Mekor Bulletin Board

Classes, campaigns, volunteer opportunities, and neighborly offers, posted in one place and kept up to date.

Featured Now

This season's campaigns and classes, happening right now.

Bikirbecha support group flyer: You’re not the only one. Free, confidential weekly virtual support for LGBTQ+ people from yeshivish and right-wing Orthodox backgrounds, starting mid-October 2026.

Bikirbecha LGBTQ+ Peer Support Group

A small, confidential peer support group for LGBTQ+ people from yeshivish and right-wing Orthodox backgrounds, facilitated by Rikki Herbst, PhD, LCSW, a Bikirbecha mental health professional.

The group meets virtually once a week, starting mid-October 2026, and is free of charge. Whether you’re fully out, quietly out to a few, or out to no one, you’re welcome.

Signup takes less than three minutes, and your name is optional. Questions? Email clinical@bikirbecha.org.

Learn more and sign up Contact Bikirbecha

A Message from Rabbi Hirsch

Rabbi Hirsch writes to the Mekor community about sustaining our synagogue and the Jewish life that has grown around it in Center City.

Read Rabbi Hirsch's message Join Mekor Pay dues

Strengthen the Center City Eruv

Help ensure this vital community resource remains reliable and halachically sound. Goal: $75,000. Donate through the Mekor Habracha campaign team, or read about the full campaign.

Donate via Mekor team Full campaign details Donate to the Center City Eruv

Flyer for The Sacred and the State class with Rabbi Gotlib

Religious Zionism Class with Rabbi Gotlib

Join Rabbi Gotlib Tuesdays at 7:00 PM beginning July 14 for a study of Rav Rabinovitch's Pathways to God: Torah, Society, and State. Sponsorships welcome; sponsors of $180+ receive a complimentary copy of the book.

RSVP for the class Read the announcement

Community Essentials

The programs, contacts, and resources you'll come back to all year.

Tot Shabbat

Mekor's Tot Shabbat meets about once a month, typically the last Shabbat of the English month around 11 AM, with parsha, songs, and stories for young children and families.

Tot Shabbat details All events

Davening & Weekday Minyan

Find Shabbat and weekday service times, the minyan WhatsApp group, and RSVP notes for evening minyanim on the Davening page. Morning and evening weekday services are often followed by a brief halacha insight.

Davening schedule Email the shul about minyan

Mekor Membership

Join Mekor or renew your membership to support daily minyanim, Torah learning, and a welcoming Center City community.

Membership overview Join Mekor Pay dues

Hebrew Help at Mekor

Parents can sign up children (up to age 18) to learn Hebrew, Torah reading, and/or tefillah skills with Mekor community tutors. We'll match each child with a tutor for a mutually convenient time.

Email about Hebrew Help

Kosher Wine & Judaica

When you order through Mekor's affiliate links for Kosherwine.com and Judaica.com, Mekor earns 5% back at no extra cost to you.

Kosher wine (Mekor link)Judaica (Mekor link)

Support of Israel

Find community initiatives, civil-defense support opportunities, and related announcements on Mekor's Israel page. Torah writing from Rabbi Hirsch and Rabbi Gotlib is linked from their profiles and Substacks.

Support of Israel Rabbi Hirsch Substack Rabbi Gotlib Substack

Volunteer at Mekor

Help with Kiddush setup, hospitality, cholent (Erik Schneiman can teach the Mekor recipe), mashgiach work for IKC establishments, or eruv checking. Training is provided.

Volunteer hub Email about volunteering Erik Schneiman (cholent)

Yizkor Books 2026–2027

Mekor publishes a Yizkor Book for Yom Kippur, Shemini Atzeret, Pesach, and Shavuot. Submission deadline: September 1, 2026. Contributions by check payable to the shul are welcome.

Submit names for the Yizkor Book Email the Mekor office

Community Updates

Current opportunities and notices from Mekor.

Become an Eruv Checker

Several of our eruv checkers have left the area, and we need new volunteers. If you have a bicycle or car, and you could help out once every 6 weeks, or even less often, please sign up! Training will be provided; please email Harry Schley at harry@schley.com.

Harry Schley Volunteer at Mekor

Seeking Volunteer Mashgiachs

It is exciting that our list of Center City kosher restaurants is expanding once again, but we rely on volunteers to help in this process! No experience is necessary; Rabbi Hirsch will provide training. For more info, please email the shul.

Email the Shul Kosher Guide

Center City Mikvah is Open!

We're excited to announce that the Mei Shalva Center City Community Mikvah, located at 509 Pine Street, is now open! The women's mikvah, men's mikvah, and keilim mikvah are all operational.

We are currently seeking volunteers to help staff the keilim mikvah. For the schedule or to make an appointment, please visit https://philamikvah.org or call/text 267-225-2651. Mazal Tov to the entire Center City Jewish community on this meaningful milestone!

Mikvah Schedule Call/Text 267-225-2651

The Center City Eruv needs your financial support!

The Eruv plays a vital role in our vibrant Center City Jewish Community life, but is often taken for granted. We need ongoing financial support to pay the specialist rabbi who travels in from NJ to perform repairs, and to buy supplies for repair jobs and liability insurance, all of which totals over $10,000 per year.

We rely entirely on donations for these expenses, and we need a financial cushion to ensure that emergency repairs can be made in time for Shabbat the next time they are necessary. If you & your family benefit from our Eruv, we respectfully ask that you make a recurring monthly donation of at least $18. Thank you for your continued support of the Center City Eruv!

Donate to the Center City Eruv General Donations

Orthodox Union Tehillim

Daily at 1:00 PM; to participate, dial (773) 377-9170.

Please join the Orthodox Union community for the recitation of Tehillim (chapters 20, 27 and 130) and divrei chizuk (words of inspiration) from our rabbanim each afternoon at 1:00 PM EDT.

Dial (773) 377-9170

Weekly Online Parsha Shiur

Live on Thursdays at 1:00 PM EST; available online on demand.

Mekor member Dr. Saundra Sterling Epstein (Sunnie) gives a weekly Parsha shiur on Melrose B'nai Israel Emanu El's (MBIEE) Facebook page. To access, visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/mbiee.org. If required, you will be invited in by the administrator.

Watch on Facebook

Jewish Community Events and Announcements

Useful local notices shared with the Mekor community.

East of Broad Home for Sale

We are selling our East of Broad ~2,000 square foot home in the spring (3 bedrooms, 2 baths, on a beautiful, quiet side street right off of Bainbridge; finished basement not included in square footage).

The home is bright and combines turn-of-the-century interior architectural details (e.g., high ceilings and original random width floors) with modern, urban living features (e.g., exposed brick and top-of-line kitchen appliances). We will still be your neighbor, as we are only moving a block away. Please email yoella.epstein@gmail.com if you are interested in finding out more.

Inquire by Email

Need a contractor? Special Offer for Mekor Community

Akiladelphia Creative Contracting will donate 5% of the cost of your job to Mekor. Senior discount also.

For more info, contact (215) 589-5405 or akiladelphia@gmail.com.

Akiladelphia website Call (215) 589-5405 Email

Free Career Guidance at JEVS

JEVS provides assistance (resumes, practice mock interviews, etc.) to those who are seeking a job or looking to change jobs. For congregants referred by Rabbi Hirsch, there will be no charge for the first visit. Other visits are on a sliding fee scale or free depending on income.

To schedule your first visit free of charge, please email the shul, and Rabbi Hirsch will make the referral. Then call Wendy Rosenfeldt at 215-832-0878 to schedule your appointment. For information about free job-search webinars, visit https://www.jevshumanservices.org/careerstrategies/.

Request Rabbi Referral Call Wendy Rosenfeldt JEVS Career Strategies

Jewish Matchmaking, Shiduch.org

We are a Jewish matchmaking site for marriage-minded singles worldwide. Singles can create a FREE profile on the site, and our matchmakers will search through our database for compatible matches. If you'd like more info, please visit shiduch.org or contact Rachel at member@shiduch.org.

Visit shiduch.org Contact Rachel

Support Mekor

Donate to Mekor Donate to the Center City Eruv

If you use the following Mekor-specific links when ordering from Kosherwine.com and Judaica.com, Mekor will earn 5% back!

Kosherwine.com via Mekor Link Judaica.com via Mekor Link

Quick Contacts and Links

General Shul Email Call the Office: (215) 525-4246 Mikvah Website Past Newsletters