USY Update 5/17

This past weekend, Natick USY hosted the HaNer Regional Spring Convention! It was a major success, as we had a large group of teens from across New England as well as over 15 USYers from our own chapter who joined together to enjoy an amazing weekend! On Friday night, we led our own services in the courtyard, and we then had a great dinner with Birkat and enthusiastic ruach afterwards, as well as a program about Jews and superheroes. On Saturday morning, we led a service with the help of many regional USYers, and in the afternoon we had free time featuring a ultimate frisbee game followed by a Torah program. On Saturday night, we closed out Shabbat with a beautiful "sloach" (slow ruach) session followed by Maariv and Havdalah, and we then had dinner and then ended the night with fun including laser tag, a video game truck, and smores. On Sunday morning, we closed out the weekend with breakfast and a service project making capes. Overall, this weekend was a lot of fun for all of the teens who joined us, and it was a pleasure hosting so many teens from across the region.

March Sato Snap

        The Attack On Drag       

March Sato Snap

Isabel Pravda 

Drag, the art of dressing and acting exaggerated, typically as another gender, can be traced back to the first performances of Shakespeare, when female roles were done by men. Drag performance art includes pageants, comedy, singing, dancing, lip-syncing, fashion designing, acting, and so much more. As famous drag queen Ben De LA Creme (DeLa) states, “Drag is an intersection of an art practice and an identity”. However, people that express themselves through drag are now under attack. Since 2023, over 30 bills have been proposed in 17 states that have targeted the art of drag. Tennessee passed a bill last week that banned “male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to a prurient interest or similar entertainers” to perform in public or in the presence of children. Not following that law leads to a possible misdemeanor or felony charge. Most recently, on March 28, Texas passed two senate bills, (now on their way to the US senate). These bills would stop public funds to local libraries that allow drag performers to read books to minors. These bills are an attack on queer people, drag artists, and self-expression. Because drag has become more mainstream now, it is being attacked by many. However, many of these people fail to realize that just like any other performance art, not all of it is inappropriate. Like musicians and comedians, some drag shows are for all ages, and some are for a more mature audience, and minors are usually not allowed to attend these venues. It is also important to note that drag performers are not just gay men transforming into queens, but they can be gay, straight, cisgender, or transgender, as the art form has no limits. 

USY Update 3/17

USY has had a busy end to winter! In February, we had USY Shabbat, our biggest event of the year in which USYers lead the services and participate in programming throughout the weekend. It went extremely well, as teens led Friday night services, had a Friday night dinner including the congregation, and led a spirited session of ruach after dinner. Then, on Saturday, USY showed off its talent as it led an amazing service including Torah readings, speeches, and davening, and at night, we had a game show night where we played fun games like Jeopardy and Family Feud. 

Then, for Purim, USY ran the annual Purim Carnival. This took a lot of work from USYers, led by Michelle Nelson and Emma Freedlander, and we were able to put on this big event which made the days of many kids in our community.

We look forward to possibly hosting HaNer Spring Convention and continuing our fun programming as we head towards the end of the year!

January SATO Snap

 The Scam of Recycling 

Recycling seems like a simple concept, but in reality, only 6% of plastic in the US was recycled in 2021. Many plastic items are created with dyes and additives which change the properties of certain plastics. These additives not only affect the melting point of plastic making it harder to recycle, but it makes it harder for consumers to know what they can recycle The majority of people think that the triangle of interlocking arrows means that the product is recyclable, but those symbols only reveal the categories that indicate the type of plastic the product is made of. Only a couple of categories of plastic are recyclable. 

PVC (#3) is used for things like plastic food wrapping and it is not likely for recyclers to take those products. It is also unsafe to reuse PVC products because they contain toxins that can be harmful to food or children. LDPE (#4) is usually the material that plastic bags are made of, which is not usually recyclable. PP (#5) is used for many food packages like yogurt or cereal bags or containers. It is technically recyclable but many recyclers do not accept it due to food residue. PS (#6) is used for many styrofoam containers, which are not recyclable, and are found in marine animals' stomachs. It can also contain harmful chemicals that hurt human health. Finally, other plastics (#7) should never be assumed as recyclable. They can contain many harmful chemicals like xenoestrogen that can cause many health problems like impairing human reproduction. However, there are instances where some of these products are recyclable, depending on the plastics your local recycler accepts. Recycling non-recyclable products is a waste of time and can be harmful. They will end up in landfills of jam-up recycling machinery requiring manual removal. One of the most significant issues with people recycling is contamination. Food particles, direct, and moisture can prevent recycled products from being processed. That’s why we all need to be more aware of the products we are purchasing and disposing of.

National Geographic, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/why-recycling-plastic-doesnt-always-get-recycled?loggedin=true&rnd=1674828521085. Accessed 27 January 2023.

USY Update 1/13

This winter, USY has been very busy so far! We have had two movie nights in November and December, where we watched Jurassic Park, Free Guy, Night at the Museum, and Minions. These were very popular and well-attended, and we look forward to hosting more of those in the coming months. We have also had several Youth Lounges, where activities have included lighting Chanukiyot together and cooking meals for upcoming dinners and events. We had a Friday night dinner in November, and there will be another one tonight, where we will be leading services, eating meatballs, having an enthusiastic ruach session, and enjoying each others' company.

In terms of upcoming events, USY Shabbat is less than one month away! We are very excited to have our game show themed weekend including a Friday night congregational dinner, a Saturday morning service completely led by USYers, and a Saturday night of game shows and fun! Mark your calendars for February 10-11, as any USYer/teenager who wants to come for a weekend of celebration and fun is welcome, and we are excited to show off our talent to the temple community!