30th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION SEPT 7, 2024 
Tickets are SOLD OUT
The response to the 30th Anniversary Celebration has been tremendous and tickets are sold out. Please contact Amy Hoskins at amy.hoskins@jcogs.org to be placed on a waiting list. The program with speakers and musical guests will be available for viewing live on line.
Your support makes a difference! You can show your JCOGS spirit by sharing your message in the special edition Tribute Book. 30th Anniversary Celebration tribute donations and donations to the endowment are encouraged and gratefully accepted.
All are welcome to join us for a special musical Shabbat service with the guest musicians on September 6th as we gather together in community.
Thank you for your support of JCOGS!
As JCOGS approaches its 30th anniversary, a truly special evening is planned for September 7, 2024, to celebrate our community. The event will feature a catered gourmet dinner, a musical concert by renowned rabbinic artists, and an internationally known keynote speaker. In addition, JCOGS is proud to honor Ronald Feinstein for his dedication to JCOGS and the broader community.
honoring
Over the course of many years, Ron’s steadfast efforts have helped to build and strengthen JCOGS’ presence as a synagogue and Jewish community center. Ron is a trustee emeritus and past president of the board; he was instrumental in recruiting and retaining the community’s beloved leader, Rabbi David Fainsilber.
Honor Ron and celebrate JCOGS here with your message in the beautiful Tribute Book designed for this milestone.
Most recently, Ron helped launch JCOGS’ first endowment campaign with significant financial support plus a matching challenge gift of one million dollars to help build momentum in achieving our goals. Thanks to the philanthropy of many generous donors, the Endowment campaign goals are in sight.
keynote remarks
Rabbi Sharon is President of Hebrew College. From 2011 to 2013, Rabbi Anisfeld was named to Newsweek’s list of Top 50 Influential Rabbis in America. In 2015, she was named one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by The Jerusalem Post. She writes and teaches widely, weaving together Torah, rabbinic commentary, and contemporary poetry and literature in her wise and compassionate approach to the complexities of the human experience and the search for healing and hope in a beautiful but fractured world.
SPEAKERS
Rabbi David is the full-time rabbi of the Jewish Community of Greater Stowe. Originally from Montreal, he and his wife Alison joined the community in 2013 and are parents to three children. Ordained at Hebrew College in 2014, he is a former fellow of the Clergy Leadership Incubator and American Jewish World Service, and is a current fellow with the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. Rabbi David infuses Shabbat and Holy Days with spirit, and composes and records liturgical music.
Father Rick currently serves as the rector of St. John's in the Mountains Episcopal Church in Stowe, and has been serving the interfaith Stowe Mountain Chapel since 2011. Father Rick received a Master of Divinity in 2000 from Seabury-Western Theological Seminary and was awarded his Doctor of Ministry from Bexley-Seabury Seminary Federation in 2019.
Reverend Dan is the Senior Minister at Stowe Community Church, an interdenominational congregation located in the historic village of Stowe, Vermont. The iconic church was founded in 1818, and is one of the first non-denominational churches in the United States. The current building was constructed in 1863. Reverend Dan is a graduate of Alliance Theological Seminary, where. he was ordained in 2006
musical performances
Rabbi Arielle serves as the lead rabbi of Shir Tikvah, a justice-seeking, song-filled congregation in South Minneapolis. Ordained at Hebrew College in 2017, Rabbi Arielle is a former B’nai Jeshurun Marshall T. Meyer Rabbinical Fellow, a Rising Song Fellow and a Clergy Leadership Incubator Fellow.
Rabbi Jessica is a prayer leader, storyteller, vocalist, and rabbi ordained at Hebrew College in 2014. After 10 years of pulpit experience in San Francisco and New York, she returned to Hebrew College as Rosh Tefillah and Artist-in-Residence. She has appeared in film, theater, and television projects in Europe and the United States, most notably, as a principal role in the Oscar-winning film, The Pianist.
Rabbi Micah is a prayer leader, composer, multi-instrumentalist, music producer and band leader who enriches Jewish communities across the country with his distinct blend of musical and spiritual leadership. Ordained at Hebrew College in 2017, Rabbi Michah is the founder of Nariya -The Shabbat Sing Out in Boston, as well as the new Nariya Cleveland. He recently released his full length album, Zeh Ha-Sha’ar.
Special Edition Tribute Book
Kindly consider celebrating JCOGS’ 30th birthday and honoring Ron with your tribute message in the special edition book that will be custom designed for this milestone, capturing a sampling of member photos and statements about what community means to them.
All tribute messages and gifts benefit the JCOGS Endowment. Thanks to an anonymous donor’s generosity, the costs of the September 7 celebration have been fully funded, so 100% of all funds raised in connection with that event benefit the endowment.
background
Incorporated in 1995, the Jewish Community of Greater Stowe (JCOGS) began as a collection of Jewish families meeting for observance in homes, Green Mountain Inn and at the Baggy Knees Shopping Center.
In 2005, thanks to the leadership of Marvin Gameroff and many generous donors, the community opened its beautiful current space on Cape Cod Road in Stowe. During JCOGS’ early years, Rabbi Brian Besser provided the community with inspiring spiritual leadership.
In 2014, JCOGS transitioned to a new phase of vibrancy and growth with the arrival of Rabbi David Fainsilber, the community’s first full-time ordained rabbi living in the area. With his soulful music and dynamic style, Rabbi David provides the community with all that a full-time ordained spiritual leader has to offer, including weekly sabbath services, lifecycle events, social and educational programming, and comprehensive pastoral care.
As part of its mission, JCOGS addresses issues of social justice, advocates for awareness and support for unhoused people, and stands up against antisemitism, bigotry, and prejudice of all types.