We have recently been assigned Monday and Tuesday, December 23rd and 24th, 2019 as the dates for our next casino.

This is a very important fundraiser for the Temple. We expect to receive $70,000 for the two-day casino.

That’s over $200 per hour that you volunteer.

There is no other volunteer fundraising activity that is more valuable to the Temple.

These dates coincide with the second and third candles of Chanukah. Rabbi Glickman has given the ‘thumbs-up’ for us to accept this time slot for two reasons. First, because Chanukah is a minor holiday on the Jewish calendar, our members aren’t prohibited from being involved in extracurricular activities. In fact, the rabbi thinks we should dub the casino event “The Festival of Flashing Lights!” Second, it allows our neighbours who celebrate Christmas some time off during their important holiday season.

There is another huge advantage to accepting these specific dates. The casino hours will be drastically shortened on December 24th; there is no evening shift that day, and the count room volunteers are only required to work a shift of about two hours (4:30-6:30 pm). Despite the shorter number of volunteers / volunteer hours required, the Temple will still receive an even share of the ‘pool’ when funds are calculated at the end of the fiscal quarter.

We need a total of 30-40 volunteers to staff the casino, as well as some spare volunteers who would be willing to cover a shift at the last minute. No prior experience is required — our awesome advisors are happy to train new volunteers.

This year, we’re asking you to sign up via Signup Genius. Once you have signed up for a shift, a volunteer worker form will be emailed to you. Shifts / volunteer positions will be confirmed when the forms are received.

If you have questions, please contact Jane Paterson at 403-803-1132 or Jeff Booke at 403-355-1231.