The Orthodox Union will continue its recently-inaugurated program, “Community Weekends,” with a visit to South Florida, the Shabbat of January 29-30, when Parshat Beshalach is read, to strengthen the ties between the OU and the area’s Orthodox community. Synagogues that will be visited are the Boca Raton Synagogue; Congregation Ohev Shalom; Anshei Chesed Congregation; Boca Raton Synagogue West; Palm Beach Synagogue; and Young Israel of Deerfield. The program kicked off with a visit to Atlanta in December.

Led by its President, Stephen J. Savitsky, the OU will send a delegation to serve as scholars-in-residence, to speak during and after Shabbat services. Mr. Savitsky will be joined by Rabbi Cary Friedman, Associate Director of the OU Department of Day School and Educational Services. Rabbi Steven Einhorn of OU member West Side Insitutional Synagogue and Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt of OU member Riverdale Jewish Center, both in New York, will also speak over the weekend.

“The goal of Community Weekends is to focus on thriving areas of Orthodox life and to go there to address a variety of topics and to meet community leaders,” declared Rabbi Steven Burg, OU Managing Director. “Depending on where they go and the interests of the community, they will discuss topics such as Torah study, kashrut (kosher), Israel, government relations and so on. We will explain the variety of programs the OU offers to its synagogues and ask what programs they would like us to develop. We have chosen communities where our relations are already close and seek to strengthen the bonds that already exist between us.”

Future community visits, extending until May of 2010, will be to Memphis, Silver Spring (MD), Westchester County (NY) and Chicago/Skokie. Each community visit will include a Resume Fair, a program of the OU’s Job Board, in which experts will provide advice on creating an effective job search document. Michael Rosner, Director of the Job Board, will also be present in Florida to conduct the fair.