About Gesher
Gesher is a collaborative educational initiative forged by Beth El Temple and Chisuk Emuna Congregation to create a life-long Jewish learning community offering a wide variety of creative educational opportunities for students, parents and families, and adult learners.
About the Religious School
The Gesher religious school engages students and families in an educational environment which is challenging, caring, and fun. We help prepare our students with the core knowledge and skill to begin to discover their own paths to an authentic lifelong relationship with God, Torah, Israel, and the Jewish people. We seek to enable our students to appreciate the diversity within the Jewish community and community at-large, and to respond to contemporary social issues from a Jewish perspective.
Gesher offers a wide variety of dynamic educational opportunities for students in grades K – 7 from Beth El Temple and Chisuk Emuna Congregation. Gesher engages parents and other family members in learning along with their children in family education programs and Shabbat and Jewish holiday programming throughout the year. Below you can find information about some of our special opportunities and programs, beyond our regularly-scheduled Sunday morning religious school classes:
Better Together
Gesher is proud to have been selected to participate in a national program connecting Jewish teens and seniors through programming and activities to create meaningful relationships with each other. Better Together embodies the Jewish value of honoring the elderly, a mitzvah that brings generations closer to their Jewish roots. Gesher Better Together facilitates intergenerational gatherings and relationships with our congregations’ seniors and 6th and 7th grade students. This special program meets over Shabbat, holidays and special events throughout the year. Better Together will have a special bus trip in 2023-2024! Better Together is staffed by Gesher teacher Lynne Harlacher and is funded by a generous, multi-year grant.
Gesher Gan
Joyful exploration of holidays through art, food and song and introduction to alef bet lessons for grades K-1 monthly on Sunday mornings.
Gesher Religious School Hebrew Reading and Tefilah Tutoring
Private, weekday tutoring; conveniently held via Zoom with targeted, customized 1:1 Hebrew and prayer instruction. Hebrew reading accuracy and personal connection to Jewish prayers are our goals.
Gesher B’nai Mitzvah Tutoring
Weekly, hour-long individual tutoring sessions to learn cantillation for Torah reading, Haftarah chanting, and prayer leading with year-round accessibility and support for students. Additional support is also available as needed for family members to adequately prepare for b’nai mitzvah, including family workshops.
Gesher Shabbat and Holiday Programming
We hold regular Gesher Family Shabbat services and holiday programs at both Beth El Temple and Chisuk Emuna Congregation. Our Pray & Play program also meets on Shabbat (see below). For 2023-2024, you can see our schedule for Friday night Gesher Shabbat services and dinners and Saturday morning Gesher Shabbat services and Pray & Play.
Pray & Play
Monthly Shabbat program with beloved Gesher teacher Jodie Raffensperger for children under the age of seven. See the 2023-2024 Pray & Play schedule.
Shamor V’Zakhor
Holocaust education program, with a core goal of building community among our 7th grade students from Gesher, Ohev Sholom Religious School, and the Silver Academy. Coursework centered on Holocaust education and Shabbat, with skilled instruction from Jenna Rappaport, Jennie Barr, and our community leaders and rabbis. Program highlights include a Shabbaton, a bus trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial, participation in ceremonies at the Harrisburg Holocaust Monument, and the opening ceremony of the Reading of the Names program. The group also submits essays for the Schwab Holocaust Essay contest. This program is generously funded through the Jewish Community Foundation of Central PA Lipsett Philanthropic Fund.
Gesher offers a wide variety of dynamic educational opportunities for students in grades K – 7 from Beth El Temple and Chisuk Emuna Congregation. Gesher engages parents and other family members in learning along with their children in family education programs and Shabbat and Jewish holiday programming throughout the year. Below you can find information about some of our special opportunities and programs, beyond our regularly-scheduled Sunday morning religious school classes:
Better Together
Gesher is proud to have been selected to participate in a national program connecting Jewish teens and seniors through programming and activities to create meaningful relationships with each other. Better Together embodies the Jewish value of honoring the elderly, a mitzvah that brings generations closer to their Jewish roots. Gesher Better Together facilitates intergenerational gatherings and relationships with our congregations’ seniors and 6th and 7th grade students. This special program meets over Shabbat, holidays and special events throughout the year. Better Together will have a special bus trip in 2023-2024! Better Together is staffed by Gesher teacher Lynne Harlacher and is funded by a generous, multi-year grant.
Gesher Gan
Joyful exploration of holidays through art, food and song and introduction to alef bet lessons for grades K-1 monthly on Sunday mornings.
Gesher Religious School Hebrew Reading and Tefilah Tutoring
Private, weekday tutoring; conveniently held via Zoom with targeted, customized 1:1 Hebrew and prayer instruction. Hebrew reading accuracy and personal connection to Jewish prayers are our goals.
Gesher B’nai Mitzvah Tutoring
Weekly, hour-long individual tutoring sessions to learn cantillation for Torah reading, Haftarah chanting, and prayer leading with year-round accessibility and support for students. Additional support is also available as needed for family members to adequately prepare for b’nai mitzvah, including family workshops.
Gesher Shabbat and Holiday Programming
We hold regular Gesher Family Shabbat services and holiday programs at both Beth El Temple and Chisuk Emuna Congregation. Our Pray & Play program also meets on Shabbat (see below). For 2023-2024, you can see our schedule for Friday night Gesher Shabbat services and dinners and Saturday morning Gesher Shabbat services and Pray & Play.
Pray & Play
Monthly Shabbat program with beloved Gesher teacher Jodie Raffensperger for children under the age of seven. See the 2023-2024 Pray & Play schedule.
Shamor V’Zakhor
Holocaust education program, with a core goal of building community among our 7th grade students from Gesher, Ohev Sholom Religious School, and the Silver Academy. Coursework centered on Holocaust education and Shabbat, with skilled instruction from Jenna Rappaport, Jennie Barr, and our community leaders and rabbis. Program highlights include a Shabbaton, a bus trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial, participation in ceremonies at the Harrisburg Holocaust Monument, and the opening ceremony of the Reading of the Names program. The group also submits essays for the Schwab Holocaust Essay contest. This program is generously funded through the Jewish Community Foundation of Central PA Lipsett Philanthropic Fund.