Posted on June 27, 2024
To my cherished TBAY Community:
Todah rabah – thank you so much. It’s been an honor and a privilege to serve as your Rabbi over the past four years. We have shared our joys and sorrows, our laughter and tears, our ups and downs. We have prayed together, sang together, learned together, celebrated together and mourned together. We journeyed through the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic and emerged stronger, never losing our connections with one another. Your friendship, support and encouragement have made the act of giving my heart and soul to my role as your spiritual leader both meaningful and a joy. I am so grateful for the many relationships I found here!
Thank you for the wonderful final Shabbat I spent with you last weekend. It was fun – and at times emotional – and a perfect ending to my time here. If you missed our Broadway Shabbat Friday night, you can watch it here: https://fb.watch/sWCc4kUR44/.
I would be remiss (and out-of-character) if I did not say a few final words of thanks. First, thank you to our lay leaders, and especially our service leaders and the Board, who work so tirelessly on behalf of the community. May you find meaning and fulfilment in your efforts. Thank you to our students and children, who bring such boundless curiosity, enthusiasm and energy to our spiritual home. May you always delight in your learning. Thank you to our Shabbat regulars, both in person and online, who have made celebrating Shabbat each week a joy. May you continue to make “Shabbat” more than just a word. Thank you to my morning minyan family, with whom Nya and I have begun our day so many times. May you continue to find meaning by davening in community. Thank you to our dedicated office and school staff, who work as a team to create a collaborative, productive and supportive environment. May you continue to support one another to make work effective, purposeful and fun at the same time.
And I am also grateful to my colleagues, who have become good friends as well. Thank you to Rabbi Mark Mallach and Rabbi Simon Rosenbach, who have been wonderful mentors. May you continue to reap the benefits of all the love and care you give unconditionally to others. Thank you to Harvey Brenner, our retiring Executive Director, who has been a wonderful and valued partner and collaborator. May you enjoy your uninterrupted time with your family, especially your adorable grandchildren. Thank you to Larry Indik, our High Holy Days Cantorial Soloist, who brings such richness to those services. May your spirit and your voice always have the opportunity to resonate in people’s lives. And finally, to our Cantorial Soloist Ben Rosenbach, with whom I have truly loved davening and singing, and who has become a close, lifelong friend. May all your dreams come true and may we all experience your joy in performance and/or writing on Broadway – speedily and in our days.
As I have said many times, once someone is your Rabbi, they never stop being your Rabbi. We all have a collection of rabbis, from our first to our most recent. I’m honored to now become one of the rabbis in your collection. Please keep in touch – by phone, text, email and Facebook. I’m looking forward to hearing about the ups and downs of your lives as we continue on our journeys, apart and yet together.
L’hitra’ot… Until we see one another again,
With all my love,
Rabbi Rubin
P.S. My blog will remain live on the TBAY website, so if you ever want to refer to an old Shabbat Shalom video, D’Var Torah, Torah Study Source Sheet or Torah Question of the week, just go to the TBAY website: https://www.tbaynj.org/spiritual-life/rabbi-rubins-blog/
