Introducing First Fridays, A Monthly Gathering at the Synagogue

Introducing First Fridays! 
By David Goldstein, Director of Community Engagement

Let’s be honest: adult friendships don’t happen as easily as they used to. Between work, kids,
errands, aging parents, carpools, and trying to remember what’s for dinner, it’s easy to go from
one week to the next without really connecting.

That’s where First Fridays comes in.

We’re launching a new series of casual monthly gatherings designed to bring people
together—not because there’s a committee meeting to attend or a volunteer shift to fill, but
simply because community matters.

We’ll kick things off on Friday, August 7, with a Shabbat Potluck Dinner. Every month, we will
host community programming on the First Friday. Easy to remember and even easier to
attend. Friday at 6. Every First Friday!

Some First Fridays might involve dinner. Others may mean lingering over dessert and drinks,
playing a game, sharing stories, or introducing yourself to someone you’ve seen across the
sanctuary for years but somehow never actually met. They won’t all look the same—and that’s
exactly the point.

At Beth El, we come from different places and bring different experiences of Jewish life with us.
Whether you’ve been here forever, just joined, are part of an interfaith family, or are simply
curious about what community can look like, you belong in the mix. Bring your spouse or
partner. Bring a friend who’s Jewish, Jew-ish, or just community-curious. The more voices,
stories, and perspectives we welcome, the richer our community becomes.

So here’s your invitation: stay a little longer. Introduce yourself. Raise a glass of grape juice,
Manischewitz, seltzer, or whatever you’re drinking these days. Laugh. Schmooze. Build the
kinds of connections that carry us through the rest of the month.

After all, synagogue isn’t just a place you go.

It’s people you know.

And we can’t wait to spend our First Fridays with you.