Tradition of the Thanksgiving Interfaith Service remains strong even in the midst of covid
During a pre-Covid Thanksgiving prayer service, Fr. Tim Wozniak, Rabbi Avi Olitzky, Tamim Saidi and Rev. Elaine Barber all presided, representing the brotherhood and sisterhood among faiths that has become a BSM tradition.
November 23, 2021
Yesterday Benilde-St.Margaret’s hosted their annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayer service. Along with BSM’s own Father Tim Wozniak, the students and faculty were able to hear from guests Tamim Saidi, Rabbi Avi Olitzky and Reverend Elaine Barber. Although Rabbi Avi Olitzky was unable to attend in person, he made a video that will be watched in all homerooms following the holiday break.
Although only seniors were able to attend the live service, many other traditions remained the same. Hymns were sung by the choir complemented with violin and recorder performances by teachers Jennifer Bevington and Emily Chmielewski.
Tamim Saidi and Reverend Elaine Barber spoke to the school about their religious communities along with a special performance by Rosalie Goldberg and her two daughters JoJo and Jeanie. “I just I think it’s so cool, not just Judaism, but they talked about the Native American faith and they talk about the Muslim faith and the Catholic faith and I think it’s great to have. I really, really enjoy it,” Goldberg said.
Because of Covid, grades 7-11 viewed the service in their homerooms over a live stream. The interfaith service is one students and faculty often look forward to but because of the schools recently implemented social distancing rules many felt that they lost the community aspect of the service. “I struggled watching the service in my homeroom because I got distracted,” junior Abby Lohmann said.
