Dear Congregants and Friends,

I am writing to you from Hong Kong, where Roger and I are spending a delightful month visiting our daughter, son-in-law, and young grandsons. After a 4 year pause in being able to travel here, it is wonderful to spend time with them and to celebrate Passover together. We look forward to being part of their synagogue’s Community Seder at the same time as we will miss being with you at the CBI Seder. Happily, our enduring Jewish traditions bind us all together, wherever we may be across the globe. I extend my gratitude to the Board, Rabbi Rachel, service leaders, Oliver Jones, and everyone else who has stepped in to make sure that CBI continues to function smoothly during this time — and I especially thank Jen Burt and her family for their labor of love in preparing for and catering CBI’s Community Seder.

Passover is the visible face of what’s happening at CBI right now. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, we’ve been hard at work creating a new vision for our education programs for next year. We are actively planning for the coming school year, and are in the process of implementing innovative new programming, together with the Kesher Shalom community, a burgeoning group of unaffiliated Jewish families from southern Vermont and northern Berkshires. Thanks to a generous grant from Jewish Federation of the Berkshires and the generosity of individual donors, we are reimagining what our Jewish education will encompass. Stay tuned for more information as our plans progress. If you’d like to join our Education Committee and get involved in this transition, please let me know — we welcome your participation.

As we move into spring, we hope to see many more of you at services and activities. Please check your weekly announcements for notice of programs.

Wishing you and yours a very happy and meaningful Passover,

— Natalie Matus