Newsletter Volume 3, Issue 2
Cheshvan 20 5765

In this issue:
1. New MATAN contact information
2. Spotlight on Town and Village Synagogue
3. Opening the Gates of Torah Conference in Rockville, MD
4. New York Times article on Autism

Please note that the MATAN phone number has changed. You can now reach us toll free at 866-410-5600. As always, you can find us on the web at www.matankids.org and you can reach us via e-mail. For general inquiries about MATAN, the services we offer, opportunities for expansion, giving opportunities and job inquiries, e-mails can be sent to info@matankids.org. For information about our New York City programs, please contact Meredith@matankids.org. And for information about our Westchester program, please contact Stacy@matankids.org or call 914-472-3300, ext. 345.

Like all MATAN programs, the Kesher class at Town and Village Synagogue for children with learning disabilities is built around the notion that different children learn in different ways. Carefully taking into account the unique strengths of the students, this class focuses on Hebrew, bible, holidays and pre-Bar and Bat Mitzvah preparation. Specific to the Kesher program is significant involvement on the part of the Rabbi and Cantor, who work with the class on many different occasions. Students in the Kesher class also have opportunities for integration with other children their age throughout the rest of the Hebrew school. The program represents Town and Village Synagogue's commitment to meeting the needs of children with learning differences.

The Town and Village Synagogue Hebrew school has received wide recognition as being Manhattan's only METNY United Synagogue School of Excellence and Manhattan's only Framework of Excellence school of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. The Kesher program, taught by a special educator and supervised by MATAN staff, is no exception to the model of excellence at Town and Village Synagogue.

SPREAD THE WORD! A LIMITED NUMBER OF SPOTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE IN THIS MATAN CLASS!

The class meets on Sunday mornings from 9:30-12:30, and families need not be members to attend. For more information and to find out how to enroll your child in the program, please contact MATAN or call Shanee Epstein, principal of Town and Village Synagogue, at 212-677-8090, ext. 24.

MATAN is a proud co-sponsor of the 2nd Annual Conference, Opening the Gates of Torah: Including People with Disabilities in the Jewish Community, in Rockville, Maryland. If you find yourself it the Washington DC area, we highly encourage you to attend. This conference is intended for Professional and lay leadership of congregations, people with disabilities and their families as well as all others interested in helping our Jewish community become more inclusive. This conference is designed to empower each of us to be part of the continuing process of expanding our inclusive community to include people with disabilities in all aspects of synagogue life.

WHEN: Sunday, November 21, 2004 from 4:00-9:00 PM

WHERE: B'nai Israel Congregation, 6301 Montrose Road, Rockville, MD 20852

KEYNOTE: "The Healing Power of Religious Community" - Speaker: Rabbi Lynne Landsberg, former Regional Director of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations Mid-Atlantic Council and the former Associate Director of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism. She suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury in a car accident in 1999.

ENDNOTE: "Who Speaks to God" - Speaker: Ilana Trachtman, film producer of the soon to be released documentary film Praying with Lior.

Conference Website: www.opening-the-gates-of-torah.org

This conference has been coordinated under the leadership of the Partnership for Jewish Life and Learning (Board of Jewish Education of Greater Washington) and The Jewish Foundation for Group Homes. Questions? Please call: Lenore Layman, Director, Special Needs Department, pjll/bje, 301-255-1952 or MarCIA GOLDBERG, Jewish Living Coordinator, Jewish Foundation for Group Homes, 301-984-3839

A recent article in the New York Times profiled the everyday struggles associated with having a child with autism. Reference was made to "religious instruction for autistic children at a few Westchester synagogues". These are MATAN programs, and for more information about them you can contact Stacy@matankids.org or call 914-472-3300, ext. 345. Two of the families profiled in this article have children in these Westchester MATAN classes. To read the article in its entirety, click here.