Our Stories

Read-a-thon to Support Hurricane Harvey Victims

September 6, 2017 by Sharon Freundel (Community)

An important middah (moral virtue) is achrayut (responsibility). As teachers and as parents, we spend much of our time working to instill in our children a sense of responsibility for themselves, their behavior, and their work. But we also look for opportunities to teach our children that our responsibility does not end with ourselves – that, in a sense, we are all responsible for one another and for the planet in which we live.

The tragedy of unprecedented flooding in and around Houston is a reminder that our responsibility extends well beyond geographical borders. It is a call for action to engage our students and indeed, our entire school community, in exercising achrayut. We are therefore launching a tzedakah Read-a-thon to raise funds to help the flood victims.

The Read-a-thon will continue through September 19, the last day of school of the current Jewish year. Once all the contributions have been collected, we will channel the funds to the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund at the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. The Federation is working in collaboration with the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) to raise funds quickly as part of a national coordinated effort to meet both immediate and long-term needs.

We hope that 100% of our children will participate in this important effort. We look forward to a successful tzedakah Read-a-thon, and we are grateful for the opportunity to help our brothers and sisters in need!