The Message, Volume 40, Number 9, December 2004 Page: 4 of 8
This periodical is part of the collection entitled: Hidden Selections of Houston’s African American and Jewish Heritage and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Rice University Woodson Research Center.
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Events & Opportunities
■Young Couples Club hosts wine-tasting
Kevin Penn Hesed Award announced
■ Day School Ma’ayan Annual Campaign
Save Our Soldiers Fund closes shop!
$25 per couple includes drinks,
desserts and wine-tasting
Saturday, Jan. 29
at 8:00 p.m.
Kevin Michael Penn, z”l, a 2003 graduate of Hillel High School
at Beth Yeshurun passed away tragically in 2004. Kevin was a com-
passionate young man remembered for his kindness, friendliness
and community leadership. To honor his memory, his parents Susan
and Jeffrey Penn have established the Kevin Michael Penn Hesed
Award which every year will honor an eleventh grade Hillel student
who has performed a special service or act of lovingkindness, exem-
plifying the Jewish value of hesed. This recognition will be accom-
panied by a $500 cash award which is to be used to defray college
expenses. The winner will be announced by May 1 of each year.
Kevin Penn grew up in Houston, attending the Shlenker School,
The Emery/Weiner School and graduating in 2003 from Bellaire High
School where he was a member of the National Honor Society, the
Hebrew Club and the tennis team. An active member of the Bnai
Brith Youth Organization, Kevin was president of his chapter, Loeb
AZA. As a graduate of Congregation Beth Yeshurun’s Hillel High
School in 2003, Kevin received an outstanding leadership award
voted on by his peers.
A son, a brother, a grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a friend—
Kevin was many things to many people—but most importantly, he
was a kind and compassionate human being who loved his family,
his home and his friends. Through Kevin we have learned how
important a single act of kindness can be. Through Kevin we have
also learned the true meaning of unconditional love.
His sense of humor and quick wit were unique and he could
often be found indulging himself in some of his favorite past times;
watching television (especially Seinfeld), watching movies (espe-
cially James Bond), listening to the Beatles, playing his guitar, read-
ing history and consuming large amounts of his favorite foods (es-
pecially Chinese).
Congregation Beth Yeshurun was a very special place to Kevin:
it is where he was named, had his Bar Mitzvah and was both con-
firmed and graduated at Hillel. It is where he spent many Shabbats
and High Holy Days with his family. Therefore, to honor his memory,
the Kevin Michael Penn Hesed Award was established so that oth-
ers will remember how significant a single act of kindness can be.
Open to all eleventh grade students of Hillel High School, ap-
plications may be submitted as a printed essay, a document file on
CD or by audio recording. Though the application may be in any of
the forms described above and of any length, at a minimum, it must
contain the following:
a) a statement of understanding of the Jewish value of hesed
b) a full description of the specific activity/activities for which
the applicant is requesting consideration. The activity may be a one
time or a repeated event.
c) a description of lessons learned from the action(s) described.
d) a statement on how these actions support the Jewish value
of hesed and the goals of the Kevin Michael Penn Hesed Award.
Entries must be submitted by March 15,2005. Full contest
rules are available at the Hillel High School Office.
For more information, contact Cheryl Gordon at cgordon@bethyeshurun.org.
For more info contact Rabbi Strauss at (713) 666-
1881 Or BSTRAUSS@BETHYESHURUN.ORG
with wine-tasting expert
David Swartz
RSVP by Jan. 24 to Gayle at (713) 666-1881,
ext. 317 or gschnurr@bethyeshurun.org
The annual giving campaign
for the Day School has begun. Our
theme, Ma ’ayan, means spring or
continuous source of water. It is
our hope the Ma’ayan Campaign will be a continuous source of
support for the school, ensuring its growth. The campaign will en-
able the school to meet its commitment to academic excellence.
Information packets were recently sent to congregation mem-
bers. If you need more information or did not receive a pledge card
or packet, please contact Cheryl Nussenblatt in the school office at
(713) 666-1884. We hope that all Beth Yeshurun members will con-
tinue to support our Day School by pledging to the campaign.
Many of you will remember how we first
4 learned of the SOS FUND. We met the director
I at the Israel Shoppers Fair in 2002. Aaron
Singer, a paratrooper in the IDF Reserves told
us of how we can help save the lives of Israeli
soldiers b\ donating purpose
chasing bullet-proof \esls. This was the most
successful campaign w ith w hich I‘\ c ever been
involved. Our only purpose was to save Jew-
ish lives. We collected gifts of all sizes from families, individuals
(Jews and Christians), Bar/Bat Mitzvah students and organizations.
There was no marketing, no advertising, no direct solicitations and
no overhead. Recently, the donors were notified that the SOS FUND
has achieved its goal! Together with allied efforts of Jewish commu-
nities throughout the world we have been able to purchase thou-
sands of top-quality bullet-proof vests for Israeli soldiers. We are
proud to say that we have put ourselves out of business which was
our goal all along. We want to thank all of our contributors and let
you know you were the heroes behind the heroes on the front line!
Once again, we thank you for your most generous support.
Sincerely. Paul Katz
To flourish/and grow
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Congregation Beth Yeshurun (Houston, Tex.). The Message, Volume 40, Number 9, December 2004, periodical, December 19, 2004; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1318607/m1/4/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.