Friends -
As you know, we have been holding outdoor davening on Shabbat mornings since mid-July, and I am personally grateful for the opportunity to daven communally. With Rosh Hashanah approaching, our ritual and safety committees have been hard at work addressing the challenges that this year presents, and I look forward to sharing the Yamim Noraim with the Kol Sasson community as much as possible.
We are pleased to let you know that weather-permitting, Kol Sasson will hold two back yard davenings on each morning of Rosh Hashanah. One will be in the Lennons’ yard, and we anticipate that the other will be in the Sugars' yard. Based on the weather forecast, a decision will be made on Friday, erev Rosh Hashanah, whether davening will be able to proceed outdoors, and that decision will be communicated to attendees. In the unfortunate event that we are unable to daven outdoors, we will hold davening indoors in our usual space at Skokie Valley. Shofar blowing on Sunday will, however, be held outdoors, socially distant and at a designated time after davening, in order to enable more members to hear shofar, even if they were unable to attend davening. (This will be the case, even if davening is held outside.) Our safety protocols will be enforced, including social distance between family units and wearing masks at all times. After many months, some of these protocols have become familiar to us in all aspects of our daily lives, but the current situation also requires us to institute less-familiar protocols: our davening, irrespective of location, will be smaller and abbreviated to two hours; this means that most of our traditional piyutim will not be sung this year, attendees should say psukei d’zimra at home, and divrei torah will be shared electronically prior to the chag.
This also means that, for the first time, we will require advance sign-up for davening, and attendance will be limited. The sign up form is now available for members in good standing, and regrettably, we do not expect to be able to accommodate attendance by associate members this year. (If you are unsure of your membership status, please contact Shaina Sugar). Members in good standing are asked to indicate if they will attend outdoor-only or indoor/outdoor, day(s) they will attend, and the requested number of attendees (as well as which side of the mechitza, which will assist us in planning the seating). Please submit your requests by noon on Sunday. (A separate sign up for Yom Kippur will be sent shortly.) We know that some members may have family visiting for Rosh Hashanah, and in a normal year, Kol Sasson is, of course, thrilled to have many guests daven with our community. Unfortunately, this year, while we are hopeful that we will still be able to include some visiting family, priority for attendance will be given to Kol Sasson member households. If you are requesting seating for visiting family, please only do so if they will be able to sit with you in your "pod."
In addition, the KS-SVAJ Joint Youth Committee is evaluating what options may exist for child care during the High Holidays, and whether logistics and existing restrictions will allow for child care to be provided in a safe manner.
May we all be inscribed for a healthy - and communal - 5781.
Shanah tovah
