Shames JCC

JCC CLOSES AT 3PM
2025-12-24 15:00 - 21:00, 2025-12-31 15:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)

JCC CLOSED
2025-12-25

Third Act Circle: A Peer Support Group
2025-12-30 12:00 - 13:00, 2026-01-13 12:00 - 13:00
FREE for members and non-members
Those experiencing the stage of life referred to as “the third act” are invited to come together to talk, laugh, share stories, and support one another through life’s ups and downs. Whether you’re navigating retirement, dealing with health changes, coping with loss, or just looking to connect with others in a similar life stage, this group offers a place where you can feel heard and understood. Facilitated by Rena, the focus is on encouragement and community.

Noon Years Eve Party
2025-12-31 10:45 - 12:00
Members: $5; non-members: $8
Join us for an inclusive party to welcome the new year! We’ll dance, snack, craft, and toast 2026 with sparkling cider and a 12:00 pm countdown. Let’s ring in the new year together in community! All ages and abilities welcome.

JCC OPENS AT 10AM
2026-01-01 10:00 - 21:00

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Personal and Historical Account
2026-01-05 10:00 - 11:30
FREE for members; $10 for non-members
Jess Velona, who was an appellate law clerk for Ruth Bader Ginsburg, will mix personal stories from his work with video clips to show how Ginsburg never fit into anyone’s mold. A quiet, unassuming person, she became a pioneer for women in the legal profession and the top advocate for women’s constitutional rights. And yet, while supportive of Roe v. Wade, she urged that abortion rights be anchored in something sturdier than privacy—advice that liberals ignored to the detriment. Come hear an insider’s perspective of the woman whose career spanned being a moderate, consensus-building federal appellate judge to the “Notorious RBG,” a liberal icon known for her passionate dissenting opinions.

JCCU: Comparative African Modern Art—Sources of Modern Art
2026-01-06 13:00 - 14:30
Members: $15; non-members: $20 for the series (drop ins also welcome)
Art historian Serdar Arat is back with a two-part lecture series that looks at how African and African-diasporic artists helped shape modern art around the world. We’ll explore the Harlem Renaissance alongside European modernists to see how artists learned from one another and pushed new styles forward. We’ll also look at global traditions that inspired Western art in the 19th and 20th centuries. These talks offer an accessible, visually rich look at how cultures connect and influence each other through art.
This session: Western art rejuvenated itself with a series of stylistic inventions in the 19th and 20th centuries, breaking free of many of its historical traditions and arriving at Modernism. This was an unprecedented time of opening up to and mining of world art. We will explore these sources of inspiration through a comparative experience with vividly detailed images.

JCC Book Club: "Broken Country" by Clare Leslie Hall
2026-01-06 19:00 - 20:15
FREE for members & non-members
Join us to explore this powerful novel about characters struggling to adapt to a changing world, where traditional farming is no longer viable and corporations threaten their way of life. Amid personal loss and environmental decay, they must navigate the challenges of community, survival, and resistance.

Hot Topics: New Years Hopes
2026-01-07 11:30 - 13:00
FREE for members & non-members
Discuss the month’s social and political issues with your fellow news enthusiasts. With timely and changing international, national, and local issues from the news arenas of government, arts, sports, science, and religion, we welcome all participants to voice their ideas. All points of view are welcome in this lively, thought-provoking, and civil discussion. Feel free to bring your lunch and/or a friend!

Caregiver Conversation Circle
2026-01-08 12:00 - 13:15
Do you care for a family member with chronic illness or special needs? Join our conversation circle to connect with others in a similar situation. Whether you are responsible for a child with special needs, a spouse with cognitive or physical decline, or any other situation that fits, we welcome your participation. The group will be facilitated by longtime social worker, Joanne Reed. Coffee and tea will be served.

Common Ground: Is The Arc of The Moral Universe Bending Towards Justice in 2026 America?
2026-01-08 13:00 - 14:00
FREE for members and non-members
An MLK Day-Inspired Values-Based Conversation
Rabbi Ron Symons and Rev. Gareth Evans will host Sharon Griest Ballen, Chair of the Prison Relations Advisory Committee (PRAC) to the Town of Bedford and Judith Douglas, Director of Programs at Episcopal Charities in New York City, to uncover the challenges our community still faces when it comes to those who are not fully included in the dream of the “beloved community.”

Clergy Talk—Shalom Gorgeous: Barbra Streisand on Judaism and Jewish Identity
2026-01-09 09:30 - 10:30
FREE for members & non-members
Beyond her conception of Yentl and her unforgettable portrayal of Jewish characters like Fanny Brice, Barbra Streisand’s Jewish identity has factored significantly into her unparalleled career as a singer, actress, director, and producer. We will explore these connections by listening and watching clips from her vast catalogue and learning about her relationship with spirituality, prayer, and Israel.
With Cantor Lauren Fogelman, Temple Beth Abraham

92NY Live: Eat Your Ice Cream—What Science Really Says About Living Well
2026-01-09 13:00 - 14:15
FREE for members & non-members
Every week brings a new miracle cure—another influencer promising longevity through algae smoothies, cold plunges, or a weighted vest. The wellness world has become a $5 trillion experiment in anxiety. What if the secret to a long, healthy life isn’t found in any of it?
Hear Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel—one of the country’s most respected bioethicists, physicians, and policy thinkers—distill the science of longevity into some surprisingly simple but evidence-based rules: sleep well, move often, keep learning, connect deeply—and don’t be afraid to enjoy dessert.
In this refreshingly honest and inspiring conversation that draws on decades of research and a lifetime in medicine, you’ll hear why the biggest predictor of a long and healthy life isn’t kale or cardio—it’s connection. Why friendships, community, and conversation do more for your health than any $20 green juice ever could. And why ice cream really might be good for you. Moderation, not deprivation, is the point.
This event will be livestreamed with an in-person discussion afterward facilitated by Rena DeLevie.

“Sesame Street” Sing-A-Long Show with Alan
2026-01-10 10:00 - 12:00
Children under 2: Free; children under 6: $10
Members: $20; non-members: $25
Join Alan Muraoka—who has played “Alan,” the proprietor of Hooper’s Store on “Sesame Street” for the past 27 years—for a special sing-a-long for children of all ages. He, along with “Sesame Street” puppeteers Jennifer Barnhart and Jake Bazel, will dazzle kids with interactive content, storytelling, and well-known “Sesame Street” songs. The show will end with a meet and greet and photo opp session with Alan and the puppeteers!

Let’s Go Trivia!
2026-01-10 19:00 - 21:00
FREE for members & non-members
Doors open at 6:00 pm
Grab some friends to create the fiercest trivia team of all time for the inaugural Trivia Night at The Ark! The bar will be open to keep you extra sharp—or your opponents fuzzy!—for this fact-packed night of fun with host Garry Leavy of Let’s Go Trivia! Win prizes, have fun and make memories!

Tech Angels
2026-01-11 10:00 - 12:00
Every other Sunday
Drop in—no registration required.
Having trouble with your iPhone, Android, tablet, or laptop? Struggle with email, texting, apps, Zoom, or technology in general? Bring your device and your questions to the J and savvy volunteers from Irvington High School will help you at no cost!

Jr. Knicks Basketball Clinic (Grades K–4)
2026-01-11 10:30 - 11:30
FREE for members & non-members
Have your kids ever dreamed of meeting a professional athlete? Now’s their chance! In partnership with The Robert Jacobson Sports Foundation, the J, and J Sports Academy are hosting a Jr. Knicks Basketball Clinic in collaboration with Madison Square Garden. Young athletes of all levels and interests will have the unique opportunity to learn from basketball legends while enjoying skills training, drills, giveaways, and photo opportunities with former NBA stars.
Register for the waitlist

Jr. Knicks Basketball Clinic (Grades 5–8)
2026-01-11 11:45 - 12:45
FREE for members & non-members
Have your kids ever dreamed of meeting a professional athlete? Now’s their chance! In partnership with The Robert Jacobson Sports Foundation, the J, and J Sports Academy are hosting a Jr. Knicks Basketball Clinic in collaboration with Madison Square Garden. Young athletes of all levels and interests will have the unique opportunity to learn from basketball legends while enjoying skills training, drills, giveaways, and photo opportunities with former NBA stars.

The Beatles: 60 Years Later
2026-01-12 10:00 - 11:30
FREE for members; $10 for non-members
A respected musicologist once referred to The Beatles as “One of the most transforming entities of 20th century music” and claimed that they changed the course of popular music forever. Can that possibly be true? And what made them such a strong force that their music is still popular now, more than 60 years later? Join us as we explore the phenomenon that was The Beatles—their growth, originality, musical innovations and lyric depth.
About the presenter: Barry Wiesenfeld is an internationally recognized award-winning musician, published author, and is on the music faculty of SUNY and Ramapo College. He has accompanied Grammy-, Tony- and RMI-winning artists, performed on three continents and has played on numerous recordings, radio and TV. Barry’s lecture series has been enjoyed both around the U.S. and abroad. Learn more about him: www.barrybassist.com

Community Service Drop-In: Help Prep for MLK Day of Service
2026-01-12 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-01-13 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-01-14 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-01-15 10:00 - 14:00, 2026-01-16 10:00 - 14:00
We need your help for as long as you can give us on any of these days.
To get ready for our MLK Day of Service on Jan 19, we need your help cutting fabric that will comprise no-sew blankets for neighbors at local food pantries. Please drop in to help for as long as you can on any of these days.

JCCU: Comparative African Modern Art—The Harlem Renaissance and Modernism
2026-01-13 13:00 - 14:30
Members: $15; non-members: $20 for the series (drop ins also welcome)
Art historian Serdar Arat is back with a two-part lecture series that looks at how African and African-diasporic artists helped shape modern art around the world. We’ll explore the Harlem Renaissance alongside European modernists to see how artists learned from one another and pushed new styles forward. We’ll also look at global traditions that inspired Western art in the 19th and 20th centuries. These talks offer an accessible, visually rich look at how cultures connect and influence each other through art.
This session:Referencing Metropolitan Museum’s groundbreaking exhibition, “The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism,” we will explore the masterworks of major Harlem Renaissance artists including Jacob Lawrence, Agusta Savage, Archibald Motley, and others, in dialogue with their European counterparts such as Picasso, Braque, and Gaugin. We will compare and analyze American and European, realistic and abstract, and traditional and modern art.

Lunch Outing: Ganso Ramen and Sushi
2026-01-14 12:30 - 14:00
$25 cash per person (taxes and gratuity included)
3 Beekman Ave., Sleepy Hollow, NY 10591
After years of waiting, Sleepy Hollow’s Ganso is finally open! Beat the cold with your choice of lunch special including a steaming bowl of ramen, sushi special, or bento box with main entrée, soup, salad, shumai, and rice. Please bring $25 cash which covers all food, tax, and tip (beverages are extra). Space is limited to 20—sign up soon!
NOTE ON TRANSPORTATION: This event will be taking place at Ganso where there’s an attached parking lot for 6 cars. A metered village parking lot is a few steps away. We will also be offering free roundtrip transportation from the JCC. If you need a ride to and from the restaurant from the JCC or your home, please email rdelevie@shamesjcc.org when you register.

Foreign Affairs Discussion Group: Greece, 15 Years After Financial Crisis
2026-01-15 19:00 - 20:15
FREE for members; $10 for non-members
Greece has staged a remarkable financial turnaround; its sovereign debt is now investment grade and its economy is growing by over 2%, thanks to budget discipline, reduced red tape, improved business climate, a tourism boom, and competent use of EU recovery funds. But the country has a way to go to boost its productivity, reduce income inequality, and employ its youth. How can leadership sustain the momentum of reform, build on success, and overcome remaining challenges?

Challah and Conversation: “Let Justice Roll Like Might Waters”—The Prophetic Foundations of the Civil Rights Movement
2026-01-16 09:30 - 10:30
FREE for members & non-members
Join Rabbi Ron Symons in an exploration of how the great civil rights leaders of the 20th century drew on the themes expressed over 2,5000 years ago by the prophets of ancient Israel. We will come to learn how these themes are both eternally contemporary and essential for our modern society.
