METNY SYNAGOGUE LEADERSHIP CONFERENCEWEDNESDAY, MARCH 18,2009

by Marc Katz, Media Committee Co-Chair

Expanding on the 2008 METNY Biennial Convention themeof “A New Horizon – Ofek Hadash,” the Metropolitan NewYork Region of The United Synagogue of ConservativeJudaism will be holding its annual Synagogue Leadership

Conference with the theme “METNY—Beyond the Horizon.”

The conference will feature a series of workshops – relative andpractical – on topics designed to assist synagogue leaders, presi-dents, clergy, committee chairs, board members and executivedirectors.

The conference will feature five dynamic and practical workshops:

• “Bridging the Budget Gap,” which will address budgetingand membership issues

• “How to be a Mensch in an Economic Downturn,” discussinglegal, ethical, halachic and practical issues.

• “Professional Growth, Professional Development, Profe -ssional Training”, how you can enhance the quality ofinstruction in your school.

• “Getting Your Youth Program Back on Track,” which willcover ways to re-energize, refresh and revitalize your USYand Kadima programs

• “Trends in Alternative Minyanim that Every SynagogueShould Know,” which will discuss what is happening in alter-native minyanim that can be integrated into a main congre-gation service.

METNY Executive Director Rabbi Charles Savenor will open the con-ference with an address titled “Making the Case for METNY.” He willdiscuss the mission of METNY and the direction he believes METNYshould take to remain vital to member synagogues. Since becom-ing METNY’s Executive Director just over six months ago, he hasbeen visiting member synagogue leadership, discussing theirneeds and how METNY can help synagogues be more responsive totheir membership.

“We have to reimagine the role that METNY will play in the future,”Rabbi Savenor said. “The practical workshops being presented arepart of the larger discussion of the METNY mission which has totake place, about embracing the realities that are on the ground to

insure the vitality of our member congregations for years to come.”

In addition, a training session for youth directors and advisors enti-tled, “Passion: How to Foster it in Ourselves and in Others” will beheld simultaneously with the Conference. The youth staff trainingsession, facilitated by David Hauser, a local educator in staff devel-opment, “will show workshop participants to use your love for USYand Judaism to benefit your chapter,” said Wendy Pusateri, Directorof Youth Activities for METNY.

The Leadership Conference will be held at the Israel Center ofConservative Judaism, 167-11 73rd Avenue, Flushing, just off of theLong Island Expressway. Advance registration is required. For reg-istration or directions please call the METNY USCJ office at 212-533-0800. The cost for the entire program is $18, which includesdinner and a complete kit of materials.

The Synagogue Leadership Conference, which will be chaired bytwo METNY board members, Alan Reid, METNY V.P., of SouthHuntington Jewish Center and Mark Lefkoff of Hillcrest JewishCenter. The conference will begin with dinner at 6:30 p.m., followedby Rabbi Savenor’s presentation at 7:30 p.m. and Maariv. Theworkshops and the youth training session will start at 8:30 p.m.

Mar. 2009• adar 5769• VoluMe XXXI • NuMber 1

Metropolitan New York Region United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism330 West 38th Street, Suite 205 New York, NY 10018 212.533.0800 fax 212.533.0400 email:METNY@uscj.org www.uscj.org/metny

The METNY Executive Board 2008-2010Front From left to right: Abe Eisenberg, Vice President; Maxine Peresechensky, VicePresident; Sharon P. Steinberg, President; Norman Korowitz, First Vice President; JeffryHorowitz, Vice President; 2nd Row: Michael Cohen, Recording Secretary; Naomi Snider,Treasurer; Margaret Cella, Financial Secretary; Marc Katz, Communications Secretary;Rabbi Charles E. Savenor, Executive Director; Back Row: Alan Reid, Vice President; JoelCutler, Vice President

Wednesday, March 18, 2009 Leadership Conference

Sunday, March 22–23, 2009 Council of Regional Presidents

Monday, March 30, 2009 Board of Directors meeting

Tuesday, March 31, 2009 Education Commission meeting

Monday, April 27, 2008 Executive Committee meeting

Thursday, April 30, 2009 Youth Commission meeting

Sunday, May 3, 2009 Hidon HaTorah

Monday, May 11, 2009 Executive Committee Meeting

Friday, May 15,2009 METNY USY Regional Convention &

through Sunday May 17,2009 METNY Board Retreat

Monday, May 18, 2009 Board of Directors meeting

Tuesday, May 26, 2008 Youth Commission meeting

Sunday, May 31, 2009 Salute to Israel Parade

Monday, June 8, 2009 Annual Dinner

Monday, June 15, 2009 Executive Committee Meeting

2009 Regional CalendarMETNYCommittees

Annual Dinner/Journal Alan ReidDr. Marvin Medow

Budget Jeff ShlefsteinCommitment & Observance Dan Werlin

Dr. Saul ShapiroConferences Alan Reid

Mark LefkoffDues Marge CellaEducation Robyn Cimbol

Carol GreenDr. Marvin Medow

Hazak Jeffry HorowitzCarol Turoff

Israel Affairs Joy PerlaLeadership Councils Norman KorowitzLegal Affairs Ed Rudofsky

Gene ZinbargLecture Series Marty Werber

Jack TopalMedia /Bulletins Marc Katz

Maxine PeresechenskyMarty Werber

Mergers Ronni Birnbaun KopelowitzPersonnel Irwin ScharfScholarships-SSDS Jack TopalScholarships-USY Irv KuberStrategic Planning Fred Claar

Al KrullYoung Leadership David PollackYouth Steven Topal, Chair

Alan ReidJanet Faber Cooperman

As Director of PaRDeS Yaakov, Ioversee and coordinate profes-sional development for eight dif-ferent synagogue Religious

Schools in the Metropolitan New Yorkregion. In particular I have the privilege ofdesigning, implementing and deliveringeducation sessions to five of these eightschools. The remaining three synagoguesare under the direction of Dr. Elissa Kaplan.Each synagogue is unique in terms of itssize, location and infrastructure. The schoolsize ranges from forty students to almostthree hundred; staff size from four to tenand each one’s class schedule is different.

As I began the year I understood the con-tent to be reflective practice and building acommunity of practice. However after con-

versations with the education directors Icame to realize that by virtue of the uniquenature of the school, each one had specificexpectations of PaRDeS Yaakov and indi-vidual institutional needs to express. Topicshave included:Conservative JudaismDifferentiated InstructionTeaching to All ModalitiesClassroom Management through

Effective PlanningInnovative Ways to Teach Bible

Each session concludes with an opportuni-ty to ask questions and for me to trou-bleshoot. The final component is the com-pletion of the evaluations. One of the keyquestions asked in the evaluation is “howis the topic/content of the session employ-

able in your classroom?” The responses tothe sessions have been extremely positiveand many of the evaluations have offeredideas for subsequent topics providingdirection for future sessions.

On a personal note- PaRDeS Yaakov hasbeen a profoundly rewarding experienceboth personally and professionally. I havehad the pleasure of meeting some wonder-fully talented and committed classroomteachers who are dedicated to honing andimproving their Jewish knowledge and theircraft. We are sincerely indebted to Brachaand MartyWerber for their funding of such aworthwhile and future thinking project.

Within the coming months the applicationprocess for next year’s participants will beundertaken. The information is sent direct-ly to the Education Directors of each syna-gogue. METNY is also currently initiatingconversations about a second tier forPaRDeS Yaakov graduates in order to pro-vide on-going support and professionaldevelopment.

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Irrigating the Field of Educationby Fran PearlmanDirector, PaRDeS Yaakov

SAVE THE DATEMETNY ANNUAL DINNER

Monday, June 8, 2009

Honorees:

• Rabbi Mitchell Hurvitz • Carole Korowitz • Don Schiller • Jeffrey Shlefstein

Executive Director's Message

The Gift of Opportunity and The Promise of Spring

It’s almost fitting that the economicdownturn has intensified during thewinter. Winter is when the earth stopsproducing, animals go into hibernation,and humanity has traditionally lived off

of stored resources. The current economicclimate seems cold when we see newsfootage of people waiting outside to get intojob fairs and even chillier when hearingabout the many people forced out of theirhomes due to foreclosure.

As you may know, the Chinese word for “cri-sis” is a combination of two symbols, thefirst being “danger” and the second “oppor-tunity.” The economic crisis we are current-ly experiencing is characterized by both.

For METNY USCJ and our synagogues, thedanger we face challenges our ability to pro-vide the services our communities and its individual membersneed. In order to weather the storm, we need to examine ourexpenses and, most likely, budgets may need to be cut.Dreams of physical expansion or additional personnel mayneed to be downsized or shelved for the moment.

While METNY USCJ thankfully remains stable, we are cuttingexpenses and looking for ways to do more with less. I knowfrom speaking with our synagogue leaders that the sameprocess is taking place around the region.

As we maneuver through this turbulent time, we are alsogranted the gift of opportunity. This opportunity manifestsitself in taking time to revisit the mission, priorities and goalsof our synagogues.

This process reminds me of a values clarification game fre-quently played in USY and at Camp Ramah. Our youth are“given” a limited amount of money and asked to create abudget for their community. Their responses are alwaysenlightening and frequently inspiring.

In this economic crisis, however, this is not a game and themoney is real. Over the past few months many communalagencies have been forced either to make drastic cuts or closetheir doors altogether.

Budget cuts to weather this storm constitute short term solu-tions. The opportunity at hand is to create a long term

approach that will not only guide our syn-agogues through the storm, but also thrivewhen the storm is over. This crisis forcesus to look inward and ask essential ques-tions about who we are today and who wewant to be in the coming years.

The first step is clarifying and embracingyour synagogue’s purpose and goals bywriting or revisiting your mission state-ment. In The Seven Habits of HighlyEffective People, Stephen Covey writes:

An organizational mission statement – onethat truly reflects the deep shared vision andvalues of everyone involved with the organi-zation – creates a great unity and tremen-dous commitment. It creates in people’shearts and minds a frame of reference, a setof criteria or guidelines, by which they will

govern themselves.

Embracing the mission of the synagogue can provide renewedpurpose to the lay, professional and spiritual leadership and,most importantly, our members. With a clear sense of direc-tion, we can create goals to actualize our vision, and budgetlong term to ensure that we are supplying essential services.

History shows that when crisis arises it is common to pointfingers. By contrast, this is precisely the time to lock arms andmarch together towards a brighter future.

METNY USCJ has taken these words to heart and is engagedin a strategic planning process. Our regional leadership and Iare available to guide your synagogue through a similarprocess.

The theme of METNY’s upcoming leadership conference onWednesday, March 18th, is entitled “Beyond the Horizon.”[See article on front page for more details.] I encourage you tojoin us for a night of discussion and practical workshops todeal with the challenges we face as a community in thesehard economic times.

In just a few weeks the spring season will arrive. The prom-ise of spring is rebirth, renewal, and, for our people, freedom.I am confident that with planning and courage our synagoguescan experience rejuvenation and blossoming that will benefitour members and movement for years to come.

ByRabbi Charles E. Savenor

Executive DirectorMetropolitan New York Region,

The United Synagogueof Conservative Judaism

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Our 35th President, John F. Kennedy, once famously noted,“The Jewish people, ever since David slew Goliath, havenever seen youth as a barrier to leadership.” As astute andaccurate an observation as he may have made—with all

due respect to President Kennedy—he may have incorrectly iden-tified the origin of this phenomenon. In the second paragraph of thegna, God says of the commandments, “lhbck u/bbat”—“impressthem upon your children” (Deuteronomy 6:7). As early as Mishnaictimes, Jews placed an unconventionally high emphasis on educa-tion and cultivation of youth; enh/ yc vstvh taught, “anj yC

“stnk/k vwag anj yC /tmnk vwag aka yC vbank wag yC ewqnk —“At the age of five, the study of Bible; at ten, the study of Mishnah,at thirteen, responsibility for the mitzvot; at fifteen, the study ofTalmud” (Pirkei Avot 5:23). With a clear direction and mission as thechosen people of God, the Jews have always been a future-orient-ed people.

There is no such thing as a natural born leader. Almost everyone isblessed from inception with some desirable leadership traits, yetwithout the proper nurturing, these traits often go unutilized andundeveloped. Never have I encountered an organization that instillsa desire to lead in the same capacity as does United SynagogueYouth. USY is generally lucky enough to have proficient, sociableleaders by whom the next generation of USYers is inspired to takeon leadership roles themselves, thus cyclically ensuring that thecaliber of USY leaders does not diminish. Moreover, the love many

members feel for the organization is so monumental that theyreceive unparalleled satisfaction by imparting the same love ontotheir peers.

Rarely during my tenure in USY have I been treated as a high-schoolstudent. The adult staff expects the USY leadership to rise to amaturity level that far exceeds that of the average teen, and the factthat they settle for nothing less fosters an environment in whichUSYers rise to the task at hand. The adult staff also does an excel-lent job guiding the youth leadership while allowing it to retain alarge degree of autonomy. I have been fortunate enough to con-verse with adult staff consisting of rabbis, teachers, and profes-sionals, all of whom have infused in me strikingly different, yetequally crucial, lessons regarding leadership.

Countless times I have heard USYers use the hackneyed line,“People say that the Youth is the future of the ConservativeMovement, but by participating in USY we have become the pres-ent.” This sentiment—which is widespread within the youthgroup—is indicative of the eagerness USY leaders feel to effectchange upon their surroundings. United Synagogue Youth is anorganization that—with the help of USCJ—brings out the leader inanyone and everyone; it is a true testament to Kennedy’s observa-tion regarding the Jewish people and, more importantly, it serves asa reminder in a world ruled by adults that the future is fully depend-ent on the extent to which we impress our values on our children.

USY The Seeds For Future Leadershipby Moss Amer, METNY USY President

METNY USY Executive Board gathers behind their banner. Left to right: Elan Cooperman,Dov Berkman, Stefanie Groner, Chanta Ghalchi, Moss Amer, Ben Guzik, Cari Katz, CarrieMildner, Rachel Cohen and Josh Rubing.

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Metropolitan New York Region USCJin cooperation with

The Jewish Theological Seminary

PresentThe Institute of Continuing Jewish Studies

Spring 2009 Semester“Navigating the World of Torah Study”

With Dr. Walter Herzberg

Dates: March 4, 11, 18, 25 and April 1

Time: 4:15 refreshments, class 4:30 - 6:30PM

Location: 330 West 38th Street, Suite 205 NY, NY 10018

Cost: $150 for all five classes(includes all materials and refreshments)

We commend all the METNY con-gregations who supported Israelin its war against Hamas in manyways: by sending members to the

recent rallies in Westchester, Rockland, Long Island and New YorkCity; by raising money for the southern Israeli towns and cities thatwere targeted by Hamas rockets; by visiting those southern townsand cities and bringing needed supplies and moral support. And wealso commend our congregations who singly or in concert withother community groups, continue to hold programs of informationand entertainment that keep their communities knowledgeableabout normal, daily life in Israel.

As METNY’s Israel Affairs Chairperson, I sit on the United SynagogueIsrael Commission, chaired by Metny’s own Dr. Saul Shapiro, andparticipate in regular telephone conferences with other regionalchairpeople. We also are invited to participate in regular telephoneconferences with members of the staff of the Israeli Consul Generalin NYC.

Every METNY congregation should have its own Israeli AffairsChairperson, who receives information from me, as well as from theUnited Synagogue Israel Commission, and who is invited to partic-ipate in the telephone conferences with the Israeli Consulate. If youhave not yet designated such a chairperson, please do so as soonas possible and send his/her name and e-mail address to joyper-la@yahoo.com and to Don Schiller at schiller@uscj.org

At our last United Synagogue telephone conference of regionalIsrael Affairs Chairpeople, we agreed to strengthen the role of boththe regional Chairpeople and the Israel Affairs Chairpeople in eachof our congregations. We propose to do this in several ways.

First, we urge congregations to put Israel on their monthly boardagenda, with brief, two minute reports on Israel that will be pre-pared in advance by the USCJ Israel Commission.

Second, short positive messages of what is happening in Israel canbe inserted in Shabbat brochures and longer versions in monthlynewsletters.

Third, the USCJ Israel Commission would like to be connected toyour synagogue’s website.

Fourth, if your congregation has not yet heard about the The FamilyEducation Initiative for Ethiopian Jews in Israel, think about hostingsomeone to speak.

Fifth, invite members of the younger generation, including the IsraelAffairs chair of your USY chapter, and other individuals, to join yourIsrael Affairs Committee.

Finally, support Today’s Israel, a monthly publication on the internet;petition efforts on Israel’s behalf, join with other congregations andyour greater community and get involved.

I’d also like to bring you up to date on the work United Synagogue

is doing with Ethiopian Jews in Israel. Severalof our congregations have provided financialsupport for the Family Education Initiative. Atwo year course to train Family Education

Workshop Coordinators has been developed, and by the time youread this article, more than 20 candidates for the course will havemet and been interviewed. Their training course begins the firstweek of March at the David Yellin Teacher’s Seminary. After train-ing, these coordinators will lead workshops in different neighbor-hoods. Part of the course will be funded by the Ericson Foundationand part by the Jerusalem Foundation.

Mulualem Biru is the new neighborhood worker in the Kiryat Yovelneighborhood of Jerusalem, in Beit Shemesh and in Rishon LeZion.He works closely with the Absorption Service Center and with thesocial workers in each city. During the past month he has helpedfamilies sign up children of kindergarten and nursery school age forschool this coming year; and has helped families receive reducedmunicipal taxes. In addition, in each area he has hours when hemakes house calls and hours when people come to him with dif-ferent problems.

Finally, nine Ethiopian young people are training to become Noamcounselors (Noam is the Masorti Youth Movement) in the Katamonneighborhood of Jerusalem. There are an additional five IsraeliNoam counselors who are already actively working, along with theirEthiopian coordinator, Esti Alemu, to counsel 20 Ethiopian childrenevery Monday afternoon.

We know that times are hard for many of us and for many of ourcongregations. We can only imagine how difficult it is for manyEthiopians in Israel. If you or your congregation can support any ofthe programs you have just read about, please contact me atjoyperla@yahoo.com. You can also visit the USCJ Website’s Israelpage at www.uscj.org.

METNY Check list to Put Israel on Your AgendaJoy Perla

METNY Israel Affairs Chairperson

METNY was well represented at recent rally to support Israel.

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Leadership Councilsby Norman KorowitzMETNY 1st Vice President

METNY’s Presidents’ Councils have been one of the mostexciting and practical offerings we provide over theyears. These meetings provided congregational presi-dents with the opportunity to learn and discuss issues

that face them as leaders.

At the beginning of this administration, the METNY board recog-nized the need for change and created a task force, representingcongregations of various sizes from all areas of the region. Severalnew ideas and procedures were suggested and recommended asthe means for us to provide and deliver services to member con-gregations.

We then invited congregational presidents from all the variousareas to attend one of 6 focus group meetings held throughout theregion. At these meetings they were asked, “How can thePresidents’ Councils be enhanced?” and “How can METNY betterservice your congregation?” Responses were honest and frank,and provided a starting point for helping us plan for the future. Welistened carefully and with an open mind.

After these focus groups met, we reassembled our task force, whoin coordination with our officers and professional staff, are utilizingthese suggestions to redesign the Councils and, most importantly,improve the quality of service to our congregations.

Our visions for the future of the Councils include:

• Expanding beyond the president and including other representa-tive officers. This will ensure continuity and relevance to the lead-ership of the synagogues and Councils.

• Holding more sessions by conference calls to reach and servemore leaders.

• Providing all leaders with the printed materials so they can ben-efit from them.

Sessions will be designed for specific needs and allow for cluster-ing by the size of synagogues, certain geographic zones and othercharacteristics, such as senior or emerging ones.

Another item that emerged from these focus groups was the desirefor cooperative purchasing. We are making every effort to leveragethe size of METNY with its 108 synagogues and 25,000 householdsto benefit our synagogues.

Other innovations are being considered and evaluated for feasibili-ty. Our Leadership Councils are being designed to reach out andmeet your needs. We look forward to providing camaraderie, shar-ing, and quality growth and learning in a convenient, supportiveatmosphere.

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SAVE THE DATEUSCJ BIENNIAL CONVENTION

Sunday, Dec.6 – Thurs. Dec.10, 2009Crowne Plaza Hotel, Cherry Hill, NJ

MAZEL TOV METNY wishes a Mazel Tov to Stefanie Groner of Beth ElSynagogue Center, New Rochelle on becoming the USYInternational SATO Vice President for 2009!

Coming This Spring

METNY, MERCAZ USA and the Jewish Theological Seminary willbe co-sponsoring a public lecture program on Israel and the

future of the American Jewish community in honor of YomHaAtzmaut. The program, open to the community at large, will pre-cede the biennial MERCAZ General Council.

METNY Minchah Minyan

T he METNY Region of the United Synagogue of ConservativeJudaism conducts Minchah services on Tuesday afternoon at

1:15 PM at The Regional office 330 West 38th Street (between 8thand 9th Avenues), Suite 205. If you are saying Kaddish or just wishto daven Minchah, please feel free to join us.

Planning PaRDeS Yaakov, left to right Dr. Elissa Kaplan, Charles Litman, Fran Pearlman,Rabbi Tracy Klirs, Alice Talmud, Marty Werber, Rabbi Paulette Posner

How do you build a Jewish home? Fortunately, it doesn’ttake bricks, concrete or vinyl siding. A new keruv (out-reach) initiative spearheaded by METNY and funded byUJA-Federation of New York aims to help young parents

build Jewish homes by bringing Jewish rituals and traditions intotheir families’ lives. The pilot program, entitled “Building OurJewish Home,” began in August 2008 in conjunction with threesynagogues in the Northern Westchester area.

The goal of the initiative is to hold several programs throughoutthe course of the year at each of the participating synagogues,targeted towards the synagogues’ Early Childhood Center com-munities. Each program has a specific theme that relates to anaspect of Jewish family life, such as one of the Jewish holidays.The programs are designed to enable participants to enhancetheir knowledge of the topic, and to take home practical ideas asto how to incorporate the rituals and traditions they learn aboutinto their families’ lives. By involving young parents in enjoyable,informative educational opportunities, METNY hopes to enablethem to feel more fully at home within the Jewish community andmore comfortable taking an active role in their children’s Jewisheducation. Eventually, participants will hopefully choose to enrolltheir children in long-term Jewish educational opportunities.

Building Our Jewish Home aims to reach out to both intermarriedand endogamous families and to help all Jewish families createstronger bonds with the larger Jewish community.

Past topics have included “The High Holidays – Beginning aSweet New Year” and “December Dilemmas.” On February 8,Building Our Jewish Home and First Hebrew Congregation ofPeekskill debuted “Good Morning, Good Night,” a program forboth parents and children that focused on the topic of dailyJewish rituals and how to use those rituals to make transitionaltimes in the day (such as mornings and bedtime) easier and moremeaningful for families. Also involved in the pilot program areCongregation Sons of Israel in Briarcliff Manor and the YorktownJewish Center in Yorktown Heights. Building Our Jewish Home iscoordinated by Rabbi Cara Weinstein Rosenthal, an adult andfamily educator based in Roslyn, Long Island.

In the future, METNY hopes to continue its keruv efforts to youngfamilies through “Building Our Jewish Home,” and looks forwardto the possibility of expanding this program to other synagoguecommunities in the metropolitan area. If you’re interested inlearning more about the program and in the possibility of bring-ing “Building Our Jewish Home” to your congregation, contactthe METNY office.

“Building Our Jewish Home”: New METNY Initiative Reaches Out to Young Families

by Rabbi Cara Weinstein Rosenthal – Keruv Grant Coordinator

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SOLO SEDER PLUS Now in our 19th year!

This Passover, as you and your family and friends gather around the Seder table, we ask you to remember three special groups ofpeople.�

� SOLO SEDER - Our Jewish military personnel serve at United States military installations across the globe, often isolated from theorganized Jewish community. Today with more military serving throughout the world and several war fronts, we reach out to you to becomea sponsor so that every Jewish serviceman and servicewoman in our armed forces will receive a Passover Package.

� PANTRY FUND - In these hard economic times, with an increasing number of people, including Jews, out of work, more of our peo-ple depend on community food pantries and rabbinic discretionary funds to feed themselves and their families. With so many people out ofwork, the need is greater than ever. We reach out to you to help support these critical needs in the METNY community so that every Jewishfamily can celebrate Passover appropriately.

� YOUTH FUND - Families are faced with tough choices today. While some may view youth activities like USY as an extra, we strong-ly believe that it’s fundamental to the present and future vitality of the Jewish people and Conservative Movement. We ask you to contributeto the METNY USY Scholarship fund, so our youth will have opportunities to learn about their heritage and strengthen their Jewish identities.

Return this form with your payment by March 23, 2009Please make check(s) payable to METNY, United Synagogue, Attn: Solo Seder Plus

330 W. 38th St., Suite 205, New York, New York 10018_____Yes, I (we) will sponsor ______Passover Package(s) for Jewish Military Personnel_____Yes, I (we) will sponsor ______Passover Package(s) for Kosher Pantries and Rabbinic Discretionary Funds._____Yes, I (we) will support ______ our youth scholarship fund.Enclosed is a check for $ _____.00 for ___ “Solo Seder Plus” Gift at $15.00 each

Name ___________________________________________ Address __________________________________________ Email: ___________

Building a caring community is always desirable, but moreso at this time of great financial stress. We are all a prod-uct of our current economic environment; be it due to alack of employment, or our synagogues’ decreased

resources and their inability to continue employing staff to ensurethriving programs, and meaningful Jewish experiences.

We do not live alone. We all require community and rely on Judaismto guide us in building our community. As Jews, we are command-ed to change the world, doing not only for ourselves, but for thesake of future generations.

This requires being a T.E.A.M.: Together Everyone AccomplishesMore. Judaism teaches that community, doing things for the sakeof heaven, is guaranteed to have a lasting effect. (Pirkei Avot 4:14)We came together in Exodus in slavery and freedom, we acceptedthe Torah, and brought God’s presence into the world.

Just as we re built the mishkan as a community, so must we nowre build once again. We must join together to create a CaringMETNY Community. This can be done by sharing our resources.

I have begun to post job opportunities to the Board and asked allBoard members in turn to post on their synagogue listservs/web-

sites. This open and expanding technical ability can give hope tothose in need of employment, regard-less of where they are located in theMETNY area.

Other ways we can care by sharing ourresources is with programming ideas orthe actual program can be sharedamong Conservative synagogues inneighboring areas, cutting down onexpenses and not having to reinvent thewheel. Religious Schools can shareevents, such as Purim carnivals and alsohave the opportunity to meet more Conservative Jews in the area.

Our Hazak groups can join together as a local chapter rather than asingle synagogue based group. Our USY and Kadima groups cancome together and share their events.

Let us expand our horizons, or create a New Horizon (Ofek Hadash).

I invite you all to step up to the challenge of laying the foundationfor making METNY more open and caring. Tell me your ideas, Ipromise I will share.

President's MessageExpanding our Horizons: Becoming a METNY Community

Sharon P. Steinberg

NON PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDUnited Synagogue

of Conservative Judaism

Sharon P. Steinberg

Metropolitan New York Region USCJ330 West 38th Street, Suite 205

New York, NY 10018