Membership Information 2020-2021

Shir Hadash Reconstructionist Synagogue 

Membership Information 2020-2021

Membership Renewal Forms for 2020-2021 can be found by clicking HERE.

New Member Application Forms for 2020-2021 can be found by clicking HERE.

After your Membership has been renewed and/or processed, you may apply for Religious School using these forms below:

If you are registering students for Religious School or helping as a madrich/a, you must complete this form.

Anyone entering grades 8 through 12 at Shir Hadash is eligible to apply for the madrich/a program.  If you (or any of your children) is interested, they need to complete this application.

Please read the membership information below.

If you have any questions please contact the Administrative office at admin@shir-hadash.org
or call 847-498-8218, o

Membership Information

“And Adonai spoke to Moses, saying: ‘Speak to the Israelites that they may take for me a contribution; from everyone whose heart so moves him, take my contribution … and let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:1-2,8).

Shir Hadash is committed to excellence - in programming, education, staffing, and service. Excellence includes meeting our budget. Shir Hadash exists because members recognize and fulfill their responsibility toward its preservation. When you become a part of Shir Hadash, your commitment of financial support helps assure the ongoing vitality of our community.

This page provides the links and instructions on how to become a new member or renew your membership, register for religious school and youth programming, and how to access your account in ShulCloud, If you prefer to join or renew with paper forms, just let us know and we will provide them to you.

Remember underlined words in this color red are links to help you jump to exactly where you need to go!

 We believe that Shir Hadash’s greatest asset is neither our building nor our bank account. Our greatest asset is our members who bring energy, a wide range of expertise and experience and a desire to make Shir Hadash better each year.

In recognition of this reality, we decided to move from an outdated, money-based approach to membership and focus instead on our members. No longer will members be challenged to pay the prevailing dues or be required to endure the uncomfortable  task of seeking approval for a reduction. We value all our members equally and trust each to financially support the synagogue to the best of their ability.

Thus we are now asking our members to make a voluntary commitment to help meet the financial needs of the synagogue. Each of us will decide for ourselves what level of commitment we can make. Each year we will make that decision and in that way be able to increase or, if need be, decrease our contribution based on our own assessment of our personal economic circumstances. The amount each of us contributes will not be questioned or second guessed. It will be received with gratitude as a contribution to the financial health of our synagogue. Our goal is to recognize each congregant’s personal journey while embracing our belief that there is a congregation wide commitment to meeting our financial needs.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

We are proud to become a congregation in which our members give freely and from their hearts. We believe in the integrity of our member families to appropriately self-determine their commitment level. To help make that determination we also believe that it is important to be honest--for everyone to know how much it actually costs to operate Shir Hadash. Based upon the approved budget for the 2020/2021 fiscal year, our total expenses divided by the total number of current adult members equals $1510 per adult. This number represents our break-even amount, or the amount needed to meet all our expenses. Of course, the more members we recruit, the lower the break-even amount becomes and that's what we hope will happen in future years. Securing the break-even amount from every adult as a congregation allows us to have a balanced budget which we've not been able to do for several years.

We are suggesting the break-even amount of $1510 per adult as a voluntary commitment guideline. We understand not everyone will be able to contribute at that  amount for their respective household while others will be willing and able to contribute more than that amount. You will still need to pay the regular fee schedule for school, building fund and B'nai Mitzvah. You may still want to make a High Holiday contribution, buy a memorial plaque or contribute in other ways. It’s your choice.  Contribute the break-even amount in one sum or allocate your payments accordingly as you complete our membership and school forms.

The chart below may be of assistance to you:

In addition to this economic contribution we ask that everyone also commit volunteer time and expertise to Shir Hadash. There are many volunteer opportunities, including joining a standing committee, a single project task force, or participating in Oneg set-up and clean-up. Shir Hadash has a small professional staff and much of what we accomplish is done by members. As a volunteer you can become a leader at Shir Hadash and can help shape our future path.

If you have any questions please contact the Administrative office at admin@shir-hadash.org
or call  847-498-8218 

Notes Regarding Current Members and Membership Renewal:

Membership Renewal Forms for 2020-2021 can be found by clicking HERE.

• You must be signed in to use these forms.  There is a "Forgot Password" button in the upper right-hand corner under Login tab if you need it.
• The forms are set up to provide you information as to what you paid for membership last year, and also if there are any open balances which need to be settled.  
• If you have any issues or have trouble, please contact us at admin@shir-hadash.org. We will respond as soon as we possible.
• Once you have renewed your membership, you will be able to enter your account and check and update your yahrzeits, as well as any other information.
• The volunteer time commitment and payment information is embedded in the renewal form. Your membership will not be considered submitted/renewed unless you continue and complete the payment forms.
• We are very happy to announce that we no longer be using PayPal; we have converted to a new credit card processor which will make life easier for both congregants and the synagogue. This new processor is integrated with our Shul Cloud member management system so you will be able to stay on the current site to pay for donations and events. The security is excellent -- both card and account information are tokenized and not held in your account -- and there is still a place for you to donate back credit card fees should you choose to do so. This is also a much more cost-effective method for the synagogue.