the chuppah for Temple Beth El.
Last year, Gentles took her idea
public during a Shavuot study session
at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto,
where she is artist-in-residence, and
signed up her first volunteers.
She honored a close friend by giving
her the first verses, and kept the last
verses of the Torah for herself. At first,
she didn't know how far into the Torah
she would be able to go; she thought,
if necessary, she could put three dots
between the volunteer-created panels
and the final panel she did.
A short article about the project in
Hadassah magazine in August 2013
greatly increased the number of vol-
unteer stitchers. They come from 13
countries as far away as New Zealand,
and include a few men, a kibbutznik in
Israel and a cloistered nun in London.
Now Gentles is confident she'll be able
to produce the entire Torah.
Volunteers sign a contract that asks
them, among other things, to complete
their panel within six months and to
treat the materials with respect. They
pay $18 for the kit. Gentles says the
materials cost $15.50, and the remain-
der is used for postage.
She estimates a panel will take
approximately 40 hours to complete,
perhaps longer if a stitcher wants to
add an optional decorative border or
illustrations.
Gentles suggests that stitchers
dedicate each of the four verses to
one of the Torah matriarchs — Sarah,
Rebecca, Rachel and Leah — and think
about them and their contributions to
Jewish history as they work. Stitchers
may dedicate their verses to other
women if they prefer.
For those uneasy about embroider-
ing the name of God, Gentles will
provide a portion that doesn't include
those letters.
"A few people ask for particular por-
tions, but most just get what comes
next, and the portion often becomes
significant as the stitcher works on it:'
Gentles said.
"A few people didn't know how to
read Hebrew when they started the
project, and it inspired them to take
classes so they could learn:' she said.
"Others have asked their congregations
if they could read 'their' verses the next
time they come around."
Gentles is collecting photos of the
stitchers and their personal stories,
which will be part of the eventual
exhibit.
She's planning to combine the 1,463
panels into 210 columns. The installa-
tion itself will be about 9 feet high and
100 yards long, necessitating a large
display space. She says wants viewers
to have the same feeling of awe that
she gets when the Torah is completely
unrolled in the synagogue on Simchat
Torah.
To date, she has distributed half the
verses in the Torah, and more than 250
panels have been completed.
Gentles says she spends at least six
hours a day on the project, often more.
"I never dreamed this project would
take over my life she said.
The work has its frustrations. A few
stitchers returned their panels
unfinished with no explanation,
one with only a few letters done.
Other panels arrive soiled, or
with errors she needs to correct.
Gentles has more than 36
volunteers who help with design,
handle administrative tasks and
coach the stitchers, including an
attorney who helped her apply
for nonprofit status.
But Holy Blossom Temple is
undergoing renovations, and
she needs to vacate her studio.
She's looking for a free, clean
space of at least 500 square feet
where she can work on design
and administration and store the
completed panels. She'd also like
to secure a grant or financial
backing.
Gentles doesn't have an end
date in mind, but she's hoping
the project can be completed
within five years.
7X -1V.J , 1 31
B'nai Israel Synagogue
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Missing Something?
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*Special Membership rates
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For more information call
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❑
Temma Gentles with a photo of a 90-year-
old Appalachian weaver that she says
inspired her. The photo was from Time
magazine.
For more information on Torah
Stitch by Stitch, visit Gentles'
website: torahstitchbystitch.
temmagentles.com.
1T2 DT 1111 2111 1 7N1V) 1 `7D
All Israel is responsible for one another
JN
September 4 • 2014
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