outreach had been extended to all area synagogues and religious schools, and also to Jewish youth organizations and the Center for Jewish Life/Hillel at Princeton University. The members of the Jewish Community Youth Foundation, which organizes teen philanthropic projects, are having their regular meeting on the campus that morning, so they can also join in.
“With the paradigm shift this year and the community focus, we’ve got a really family-friendly program,” Cohen said. “We’re optimistic that lots of people will come.”
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