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Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's Chanukah celebrations go on for several nights at the Temple and into the communities. Our special events celebrating Jewish culture like the Klezmer Band Jewish Folk Music concert draw visitors from all over the Phoenix area. Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley Has Something for Everyone! Come join in the fun! Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's Chanukah celebrations go on for several nights at the Temple and into the communities. Our special events like the Klezmer Band Jewish Folk Music concert draw visitors from all over the Phoenix area. These are a few examples of the Temple's joyous events. Ongoing: Join Our Ancient Biblical Interpretations Study Group Learn about the Jewish Influence on R & B and Rock and Roll during Temple Beth Shalom's three-part series in May. MORE DETAILS Sign up for the "Authenticity, Honesty and Integrity" interfaith series presented by Temple Beth Shalom in May. MORE DETAILS

Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley celebrates Shabbat every Friday night with a joyous service at about 7 p.m. to about 8:15 p.m., led by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and Cantor Baruch Koritan, followed by a Oneg. Most prayers are in English so a worshiper with minimal Hebrew can participate actively. Friday Night Shabbat Services View live streaming of Shabbat services and past services on Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's YouTube channel We celebrate Shabbat every Friday night with a joyous service at about 7 p.m. which runs to about 8:15 p.m., followed by an Oneg. Our Shabbat services are led by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and Cantor Baruch Koritan. Most of the prayers we read are in English so a worshiper with minimal Hebrew should be able to participate actively. Many of the prayers that are sung are in Hebrew and our prayer book provides transliterations of 100% of them. The services are snappy and upbeat. We want to pray to God with reverence and sincerity but we also want to mix in a little bit of levity and humor. We read the Torah every Friday night. Sometimes the rabbi reads a short excerpt and simultaneously translates it into English, while at other times he attempts to chant and summarizes the biblical story after finishing. We have a Torah processional preceding the reading and the rabbi likes to give one of our two smaller Torahs to children to carry around the sanctuary. The rabbi speaks extemporaneously from notes rather than reading from a prepared text. He likes to come down from the bimah to better communicate and interact with all of us in the pews. Sometimes he engages us extensively in discussion and other times he delivers remarks stressing a particular point about Judaism and connecting it to the contemporary world. We sing Debbie Friedman’s Misheberach song every Friday night as part of our regular prayers for healing. Some of us may believe God can heal us and others may believe that marshaling the combined spiritual power of many people can create miracles. Either way, we want to focus our thoughts and bring forth our emotions in a determined effort to bring healing and wholeness to our friends and family, our community and nation, and ourselves as well.

Contact Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's synagogue administrator Helene Fox at 623.977.3240 or tbsazfinances@gmail.com. Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, 12202 N. 101st Ave., Sun City, AZ. 85351 Welcome to Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley Contact Us Please feel free to call our synagogue administrator Patti Weiner at 623.977.3240 or templebethshalomaz@gmail.com Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley 12202 N. 101st Ave. Sun City, AZ. 85351 Shabbat Services Congregants set aside sacred time for engaging with God through prayer and reflection – spoken and sung – and the reading of the Torah. Every Friday: 7 p.m. Once a Month, October-May on Saturdays: 10:30 a.m.

Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley has a very small religious school, which allows us to provide individual attention. Our team of volunteer teachers from our community work with students under the guidance of the rabbi. Families of our religious school students are involved in the temple. Religious School Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley reopened its religious school in 2023, as part of the congregation's wish to create a multi-generational community. We welcome students from the entire West Valley. Kindergarten is free! Our small school allows us to provide individual attention. We have a team of volunteer teachers from our community who work with students under the guidance of the rabbi. Families of our religious school students are actively involved in the religious and social life of the Temple, including attending services on Friday nights. Our Temple is committed to providing a warm and caring environment for all students to explore their spirituality. We aspire to inspire each student to develop a love of Jewish learning and provide the opportunity for them to participate actively in Jewish ritual and holiday observances. Learning is both individualized and personalized. We also want to help each student to feel emotions related to the biblical stories and ritual acts they are learning about. Our educational experience is not just about learning facts but is centered on what those facts can and do mean for us as human beings. We also engage them with a series of values based on Professor Martin Seligman’s positive psychology. Temple Beth Shalom offers study opportunities leading to confirmation at a minimum age of 15, and bar and bat mitzvah at a minimum age of 13. As part of the confirmation process, the older kids will study advanced material dealing with various themes across Jewish studies. We're trying to build a distinctly Reform approach to Judaism that emphasizes personal religious autonomy while at the same time emphasizing the vibrancy and seriousness of religious commitment. With the limited hours available, American religious schools cannot teach students as much as they would really need to become highly educated Jews. What we do hope to do is to inspire them to want to continue their education into their college years and far beyond. Please contact the TBS office at 623.977.3240 for further information.

Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley Mem ber Testimonials Marlene and Jonathan Green We recently moved to Arizona, and knew we wanted to sink new roots into the Jewish community in the West Valley. We visited Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, met the Rabbi, attended services, and immediately felt the warmth and welcoming of the congregation. We were impressed that Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan came over to our home to welcome us and ask about our history and interests. We joined, and found the congregation very inviting. We have enjoyed some of the adult education programs. I've gotten involved in the treasury function, the Outreach Committee, and Marlene is co-chairing the Social Action Committee. We are very happy with our decision to join, and feel our efforts to contribute to the congregation are well-received and appreciated. Gloria and Steve Bold Steve and I were snowbirds for 3 years, until our daughter told us she was expecting our first grandchild. So we bought a place in Sun City and quit the back & forth to the East Coast. We were sad to leave our temple in Rehoboth, Delaware! We had gone with our daughter to their synagogue in Scottsdale. It was too big for us & a long drive. We decided to try Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley since it was nearby. We felt welcomed and liked those we met. The next week, several people recognized us and we told them we were looking for a synagogue! After attending services several times, we knew we had found our new home. Friendships have grown & both of us are getting involved. We are a close community of committed Jews. It has made a huge difference in our life. We love Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and look forward to many more years at Temple Beth Shalom. Steve Siegel and Robert Koch Before we joined Temple Beth Shalom we started Shul shopping around the Phoenix area. There were so many choices to choose from. It became overwhelming. None of the other congregations felt right to us. Plus most were on the other side of town and as many of you know it’s a schlep. After talking with then president Jan Sodos and the temple educator, Elissa Rose, they gave us the highlights of the temple and this wonderful community. So we began attending services and we decided to join. We then joined the Brotherhood and started attend Torah study with Rabbi Sheldon Moss. This was the community we needed and wanted to be a part of. Then something struck us. We were reading a message from Mary Gill Savoren in the Shofar that said: “We (TBS) have always welcomed individuals and families of varying Jewish lifestyles. We are particularly sensitive to the need for inclusion of both traditional and non-traditional family structures.” The message rang home to us. We want to thank the members of Temple Beth Shalom for opening their arms and welcoming Bob and I into your family.

Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's weekly Friday Shabbat service using the Reform Mishkan T’filah prayer book is led by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and Cantor Baruch Koritan. One Saturday morning a month, a small group meet for an informal participatory Shabbat service lead by Rabbi Kaplan. Prayer View live streaming of Friday Night Shabbat services and past services on Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's YouTube channel Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's weekly Friday Shabbat service using the Reform Mishkan T’filah prayer book provides our worshipers with an opportunity to set aside sacred time for engaging with God through prayer and reflection – spoken and sung – and the reading of the Torah. Led by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and Cantor Baruch Koritan, our members are afforded the opportunity to participate in the service through reading prayers, blessing the lighting of the Shabbat candles, reciting the blessings before and after the reading of the Torah, or carrying the Torah during the Torah service. Services begin at 7 p.m. throughout the year. We have monthly informal Saturday Morning Shabbat service with music at 10:30 a.m. It is followed by a potluck Kiddush brunch. For more information, visit tbsaz.org or call 623.977.3240.

Through Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley's donation portal, you can make a donation in honor of a Yahrzeit, an anniversary, birthday or another special occasion. Your support is greatly appreciated. Donations A donation to Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley is a wonderful way to celebrate a special event; to honor the life of a loved one; or simply to express appreciation for the benefits Temple Beth Shalom brings to your life. Temple Beth Shalom is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization and donations are 100% deductible. How to Donate Pay by check Donations can be made by mailing a check to Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, 12202 N. 101st Ave., Sun City, AZ 85351. Pay online You can make donations to Temple Beth Shalom online by using the Temple's Zeffy account and fill out the online form . You can use your credit card or make a direct debit (ACH) from a bank account. Please note that if you are registering and paying for a specific Temple event, such as the Seders, please go to the specific event's page on tbsaz.org then click on the link to the Zeffy form on that event page. Please do not use the general Donation form for specific events. Each event has a different Zeffy form. The Temple receives 100% of the Zeffy donation transactions. Zeffy is free to nonprofit groups, thanks to voluntary donations. When you fill out a Zeffy form, you’ll see a suggested voluntary donation amount to Zeffy for the convenience of making donations online. You can change the amount by choosing "other" then type in an amount, including $0 if you'd rather not make a voluntary contribution. View this how-to video to learn more . Thank you for your support of Temple Beth Shalom.

All Posts Search Log in / Sign up Dana Evan Kaplan Jun 25, 2023 1 min The Museum of Antioquia The Museum of Antioquia is located in the center of Medellín on the Plaza Botero near the Berrío Park metro station. Visiting it was a... 1 view 0 comments Post not marked as liked tbsazwebhost Jun 24, 2023 1 min Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan's Blog Crossing Abandoned Railway Bridges from Palomas to Camilo C. Restrepo, Antioqia This cycling trip involved crossing 3 bridges that had... 1 view 0 comments Post not marked as liked