jcc circle

The Magazine of the North American Jewish Community Center Movement spring 2009

5769 chct
www.jcca.org

A Deeper Shade
of Green:
JCC Expands Environmental Awareness
Also: Teens Wake Up to the World
Jewish Military Wife Writes Book
JCC Maccabi ArtsFest Photographer Helps Young Artists See
 jcccircle spring 2009 www.jcca.org 5769 chct

contents
2 A Deeper Shade of Green
11
4 Eyes Wide Open
6 6 Standing By
8 Teens Lead the Way
11 JCC Association Services:
Special Pullout Section
15 15 My Jewish Journey
16 A Community of Writers
18 Corporate Sponsorships
4 19 JCC Happenings
25 Enid Rosenberg: Making
2 Connections Is Her Goal

18 8

25

jcccircle sponsors
The following sponsors have made this issue of JCC Circle possible. JCC Association thanks them for their generosity.

Association of Jewish
Chaplains of the United
States
Club Resource Group
www.clubresourcegroup.com
The Coca-Cola Company®
www.cocacola.com
CSI Software
www.csisoftwareusa.com
Cybex International
www.cybexintl.com
EnerNOC
www.enernoc.com
First Data Services
www.firstdata.com
Freemotion Fitness
www.freemotionfitness.com
Kades Financial, Inc.
www.kadesfinancial.com
Landscape Structures
www.playlsi.com
Les Mills North America, Inc.
www.lesmillsusa.com
Matrix Fitness Systems
www.matrixfitness.com
microSteps, Inc.
www.micro-steps.com
Mondo
www.mondousa.com
Network Services Company
www.nsconline.com
New Balance
www.newbalance.com
Octane Fitness To help support the work of JCC
www.octanefitness.com Association and JCC Circle, please
contact Fani Magnus Monson,
The Ostroff Group vice-president of development, at:
www.ostroffgroup.com
JCC Association
Precor 520 Eighth Avenue
www.precor.com New York, NY 10018
tel: (212) 532-4958, x5136
The Redwoods Group fax: (212) 481-4174
www.redwoodsgroup.com e-mail: FaniMM@jcca.org
Staples Business Advantage
www.StaplesLink.com
Star Trac
www.startrac.com
Sterling & Sterling, Inc.
www.sterlingrisk.com
TechnoGym
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 Chair
Alan P. Solow
Honorary Chairs
Edward H. Kaplan
Ann P. Kaufman
Jerome B. Makowsky
Morton L. Mandel
Lester Pollack
Daniel Rose

dear friends Vice-Chairs

Lisa Brill

T
Donald Brodsky
he economic challenges facing our country confront local Jewish Community Cheryl Fishbein
Centers throughout the continent, as well as JCC Association itself. The Jewish Gary Jacobs
philanthropic world has been damaged by the general reduction in wealth due to Virginia A. Maas
the decline in the equity and housing markets as well as the impact of well-publicized Stephen R. Reiner
Toby Rubin
financial frauds. At the same time that Federation campaigns are reported to be down,
Stephen Seiden
more of our fellow citizens need assistance from our communal institutions. Paula Sidman
Ironically, it is just at such times that we must insure that every family looking to its Secretary
JCC for service will find a welcoming and embracing environment. Reports tell us that Shirley Solomon
members are looking toward their Jewish communal home for exercise and learning Assoc. Secretaries
experiences because they enjoy the cost effectiveness and camaraderie they find at the Enid Rosenberg
JCC. They are looking for the comfort of community during these tough times. So while Michael Segal
we are strapped for cash, we all must deliver more. Michael Wolfe

At JCC Association, we have reduced our operating costs, but we have made certain Treasurer
that the services we provide to our constituent JCCs and camps remain as strong as Edwin Goldberg
ever. That means that we continue to supply and support curriculum in areas from early Assoc. Treasurers
childhood education to camping, that we are developing innovative initiatives for adults, Stephen Dorsky
that our consulting services in wellness, management, and Judaic education remain the Andrew Shaevel
Doron Steger
envy of others, and that our Jewish personnel in the armed services are cared for by our
chaplains. We have done so while maintaining our traditional dues structure, and we are President
grateful for the support of our members. Allan Finkelstein

Local JCCs and camps are doing their best to provide more with less. We will remain jcccircle:
dedicated to adding value to Jewish life. We are not out of the woods yet; difficult times,
Sr. Vice-President,
and perhaps hard choices, lie ahead. As we all move forward, let us resolve to make Marketing & Communications
those choices based on the Jewish values that are central to the Jewish people’s ability Robin Ballin
to adapt, and not only survive, but prosper, through the centuries.
Creative Director
Peter Shevenell
L’hitraot Communications Manager,
JCC Circle Editor
Miriam Rinn
Design
Jeremy Kortes
Dan Hertzberg
Alan P. Solow
Chair, JCC Association For address correction or Information about JCC Circle contact info@jcca.org or call Alina at
(212) 786-5096.
©2009 Jewish Community Centers Association of North America.
All rights reserved.
520 Eighth Avenue | New York, NY 10018
WE WANT YOUR Phone: 212-532-4949 | Fax: 212-481-4174 | e-mail: info@jcca.org | web: www.jcca.org
E-MAIL ADDRESS! JCC Association of North America is the leadership network of, and central agency for, 350 Jewish
Community Centers, YM-YWHAs and camps in the United States and Canada, who annually serve
JCC Circle is spring cleaning, and more than two million users. JCC Association offers a wide range of services and resources to
our e-mail list needs some attention. enable its affiliates to provide educational, cultural and recreational programs to enhance the
Please take a moment and send your lives of North American Jewry. JCC Association is also a U.S. government-accredited agency for
serving the religious and social needs of Jewish military personnel, their families and patients in VA
current contact information to Alina
hospitals through the JWB Jewish Chaplains Council.
at acherny@jcca.org, subject line:
JCC Association receives support from the UJC National Federation/Agency Alliance, local
JCC Circle. Todah Raba! federations and Jewish Community Centers.
ISSN 1065-1551
 without replacing the entire area. Some of the carpet tiles are

A Deeper
held in place with friction to avoid any possible harmful fumes
from glue. New insulation was added in the lounge where
drywall was used so the heating and cooling system doesn’t have

Shade of
to work as hard. Walls were painted with low VOC (volatile
organic compound) paint, which reduces the risk of respiratory
and other illnesses caused by more toxic paint.

Green Shatter-proof, insulated windows were installed in the new

conference room. These new windows also will be installed
across the front of the building thanks to a Federal Homeland
Security Grant. Besides the obvious benefit of added safety, the
by Karen Kohn windows offer increased energy-efficiency. Insulated glazing
and tinted glass reflect the sun’s heat outward during warmer
“We often think about saving energy by
weather and keep heat inside when it’s cold out.
driving energy-efficient cars, but the energy
used in buildings exceeds the energy used to Heating/Cooling System Uses Less Energy
operate cars by about three to four times.” The most ambitious of the JCC’s green initiatives, however,
is the installation of geothermal heating and cooling in the
So says Seth Penchansky, vice-president of the board of the overhaul of the Maas Lounge. Unlike conventional heating and
JCC of Washtenaw County in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a cooling systems, geothermal heating technology uses absolutely
member of the Facilities Committee for the last five years. no fuel to operate. Instead, geothermal systems send coolant
Penchansky should know: The JCC is embarking on an through piping buried underground to extract the heat that
effort to go as green as possible, and their green initiative
is much more than just recycling paper or turning down
the thermostats at night. As a principal of Penchansky
Whisler Architects, a firm that specializes in sustainable
architecture, Penchansky oversaw the design and installation
warm
of several recent building renovations, which include state-
of-the-art green technologies that are making the JCC more
environmentally friendly than ever before.
summer
Green Building Materials Lower
Environmental Impact cool
Energy-efficient building design is not a new concept
for the JCC. Four years ago, the gym was renovated and
featured the first energy-efficient rooftop heating and
air-conditioning unit with fresh air exchanges to reduce
carbon-dioxide levels in the room.

In a project completed last fall, the JCC went even further to

create a greener and more efficient facility. The renovation
included the latest innovations in energy-efficient lighting.
In the Maas Lounge, 21 fixtures with four lamps each were cool
replaced by eight fixtures with three lamps each, which also
use lower-wattage bulbs. The result was a lighting system that
uses just one quarter of the energy previously required. The
conference room features the new lighting, as well.
winter
Maas Lounge floors were replaced with more sustainable
and longer-lasting building materials, such as Marmoleum, a warm
natural linoleum flooring made from linseed oil. In areas where
carpeting was needed, carpet tiles made from some recycled
nylon were used so that small sections can be swapped if needed

2 jcc circle spring 2009

exists there naturally. A minimal amount of electricity is
used to operate a compressor, pump and fan.
The Earth maintains relatively constant temperatures.
In southern Michigan, the ground is between 55 and
57 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. By cycling 30-degree
coolant through 55 degree earth, for example, the
system can increase the temperature of the coolant,
which raises the temperature of the air in the room.
In the winter, a geothermal system draws heat from
the Earth to warm a room. In the summer, it extracts
heat from a room and sends it back underground for
storage. Since earth is much denser than air, it can
change the temperature of the coolant (and in turn, the
room) much more efficiently than an air-to-air system.
The new heating system also works in conjunction with
an energy recovery ventilator, which draws in fresh
air from a vent in the roof. The unit runs only when
a carbon dioxide (CO2) sensor indicates fresh air is
needed, and it recovers 70 percent of the energy that
would otherwise be lost by conventional air circulation
systems, enabling the heating and cooling system to run
more efficiently.
While geothermal technology may sound like science
fiction, it actually works well and is very cost-effective.
There may be a higher initial cost upon installation,
but the system can pay for itself within five years in
recouped energy costs. Geothermal heating is twice
as efficient as standard equipment, has twice the life
span, and requires less maintenance. According to
Penchansky, it just makes good business sense.
“The best things we can do to conserve energy are
to use new light bulbs, install better insulation, and
improve heating and cooling in homes and offices,”
says Penchansky.
JCC Plans Future Building
Improvements
The JCC intends to upgrade the building further
in the coming years, including replacing the JCC’s
23-year-old roof and installing thicker insulation in
the new roof. Eventually, the JCC must replace the 40
year-old boiler that heats the main part of the original
building. “When the boiler expires, we’d consider
using geothermal heating again in the future,” says
Executive Director Leslie Bash. The geothermal
heating system in the Maas Lounge serves as a pilot
project for that possibility. The project would be a
large investment, but some of it could be financed by
energy savings. Now, that’s efficient.
Karen Kohn is a freelance writer based in Michigan.
www.jcca.org jcc circle 3
We Make It Easy to Save
Money and Save Energy
We know that JCCs are trying to save money in every
possible way. So we set out to find a way for our
affiliated JCCs to reduce the cost of electricity, develop a
new revenue stream, and become more environmentally
aware and energy efficient. It took a lot of time to find
the right company, but we’re proud to announce that we
have selected EnerNOC, a leading provider of energy
solutions, as our recommended provider for energy
curtailment and management.
When the electric grid is congested, EnerNOC calls upon
its network to reduce its electricity usage according to a
pre-determined plan. This is called “demand response.”
Lowering demand for electricity helps reduce the risk
of brown-outs and black-outs and alleviates the need to
build new peaking power plants. With EnerNOC, JCCs will
receive the most bottom-line value from demand response,
together with cost-savings opportunities. EnerNOC makes
participation in demand response easy, as they manage
the process and absorb all the risk. Your JCC’s curtailment
strategy will be customized for your agency, and EnerNOC’s
operations team works to get your site(s) enabled and
ready for an energy emergency quickly. They provide
world-class support, help you identify and implement a
host of sustainable savings opportunities, and best of all,
there is no charge for their services. In fact, EneNOC will
pay you to participate.
EnerNOC rewards the sites in its network, like the JCC, with
year-round payments just for being on ready to reduce
electricity consumption in the event of a grid emergency.
Sites also receive additional payments if and when they’re
called into action, creating two new potential revenue
streams. Revenue potential varies by region and how much
energy a site is able to reduce, but in major metropolitan
areas, it can reach $35,000 or more. Not only do JCC
facilities get paid directly from EnerNOC for their efforts,
they also save on monthly electricity bills.
EnerNOC representatives will customize a plan specific to
each facility’s needs after an energy audit of your JCC,
which it will conduct at no cost to you.
EnerNOC was founded in 2001 and is publicly traded on
NASDAQ. It is licensed in every U.S. state and Canadian
province that allows these services. In addition to energy
curtailment, in some markets it is also licensed to help
you find cheaper power sources than your current electric
company, given the power of its group buying ability.
To find our how EnerNOC can work for you, contact
info@enernoc.com—subject line “JCC Inquiry” or to sign
up for the program, visit www.enernoc.com/get-started.
 Eyes Wide Open:
Showing Teens a New Perspective at JCC Maccabi ArtsFest®
by Miriam Rinn

Television. Movies. Video games. Teenagers have been immersed

in manufactured images their entire lives. “It’s part of the air they
breathe,” says photographer Lloyd Wolf, so when it comes to making
photographic images, he finds they can do really good work at a
relatively young age.

A
lthough Wolf believes that photography has
always been a manipulative art, the advent of
digital photography has destroyed the idea
of photographs being a literal reflection of reality.
“Most of the students are computer savvy,” he says,
and they understand how Photoshop works. “They
get it pretty fast.”
between the generations, they went to a senior center
and a camp. The young photographers interacted with
the older people, and they were able to deal with the
technical challenges of young children in constant
motion. The workshop’s theme was d’or va d’or,
generation to generation, another reason to include
subjects of different ages.

As the photography artist-in-residence at last year’s
JCC Maccabi ArtsFest®, Wolf led 31 teens through an
intensive photo-making experience. “I’ve taught on
and off my whole career,” says Wolf, and he found the
ArtsFest teens among the best groups he’s ever worked
with. Lloyd brought the teens to what he describes
as visually rich areas—and sent them out to take
pictures on the street. “We went into areas that were
funky but not scary,” Wolf says, and the teens ventured
out in groups of two and three to take pictures of
whatever captured their attention. The photos varied
tremendously: some teens took pictures of people,
some took landscape shots, some focused on abstract
designs. Chuckling, Wolf mentions that many teens
photographed public pay phones. “They think they’re
antiques,” he says, like Model T Fords.
According to Lloyd, “You can’t play an instrument by
just talking about it, and the same is true of a camera.”
He put the teens in places where there was a lot to
photograph. Because he wants to break down barriers
Wolf has been a photographer since college, and his
work has appeared in Vogue, the Washington Post
Magazine, National Geographic Explorer, the U.S.
Holocaust Museum, and numerous other outlets.
He started teaching in the public schools in the
early 1970s. He has worked with homeless kids and
immigrant students, as well as college students. “You
learn from teaching, and you get energy from teaching,”
Lloyd says. Lloyd also does general commercial
photography as well as more creative projects. He’s
currently part of a group working on a documentary
about an area in Arlington, Virginia called Columbia
Pike. “It’s the most diverse area in the country, perhaps
outside of Queens,” he says. He’s also taking photographs
of street shrines, those spontaneous memorials to
murdered children or automobile accidents one sees
along roadsides and against buildings. In addition to a
book on Jerusalem and an ongoing series on klezmer
musicians, Lloyd is developing an investigation of
Jewish time called Circles within Circles. His work can
be seen at www.lloydwolf.com.

4 jcc circle spring 2009

 A formal exhibition of JCC Maccabi ArtsFest
photographs, “Eyes Wide Open,” traveled to JCCs
in New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Houston in 2009.
A selection of photographs from the show are
available through JCC Association’s online store:
go to www.jcca.org/eyeswideopen.

At ArtsFest, the teens presented

their work in different ways. “The greatest Jewish
“I wanted them to have as
close an experience to an teen program in
exhibition as they could. We America for the
made beautiful prints with
white borders,” Lloyd explains.
creative crowd“
They also projected their work — Mattan Klein,
over a jazz piece created by jazz ensemble artist-in-residence
the instrumental jazz group at
ArtsFest. “It went over well,”
Lloyd says. “They were very New Orleans JCC
pumped and felt very proud.” August 2-7, 2009

Lloyd will mentor another Merage JCC of Orange County, CA

photography workshop in New August 9 - 14, 2009
Orleans for the 2009 ArtsFest,
and he’s already excited by
the potential. “It’s going to be
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!
overwhelming. There’s just so www.jccmacreg.org
much to see.”

www.jcca.org jcc circle 5

 Standing by
A Jewish Navy Wife Tells Her Story
by Miriam Rinn
S
ometimes, it takes one lucky
break. Alison Buckholtz became
an overnight sensation after
having been a professional writer for
eleven years when her essay about
a cardboard cutout of her husband
appeared in The New York Times
“Modern Love” column. “Flat Daddy,”
as the cutout was called, was her
attempt to console her young son
Ethan when her husband, Commander
Scott Buckholtz, a U.S. Navy pilot, was
deployed. Flat Daddy turned out to
be no substitute for Real Daddy, but
Buckholtz turned that break into a
book, Standing By: The Making of an
American Military Family in a Time of
War, published by Tarcher/Penguin.
As a young Jewish mother of two
preschoolers, three thousand miles
away from her family and friends,
Buckholtz felt more than a little out
6 jcc circle spring 2009
of her element in tiny Anacortes,
Washington while her husband was on
a ship half way across the world, and
Standing By tells in touching detail
how she managed to find a place for
herself in that world. While coping
with her own loneliness, she struggled
to help her children deal with the sense
of dislocation and abandonment they
felt when their father disappeared for
months. “I didn’t know that you could
talk about him all the time and feel sad,
and still thrive,” Buckholtz said. She
had to negotiate the difference between
grieving that Daddy is gone, and
moving on with life and being happy.
Another challenge for Buckholtz was
to provide Jewish experiences and
a Jewish atmosphere for her family,
both when her husband was home
and when he was away. Although most
people think that few Jews join the
armed forces today, “there are plenty
of Jews in the military and they do
Ethan and Esther run to greet
their father.
practice,” Buckholtz said. The trick is
finding them. When Buckholtz first
asked the base chaplain to recommend
a synagogue, he unknowingly gave her
the number of a group of Messianic
Jews, people who accept Jesus Christ as
the messiah while they observe Jewish
practices. “That was horrible,” Buckholtz
said, but the experience encouraged her
husband to become a Jewish lay leader
through JWB Jewish Chaplains Council.
Working as a team, the Buckholtzes got
materials from JWB and started doing
outreach. Their first event brought
together 30 people for a Hanukkah
party—service members, retirees, and
spouses. The Buckholtzes have since
organized holiday celebrations including
a Passover Seder, a Purim megillah
reading, and a Rosh Hashanah dinner.
“It was a great feeling to know that we
provided an outlet,” Buckholtz said.
“Being a lay leader has been fantastic.
It’s been one of the best things here.”
Buckholtz grew up in Charleston, South
Carolina—“Everything you could do as
a Jew in Charleston was centered in the
JCC”—and lived in Washington, D.C.
before she married. Twenty minutes
from her parents, near her brothers and
sisters, in an urban community filled
with Jewish institutions, reading the
Times and The New Yorker, Buckholtz
was not your typical military spouse.
For the last three years, Buckholtz has
CAPT Irving Elson, a Jewish chaplain in the U.S. Navy, blesses the jet flown by Scott Buckholtz on the USS Truman.

written about military life for a general others in the same situation are eager they visit her family. “It’s very sweet
population. “I really enjoy writing to help. to watch that happen,” Buckholtz said,
first-person essays,” she said. “Civilians and she determined to include that

who don’t have any sense what this
world is like think that it’s radically
different, and it’s not. My goal [in the
book] was to show the human side of
deployment.” Buckholtz discovered a
natural inclination for military wives
to reach out to each other. “That sort
of closeness happens faster,” she said,
because of the need to have people
available to cover when there’s no
family around. “You’re always looking
for someone who can help you in an
emergency,” Buckholtz pointed out, and
B
uckholtz spent a lot of time
creating a Jewish nest for her
children. She ordered challahs
and Jewish foods, she bought Jewish
DVD’s and CD’s, she celebrated
Shabbat and all the holidays at home.
“I had always heard that Judaism was
centered on the home,” Buckholtz said,
and she really worked on ways to infuse
her home with a Jewish ambiance. The
result is that her children know all the
prayers and songs for Shabbat, she
said, and can sing confidently when
part of her life in the book.
Scott Buckholtz is about to be deployed
to Iraq, and Alison Buckholtz and
Ethan and Esther are going back to
Washington, D.C. Buckholtz can be
reached at http://www.alisonbuckholtz.
com and more information about
the book is available at http://www.
standingbybook.com/Home.html. “ It
is so gratifying to me to be able to bring
the story of Jewish military families to
Jewish audiences.”

www.jcca.org jcc circle 7


Teens lead the way!
T
he idealism of youth is one of
our great natural resources.
Hopeful and filled with energy
and optimism, young people yearn to
be engaged with the world—whether
they know it or not. Lately, they seem to
be awakening to their potential to make
a huge difference in their communities,
in their country, and even in the welfare
of the planet. According to the U. S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, 55 percent
of teenagers volunteer an average of
three and a half hours a week, the only
age group to increase its volunteer time
over the last year. A recent study of
Atlanta
teens give
I
t’s never too soon to start training
teens to become philanthropists. The
Marcus Jewish Community Center
of Atlanta’s Door and Ladder Society,
a hands-on philanthropy program for
Jewish tenth graders, recently awarded
$10,000 in grants to programs for
children with special needs. Recipients of
this year’s grants were Amit’s B’Yachad
Buddy program and the MJCCA’s Camp
Isidore Alterman, a camp for children
with autism spectrum disorders.
8 jcc circle spring 2009
JCC teens by the Florence G. Heller-
JCC Association Research Center finds
even more startling evidence of teens’
desire to be involved—72 percent
participate in community service
projects, with 40 percent coming to
the JCC for that activity. Published
studies by Independent Sector, the
Panetta Institute, and others have
provided evidence of an upswing in
activism, volunteerism, and social
entrepreneurialism among teens. These
trends reflect the value teens place on
community service and experiential
education. Many teens see such service
The Door and Ladder Society is an
18-member group of Jewish high school
sophomores, who represent each of
the Atlanta Jewish youth groups, and
whose religious backgrounds range
from Orthodox to secular. Members
must go through a selective admissions
process, which includes both essays and
interviews, and then study the Jewish
philanthropic tradition, collective
grantmaking, venture philanthropy,
and community needs. While most of
the money comes from community
donors, each teen must make a personal
contribution of at least $180.
In response to a request for proposals
from different charities, the group receives
as critical in their planning for college
and careers, but further, it indicates
their reconnection to traditional Jewish
values of tzedakah and tikkun olam.
JCC youth and teen directors know
these facts from first-hand experience.
They work with teens every day within
the JCC Movement—at JCCs and
camps—and have the chance to inspire
and be inspired by them. There are
many stories similar to the ones you
will read here of teens who are creating,
building, doing, and supporting
efforts in their communities, which
indicate we should feel hopeful for
our leaders of tomorrow. For more
information about other programs
or resources related to teen activism,
or to share news of successes in your
own community, please contact me at
aselkow@jcca.org.
Aaron Selkow, director, Merrin Center for
Teen Services
The Door and Ladder Society (top row,
L-R) Jonathan Berger, Aaron Maslia,
Noah Adler, Benjamin Harris, Kyle
Schaffer, Nick Myers, (Middle row,
l-r) Shayna Brandi, Alex Rubin, Kelli
Regenbaum, Nicole Gillman, Rebecca
Gaillard, Nikki Cohen, Tammy Bronstein
(bottom row, l-r) Erin Smith, Bradley
Maran, Marisa Alzadeh (not pictured)
Maia Hoberman
numerous grant requests. The teens
evaluate and discuss each proposal, finally
deciding on which proposals to fund, just
as other funding groups do.
The Door and Ladder Society is
a program of the Marcus Jewish
Community Center of Atlanta,
supported by the Jewish Federation
of Greater Atlanta and the Jewish Teen
Funders Network: http://www.jtfn.org/.
People interested in learning more
about The Door and Ladder Society,
including the application process
and participants’ written reflections,
can visit The Door and Ladder
Society website:
www.atlantajcc.org/doorandladder.

Sweet sixteen charity
Tapping the idealistic spirit—and funds­—of teenagers.
by Sarah DePaolo
W
hen Laine Meyer’s parents
asked her what she wanted
for her sixteenth birthday,
the Briarcliff High School junior
told them she didn’t need anything,
but she knew that other kids did.
For her Sweet 16, she chose to found
the Laine Meyer Camp Scholarship
Fund at the Rosenthal JCC of
Northern Westchester in New York,
and organized a combination Sweet
16 party/fundraiser for her camp
scholarship fund.
Laine helped the Rosenthal JCC tap into
an oft-ignored source for charity and
fundraising—teens. Not only do today’s
teenagers have expendable income—a
result of after-school jobs, chores, and
lives with relatively few responsibilities—
but Generation Y is also more idealistic
www.jcca.org jcc circle 9
and eager to actively improve the world
around them. These teens statistically are
more interested in charity and volunteer
work than most adults around them.
Most are required by their schools to do
community service—and that doesn’t
hurt their college applications either.
They have the potential to become a
fundraising force to be reckoned with.
More than two hundred teens attended
Laine’s party in the JCC’s auditorium,
and each donated $36 or more. The DJ
donated his time and the lighting special
effects. Laine baked some desserts, and
her parents bought more. JCC staff
helped Laine solicit goods from local
merchants for a silent auction for the
parents and other family members who
also attended. Laine invited her entire
high school class, as well as friends from
camp and other extracurricular activities.
Laine with her mother Judi and older
brother Randy
She set out with a goal to raise $10,000
to start the fund—and truthfully, this
amount seemed a bit overwhelming.
When it was all over, she had raised
more than $16,500. And she’s already
planning for next year’s event.
“Looking back, I realize what a
tremendous impact summer camp
has had on my life,” said Laine. She
has attended various camps for eight
summers, including a summer at
JCC Camp Discovery. “I learned
many important life lessons at camp,
including teamwork, cooperation and
independence from my family, all while
making long-lasting friendships in an
environment that is more relaxed and
different from school. I wanted to give
other children the chance to have a
wonderful, life-changing experience, just
as I have had.”
I
n this turbulent economy, there will be
more families this year unable to pay
for summer camp for their children,
so the Laine Meyer Camp Scholarship
Fund is needed more than ever. While
other teens are already involved with
social action projects through the
Rosenthal JCC, Laine was able to take that
spirit to the next step. She knew her peers
could do more. These were adolescents
who, for the most part, come from very
comfortable homes. Instead of buying a
new pair of jeans, she asked them to dig
into their pockets and make sure a less-
fortunate child had some of the same
opportunities they had had.
And they did.
Laine chose the Rosenthal JCC because
she has been involved with the JCC for
so many years. She is currently part of
the JCC’s Youth Leadership Council,
and has participated in many after-
school programs in the past. “The JCC
was a great place to grow up!” she said.
“The JCC has acted as a second home
to me.”
Sarah DePaolo is a freelance writer
based in Westchester County, NY.

JCC teens take over DC
by Robin Rose-Samuels
L
ifetime memories are made
“ by allowing yourself to be
engaged in the moment.” This
is the mantra of Melanie Waxman, the
Baltimore JCC Maccabi Teen Experience
director. That’s why in the fall of 2007
Waxman put a deposit on a coach bus
to take a group of Jewish teens to the
Presidential Inauguration in Washington.
A year later that same bus would cost
three times as much, if one could even
be found, and Waxman was escorting
45 teens and 10 chaperones to D.C. for
the swearing-in of the first African-
American president of the United States.
“I did not honestly think it would work
out! The dream of taking high-school
teens to the inauguration to be a part of
history was daring!” declares Waxman.
“My thoughts ran from ‘How are we
going to stay safe?’ to ‘Where are we going
to situate ourselves so that we will actually
get to be a part of the celebration?’”
Waxman and her team worked with the
FBI, the Washington DCJCC, and various
parents to set a game plan and work
towards the goal. Her team made a trial
trip to D.C. and mapped out an itinerary
step-by-step. “We presented a Powerpoint
10 jcc circle spring 2009
to parents and worked to convince them
that the teens would be safe and get to
be a part of the day.” Some of the parents
were reluctant at first, but the teens were
adamant that they could do this and
eventually won their folks over.
The teens left Baltimore the day before
the inauguration, spending the night
on the ballroom floor of the DCJCC.
In preparation for the monumental
day ahead, Waxman led a discussion.
“Among the questions I asked was, ‘What
other historic event would you have liked
to witnesses?’ Their answers included the
liberation of the concentration camps,
Lincoln’s inauguration, Martin Luther
King Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech and the
march on Washington. Others went for
the crossing of the Red Sea and the 1969
World Series. I was blown away.”
Waxman had attended President Bill
Clinton’s first inauguration, and she
remembered the excitement, the energy,
the pins, and the people on soapboxes
pontificating about many ideas. “I
wanted teens to experience and take
in the fervor of the times. I knew it
would ultimately stay with them the
rest of their lives,” she says. Waxman
believes teens have become politically
invested in recent years, even if they
Baltimore JCC teen staff, Melanie
Waxman (left) and Beth Steiner pose
on the streets of Washington DC
with one of the many Inauguration
day celebrities.
can’t vote. They have social justice and
environmental issues on their minds.
Emily Boling, a high school junior, feels
fortunate to be growing up in these
times when a member of a minority
can become president of the United
States. “Now children are realizing this
reality, that anyone can do anything,”
says Emily. “I will be able to say to my
kids when they are reading [about it] in
their textbooks, ‘Your mom was there.’”
“Long before the JCC of Baltimore had
organized a trip to the inauguration of
President Obama, I knew I had to be
there,” says Jon Monfred, a high-school
senior and founder of the school’s
Young Democrats Club. Describing the
moment after Obama’s swearing in,
Jon says, “Tears flowed freely. Strangers
embraced. It was pure and unbridled
joy in the nation’s capital…and how
spectacular to have experienced such
joy amongst friends!”
A
s a JCC teen staff member,
Beth Steiner had the added
responsibility of being a
chaperone. She helped shepherd the
teens from the DCJCC at 6:00 in the
morning through a crowded five-block
walk that took an hour and half. She
talked and bonded with the teens as
they sat in front of a Jumbotron along
the museum-lined mall, staying with
them all day in the frigid cold and finally
escorting them back through the throngs
of people to awaiting buses at the JCC.
“We were starving, freezing, exhausted
and exhilarated. I finally made it home
by 8:00 p.m. and just crashed. It was
100 percent worth it. I feel a sense of
optimism and hope for our country. I
don’t know what the next four years will
bring, but I can only hope that we will
move onward and upward.”
Robin Rose-Samuels is the marketing
director of the JCC of Greater
Baltimore.
 pull

special
o
ut
secti
o
n
Are you taking
advantage of the
spectrum
of areas in which
JCC Association
can help improve
your operations,
boost your bottom line,
and—most
importantly—help
further your mission?
 Of the many JCC Association services available to affiliated JCCs,
these areas are of particular value in challenging economic times.
Contact us to explore how these services can help your JCC today.

Benchmarking Economy Hotline

JCC Excellence: The Benchmarking
Project helps JCCs retain members,
increase camp registration, improve
customer service and more, all through clear
analysis of statistical data. You can sign up
and find out why executive directors and
board members are saying, “A major benefit
of our affiliation with JCC Association.”
“Nothing you do will be more valuable.”
Twice a week, we send you the latest
information on how to weather this
economic downturn: great ideas on
inexpensive marketing, suggestions on how
to keep morale up, tips on membership
growth and retention, analysis of the banking
crisis and how it impacts you. You need help
right now, and we’re giving it to you.

Signature Programs Business & Finance

Distinguish yourself in the marketplace while
reaching out to many demographic groups with
our signature programs. Let our initiatives help
you connect with teens, parents, young adults,
baby boomers, campers and more. JCC Maccabi
Games® • JCC Maccabi ArtsFest® • An Ethical
Start® • TAG: Jewish Values Through JCC
Camping® • Journeys: Adult Jews Living and
Learning • JCC Maccabi Israel® • GesherCity®
Our Mandel Center for Excellence in Leadership
& Management is dedicated to strengthening
the economic base of your JCC. From in-
person consultations to webinars to step-
by-step guides on running an annual appeal,
managing in a downturn, and establishing a
business model, we offer tools you can use to
run your JCC more efficiently. As an affiliated
JCC, you’re not in it alone. We’ve got your back.
 Continental Ad
Campaign
Instead of spending a bundle of money
on advertising, use ours. We’ve created
fabulous niche-market ad campaigns to
increase your membership. You can
download them for free from JCC Resources,
add your information, and you’re ready
to go. Now, that’s a great deal.
Human Capital
Great staff is key to a successful JCC, and
our professional development services
department is entirely focused on
finding you the right staff, training the
staff you have, and educating the next
generation of JCC staff. Find out how we
can bring your staff to the next level—that
level of service that keeps your members
happy to belong to your JCC.
Preferred Vendors
Save money and solve problems with our
Preferred Vendors. We’ve found great
companies that want to work with you
to make your fitness centers, playgrounds,
campgrounds, and early-childhood centers
the best. We’ve signed up suppliers to save
you money on maintenance, software,
insurance, and so much more. Don’t miss
this benefit of affiliation.
Consultants
Do you know your consultant? You should.
Each JCC has a committed consultant
who can provide or lead you to the
help you need with governance, fitness
planning, camp, marketing, FRD, early
childhood, even executive search. Private
consultants’ fees run into many thousands
of dollars. As an affiliated JCC, you’ve
already got one on the payroll.
 My Jewish Journey
Dina Weinstein

My sons and I are singing as we drive home from camp at the Dave & Mary Alper Jewish Community Center:

O, our hands are strong and our hearts are young/

and a dreamer keeps a dreamin’ ages on/
keeps a dreamin,’ keeps a dreamin’ along/
ba-da-bu-da-ba/
What did we do when we needed a farm?
We plowed and we sowed ‘til the sun went down/
O, our hands are strong and our hearts are young and a dreamer keeps a dreamin’ ages on/
keeps a dreamin’ keeps a dreamin’ along...

I learned that song as a child at the JCC of Greater Boston Jacob & Rose Grossman Camp. I also went to
Camp Ramah and to Kutz Camp in upstate New York. My Jewish camping experiences were all over the
map and I’ve lost track of my fellow campers, but the songs stay in my mind. They were my favorite part
of summer camp, and I judged how well the summer went by how much singing I did. When my camp group
was busy singing, cliques disappeared and there was unity. Summer camp singing sessions were where
and how I learned prayers, Israeli anthems, and goofy songs to sing in the car with my kids.
Now Yehuda and Benjamin, my five and seven-year-old sons, come home from camp singing every day.
On a few mornings, I sit in on some of the song sessions at camp, mostly to avoid adult life and to soak in
the happy atmosphere of camp. Leading the tunes is Aaron Margolis (photo, below), a smiling man with a
scruffy beard, dressed in a camp T-shirt, a bandana, and shorts, and wielding a shiny black guitar. To the
children at camp, Aaron is as glamorous as a rock star. They crowd around
him when he leads them in song, and stare at him adoringly when he
passes by.
My sons don’t know it, but the singing sessions subtly convey Jewish
stories and values. Songs my boys sing at camp tell them to be a good
friend, pitch in and help, get things done, have fun, don’t be petty,
be patriotic, be proud of who you are. These are American and
Jewish values that could be taught through a boring lecture,
but I’m glad a song leader like Aaron is getting them across
in singing sessions replete with silly hand gestures.
I surprised my seven-year-old the other day by
joining him in a Hebrew song he had learned: Ani v’ata
ne’shaneh et ha-olam – You and I shall change the world.
“How do you know that?” he asked me. “I learned it a
long time ago at JCC camp,” I told him, as he looked at
me, amazed.

Dina Weinstein is a freelance writer living in Coral Gables, Florida

with her two sons and husband.

A a r o n M a r g o l is
www.jcca.org jcc circle 15
 A Community of Writers
by Michelle Brafman
S
even winters ago, I dragged my
very pregnant self to hear author
Faye Moskowitz read at Politics
and Prose, Washington DC’s renowned
indie bookstore. She drew such a vivid
picture of her late grade-school English
teacher Miss Bartlett that I forgot that
my esophagus felt like it was on fire, or
that my bloated body barely fit on the
small folding chair.
I knew that one day I would find a
way for Faye to become my teacher.
What I didn’t know was that Jean
Graubart, director of the Leo and
Anna Smilow Center for Jewish Living
and Learning at the Washington
DCJCC, was sitting several rows away,
hatching a plan to make this happen.
I didn’t know that she would recruit
Faye and visual artist and poet Miriam
Mörsel Nathan to lead an annual
summer writing retreat just outside
of Baltimore or that this would evolve
into a community of writers I would
join and eventually help lead.
Every August, a collection of returning
participants and newcomers gather
at the Pearlstone Retreat Center to
study memoir with Faye, poetry with
Miriam, and now, fiction with me.
Some arrive with trepidation, insisting
that they have no story to tell; others
speak longingly of college notebooks
filled with poetry, and a few quake
slightly at the prospect of writing
outside their preferred genre. By the
end of the four days, every participant
has written memoir, poetry, and
fiction; they’ve cried, laughed, and
entrusted their fellow writers with
tender pieces of themselves. On the
last day of the retreat, members swap
16 jcc circle spring 2009
Faye Moskowitz (left) and Miriam
Mörsel Nathan
e-mail addresses and vow to continue
writing after they leave Pearlstone.
Three years ago, Jean devised a way to
keep the community alive by creating
an ongoing writing workshop at the
JCC open to anyone who has ever
attended a retreat. Roughly every
sixth Sunday afternoon from fall to
spring, a group of women ranging in
age from 30 to 80 meet at the JCC to
share their writing. These women are
scholars, visual artists, social workers,
high-school teachers, administrators,
physical therapists, journalists, and one
is even an ex-CIA operative. They’ve
survived cancer, domestic violence,
abuse, rape, and the loss of children,
parents and husbands.
The group members possess a
common hunger for the tools to tell
their stories: some to publish, others
to preserve their family histories, and
all because they know the healing
and redemptive powers of shaping an
experience into a narrative.
Before the first meeting I led, I sent
out a writing exercise in the hope
that one or two participants would
arrive with stories. Fourteen members
showed up with essays and poems to
share. Now my challenge and joy is to
squeeze everyone’s submission into a
two and a half hour workshop.
I begin each workshop by giving a
prompt, a tool to launch longer pieces
that the writers can develop between
sessions. I organize the sessions
around a theme, which I tie into a
specific element of craft. For example,
in an effort to urge the writers to
engage their senses, I asked them to
describe a family recipe. This prompt
yielded a host of wildly funny and
moving bubbe stories and enough
recipes to fill a sisterhood cookbook.
Some of the most powerful essays
appear around the High Holidays
when I ask the group to write about
forgiveness. One woman, a retired
executive who initially intimidated
me with her husky voice and razor
sharp wit, wrote about her troubled
relationship with a sibling. I suggested
that she write a letter from her sibling’s
point of view.
O
ur workshop has evolved
into a community. When one
member underwent major
surgery, several writers visited her
bearing hearty soups and flowers. One

W
woman showed up with a volume of e at the JCC take our middle name seriously. In
Pablo Neruda’s work, and they spent
a world where it’s increasingly difficult to find
the afternoon sipping tea and reciting
time to connect to others in person, we decided
poetry to each other. These writers
swap their work outside of class, and to think outside the box—or in this case, the building. Many
during the workshop, they listen to of us have forgotten how to get together with like-minded
each other with respect, compassion souls for anything that’s not absolutely necessary, and
and an increasingly discerning ear for the only way to get back to it is with a big jump start. A
language and narrative structure. retreat serves as a reminder of the sense of purpose and
engagement that comes into our lives from sharing common
One of my favorite parts about our interests with new people, learning together, and of course,
meetings is the chance to steal wisdom
relaxing and having fun, without the distractions of cell
from the stories I hear. Empty-nesters
phones, computers, work and family.  We are there for a
and grandmothers speak wistfully
of their years changing diapers and purpose—in this case, writing—that unites us with the goal to
playing marathon games of Crazy challenge ourselves and each other.  This taste of condensed
Eights. I remember their words when community is never enough—after returning to our busy
my kids are bickering or a snow lives, participants inevitably long to see each other again
day interferes with the time I’ve set and feel grateful to have a place to do so at the JCC. Many
aside for work. They tell me through find themselves newly committed to finding more ways to
their poems and memoirs, “Enjoy, integrate a sense of connection and inspiration into their
this intense parenting phase will be lives, and the JCC is there waiting with open arms.
over in a nanosecond.” They’re right.
Jean R Graubart
The son I carried when I heard Faye Director,
read is now in kindergarten, and last Leo and Anna Smilow Center
session, our youngest member brought
for Jewish Living and Learning
her infant to class, the first baby born
to the group. The baby girl, swaddled in
pink with cheeks to match, nursed and
nuzzled while a few of our writers read
poems about mothers and daughters.
The young mother listened intently,
and when it was her turn to read, she
told of the kabbalistic thread that binds
the souls of her grandmother and
her baby. A few days later, we learned Opinions,
of the death of our Neysa, the eldest
member of the group. Be it the lost
family members who show up in our
ruach
collective writing or Faye’s Miss Bartlett
or Neysa, we are bound to the living
welcomed.
and the dead through memories and
the stories they summon.
Michelle Brafman teaches creative
writing at George Washington ING
University. Past winner of the Lilith CALL CC
J
Magazine Fiction Award and the
ALL : S 2010
S
EXEC
F. Scott Fitzgerald Prize, her short
stories have been nominated for
a Pushcart Prize and Best New Washington, DC | January 24-26
American Voices 2009.
Join the dialogue: contact steverod@jcca.org

www.jcca.org jcc circle 17

Shared Values, Shared Missions:
the Core of Corporate Sponsorships
We celebrate The Coca-Cola Company® and welcome New Balance®!

A
s JCC Association and local JCC host
communities head into the home stretch
of preparation for this summer’s JCC
Maccabi Games® and JCC Maccabi ArtsFest®,
we are celebrating our nearly two decades of
partnership with The Coca-Cola Company® of
North America, presenting continental sponsor
of the Games, and a sponsor of ArtsFest, and
welcoming a new Games continental sponsor,
New Balance.®
At the root of both of these sponsorships is a shared
vision and sense of mission. The Coca-Cola
Company’s connection to the Jewish community
goes back to the early 1900’s when Coke became
the first soft drink to acquire kosher
certification. Coca-Cola’s corporate
platform is “live positively”—they
appreciate our commitment
to Days of Caring and Sharing
and its community service activities, the Games ethos of
rachmanus—placing fair play and enjoyment above winning
at any cost—and our desire to help our teens connect to their
Jewish identities and Israel in the most positive way. Because
Coca-Cola believes in promoting a healthy, active lifestyle,
they donate mostly Dasani bottled water and Powerade.
When JCC Association created JCC Maccabi ArtsFest
four years ago, Coke added that program to its
sponsorship as well, in the belief that living
positively can be expressed not only through
sports, but also through the arts.
New Balance’s core values include integrity
and teamwork. Originally founded in the
early 1900’s, New Balance has grown to
be one of the largest athletic footwear and
apparel companies in the world, but it remains
committed to giving back to the communities
in which it does business. At New Balance,
support of grassroots marketing initiatives
is part of the company’s history. The core of
this is a sponsorship philosophy that follows
its brand positioning around the
importance of fit. When the “fit”
is right, New Balance will gladly
sponsor a nonprofit’s program.
A quick look on the New Balance
website shows how many important programs it supports.
As you look to develop corporate sponsors for your
local JCC, remember, if the “fit” is right, and if there is a
shared vision and mission, there’s a good likelihood that a
mutually-beneficial partnership between JCC and company
can be made.

What’s especially exciting about the New Balance sponsorship of the JCC Maccabi
Games—through which it is providing both financial support and the uniforms
for the host community teams—is that it is accompanied by a preferred vendor
relationship that will benefit both JCCs and individual JCC members. Now that
we’ve rolled out the Games sponsorship, be on the lookout for team clothing for
JCC Maccabi Games teams, all other JCC leagues, camp clothing, and New Balance
footwear. Individuals as well as JCCs can order online via special websites, getting
extraordinary discounts, and JCCs will also get a rebate on every order they, or
their individual members, place with New Balance. Elite Team Supplies is the
exclusive distributor of New Balance for the JCC preferred vendor program.
Log on to www.elitets.net/newbalance/jcc for details.

18 jcc circle spring 2009


jcc
happenings
what’s going on in the north american
jewish community center movement
Dancing in the Dark
Addison Penzak JCC, San Jose, CA
The Addison Penzak JCC held one of its most successful galas when it
chose a theme based on the reality TV show Dancing with the Stars. In
addition to the usual fundraising methods—tickets sales, live and silent
auctions—the reality TV show theme gave the APJCC the chance to
introduce several innovative ways of raising money.
The highlight of the gala was a ballroom dancing contest featuring
seven APJCC past presidents, who practiced for weeks with
professional ballroom dance instructors before the event. Attendees
received one free ballot to vote for their favorite dancer, but they
could buy additional ballots to increase the tally. A panel of judges also
weighed in.
Before the gala, the amateur dancers competed to see who could raise
the most money online by creating individual fundraising pages using
www.firstgiving.com. The Web pages made it easy for the dancers to
www.jcca.org jcc circle 19
JCC Works to Help Special-
Needs Children Get the
Services They Need
Houston JCC, TX
When two-year-old Julien Herschkowitz first
started in the STARS program at the Bertha
Alyce Early Childhood Center he was nonverbal,
developmentally delayed and sensory challenged.
“Between not talking and having sensory and
feeding issues, we had our challenges ahead. We
knew this program was going to help him but I
never knew it would help him this much,” says
Rebecca Herschkowitz.
STARS is a preschool program for children with
autism spectrum disorders. Kids get intensive
intervention with one-on-one instruction, speech
therapy and occupational therapy in small
classroom settings. It’s a highly regarded program
that costs more than $30,000 a year, beyond the
reach of the Herschkowitz family without the help
of the Irvin Kaplan Children’s Scholarship Fund of
the JCC of Houston and other sources.
Scholarships give more than 300 children a year
the opportunity to participate in all JCC programs
for children. “Our children are our future. If we
can’t give them the things they need from the
beginning then our future is gone,” says Cindy
Falik Lipshutz, a retired school teacher and chair
of the 19th Annual Children’s Scholarship Ball.
Now at four years old, Julien is a different
little boy. “He is singing, dancing, talking. He
comprehends and plays with his siblings. It’s a
miracle. He’s still got a long way to go, but it is
still a miracle!” says Rebecca.
raise money from family and friends outside the
area, expanding the fundraising reach of the APJCC.
A big draw was that Jonathan Roberts and
Valentina Kostenko from the television show
would be performing at the gala. Roberts and
Kostenko live in Silicon Valley and volunteered to
help the APJCC.
“Feedback from the event was great and we raised
over $100,000, making it one of our top fundraising
events ever,” reported Susie Weitzman, the APJCC’s
special events coordinator. “Our past presidents
really put their hearts into the dance contest. Our
panel of judges did a lot to make the event fun for
people too. The panel consisted of two professional
ballroom dancers and the APJCC’s director of
Jewish life & learning, Rabbi Joshua Fenton. They
used a sense of humor in critiquing each dance and
they kept people laughing.”

Katz JCC, Cherry Hill, NJ
As part of their going green initiative, the Katz JCC
recently collected old sneakers for the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe
program, which takes worn-out kicks and turns them into
Nike Grind, a material used in sports surfaces, playgrounds,
and even new Nike products. The JCC collected over six
hundred pairs of sneakers.
Fixing the World,
One Cup at a Time
JCC of the Greater St. Paul
Area, MN
The simple things you do have a
profound effect on others, even
something as simple as a cup
of coffee. Mirembe Kawomera
coffee (means “delicious
peace” in Luganda, a native
Ugandan language) is grown
by a 750-member cooperative
of Jewish, Christian and Muslim farmers who have put aside
ancient differences for the benefit of their community. The St.
Paul JCC is helping these farmers by offering the certified-
kosher, organic coffee to its members. Sales from the campaign
help to improve Ugandan schools, health care, and farming.
“The program is powerful and we have been making this
known to our members through our Web site and monthly
newsletter. We are proud to help make a difference in the lives
of others,” commented Penny Schumacher, program director
at the St. Paul JCC. Mirembe Kawomera coffee, which has
been featured in local newspapers, O magazine, and the St.
Paul JCC’s Web site, is available for sale at the JCC.
To find out how to be part of this unique opportunity
to help build peace and prosperity around the world,
visit www.deliciouspeace.com and request a community
organizing guide.
20 jcc circle spring 2009
Shimon & Sara Birnbaum JCC, Bridgewater, NJ
The Shimon & Sara Birnbaum JCC changed its pool
sanitization system from chlorine to salt.  The new salt system
is healthy for the skin, non-irritating to the eyes, eco-friendly,
does not damage swimwear, and is extremely cost-effective.
Staten Island Gathers in Sorrow,
Joy and Strength
Alan & Joan Bernikow JCC, Staten Island, NY
Within a six week period, the Staten Island community
gathered at the Alan & Joan Bernikow JCC to mourn, to
celebrate, and to voice support. In each case, the whole
Jewish community came together in less than two weeks.
The first time was on December 3, 2008, shortly after the
massacre at Mumbai, India. Within days, the JCC became the
center of communal grief over the senseless end of so many
innocent lives. More than 450 people listened to speakers,
watched a video, and offered prayers that such a tragedy
would never happen again. Then came Hanukkah and the
wish to bring the community together again, this time in
celebration. Although there have been outdoor ice carvings
of menorahs in the New York City area, none had ever taken
place on Staten Island. A few hundred people came out to
enjoy seeing the menorah carved and lit—a modern day
version of the miracle of light.
The community rallied a third time in support of Israel during
the Gaza conflict. It was standing room only as speaker after
speaker, including representatives from the Israeli Consulate
and Knesset to nearly every public official on Staten Island,
declared the undeniable right of Israel to protect its citizens.
None of these events would have been possible without the
support and efforts of the diverse Jewish community, which
recognized the need to work together to show solidarity—in
sorrow, in joy, in strength.
 Lawrence Family JCC, La Jolla, CA
At the Lawrence Family JCC of San Diego County’s annual meeting, the 41 JCC Maccabi Games Committee chairs
were honored with the Volunteer of the Year Award. The JCC Maccabi Wall of Honor thanks donors and volunteers.

Long Locks Benefit Others

Samuel Field/Bay Terrace YM-YWHA,
Little Neck,NY
This past summer at Camp Poyntelle Lewis Village,
campers were doing more than just swimming and
sailing. They were growing their hair for children
suffering from serious illnesses.  In doing so, they were
expressing one of Camp Poyntelle’s core values: mitzvah
goreret mitzvah, one good deed begets another. 
Campers and staff who decided to grow their hair
for donation joined a new club called Ponytails from
Poyntelle. For some it was their second, third, or even
fourth time, and they inspired others to follow their
actions. Members of the club met throughout the
summer to share their individual experiences and
reasons for taking on this personal challenge. Ponytails
from Poyntelle allowed campers to see that their mitzvot
extend past their bunkmates to children in need all
around the country.

www.jcca.org jcc circle 21

Camp Deeny Riback Gives Back at
First Ever “Big Give”
JCC MetroWest, Flanders, NJ
The best lessons learned are often the ones that take you
by surprise. Just ask the 2008 Leaders-in-Training (LITs) at
Day Camp Deeny Riback in Flanders, New Jersey. This group
of ninth and tenth graders learned much more than sports,
crafts, and swimming last summer. They learned about
tikkun olam (repairing the world) and the importance of
respect, kindness, and charity. But their most important life
lesson was the one they might not have expected: how great
it feels to work together to give back to your community.
It all began with a generous JCC Association grant to
participate in a Days of Caring and Sharing project, funded
by the Legacy Heritage Fund. “Our 25 LITs were split into
two teams with a starting fund of $750 each,” explained
Camp Director Diana Ackerman. “The teams chose three
organizations that play a vital role in both community and
camp life. Their goal was to raise funds to purchase essential
items for each of them.”
Job Search Assistance Open to All
Peninsula JCC, Foster City, CA
In response to the growing economic and employment
challenges facing many people, the Peninsula Jewish
Community Center partnered with Jewish Vocational Service
to offer free individual consultations with an employment
specialist. The confidential service, available by appointment,
was free to the entire community.
“Our doors are open to everyone,” said Deborah Pinsky, PJCC
executive director. “One of the PJCC’s guiding principles is
‘Repairing the World.’ We want to help our community weather
this economic crisis and provide them with resources that will
enrich their lives and offer opportunities for wellness, reflection
and growth.”
22 jcc circle spring 2009
That was the genesis of the first ever “CDR Big Give” to
benefit the Mt. Olive Police Department, Flanders First Aid
& Rescue Squad, and Mt. Olive Kiwanis Club. Big Give Team
Leaders Anna Bauch and Amanda Nessel worked with a
dedicated group of LITs contacting these organizations and
determining their specific needs. They settled on 10 Big
Easy Lockout Tool Kits for the Mt. Olive Police Department
to open locked vehicles without harm to the vehicle and
eight Jr. & Sr. Epi-Pens, along with eight sets of pediatric
defibrillator pads, for the Flanders First Aid & Rescue Squad.
For the Mt. Olive Kiwanis Club, a generous group who
volunteered their time in June to help build “Deenyville”
(a playland for CDR’s youngest campers), a new tool-filled
toolbox and power tool set was proposed.
Their efforts raised close to $3,000, and representatives
from the recipients gathered at CDR for a special
presentation ceremony during the last week of camp.
Ackerman summed it up best when she said, “It was
wonderful to watch these young men and women focus their
efforts on giving back to our community. They learned from
their community partners and friends and experienced first
hand the responsibility—and the joy—of being a true leader.”
During the private, individually tailored job-search sessions, the
employment specialist helped job seekers:
• Identify goals, work-related skill sets, interests and work
environment preferences
• Remain current on the Bay Area labor market and its trends
• Identify employment barriers and challenges, and develop
strategies and referrals to overcome them
• Create strategies for developing job leads and employer
contacts
• Articulate and market skills and work experience
In addition, visitors to the PJCC found a helpful kiosk in the
lobby stocked with current employment and networking
resources.
Stranded Dog Touches
Children’s Hearts
Indianapolis JCC, IN
When Indianapolis firefighter Rick Hines rescued Biscuit, a
Great Pyrenees dog, from the freezing waters of the White
River on January 21, 2009, he could not have known how
many young hearts he would touch. The 14 three- and four-
year-old children of the Indianapolis JCC Early Childhood
Education Center’s Bet class voted unanimously to donate
the funds raised through their regular charity collection to
help defray some of the cost of Biscuit’s medical bills.
The large white dog, a stray, had escaped from temporary
caretakers and somehow wandered onto the icy river, where
it became trapped on a large piece of ice and couldn’t swim
to shore. Rescue divers were called to retrieve the dog and ECE teachers Beth Grimm and Tammy Smith emphasize the
bring it to safety. value of tzedakah by encouraging parents to let their children
On January 29, the children presented their gift of more earn money for charitable donations by doing small tasks
than $75 to Biscuit’s handlers when Biscuit and a second around the house. Each time the classroom’s tzedakah box
Great Pyrenees visited the Bet classroom at the Arthur M. accumulates enough money for a donation, the children vote
Glick JCC. on the recipient of their funds.

Aaron Family JCC, Dallas, TX

On December 24, from 8:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. Aura Lounge was the place to be in Dallas, Texas.  Nearly seven
hundred people had an incredible time partying at the 2008 Matzoh Ball. The party is a co-production of the
Jewish federation and the Aaron Family JCC.

www.jcca.org jcc circle 23

Big Giving Starts Small
Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, Tenafly, NJ
Penny Harvest—a “common cents” initiative that grew from
one child’s desire to feed the homeless—has come to the
Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, the first agency to embrace
the project in Bergen County. The Penny Harvest mission
is to collect unused pennies gathering in jars and pockets
all across America, and turn those pennies into grants for
community organizations.
Leading the New Jersey effort, the children’s department at
the JCC encouraged first to fifth grade students who attend
the JCC after-school program, Finish the Day at the J, and
other children in the community to join together to make a
difference in the lives of others.
And that is just what they did. The JCC maintenance
department hand-built a giant container, shaped like a
menorah in honor of Hanukkah, and the children placed it in
the JCC lobby so that members and visitors could deposit
their loose change in the bin. Six weeks later, the group
went on a field trip to the Valley National Bank in Tenafly
to count what they collected. Each child got to drop bags of
coins into the bank’s change-counting machine, and watched
attentively as the dollar amount on the counter rose higher
and higher. To everyone’s surprise and delight, when the last
bag was counted, they had raised more than $1,300.
“A key mission for the JCC is to teach everyone the
importance of giving back, and Penny Harvest takes this
concept to a new level, as it teaches young children that
they can really make a difference,” says Michal Kleiman,
director for the JCC Finish the Day at the J program.
The group decided to donate $800 to the UJA Northern
NJ Emergency Crisis Fund to help people in the local
community recover from the current economic crisis, and
gifted the remaining $500 to Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Skylar Oliver (left) and Noa Slotky, two students in the JCC
after-school program, count pennies at Northern Valley Bank. 
24 jcc circle spring 2009
No Dropped Stitches Here
Soloway JCC, Ottawa, ON
Each and every Wednesday afternoon, on the second floor
of the Soloway JCC, you can hear lively conversations and
debates taking place among piles of wool and knitting needles.
The Mitzvah Knitters are women in their 70’s, 80’s and 90’s
who meet once a week for a couple of hours to make blankets,
hats, shawls or whatever else they can create from their
donated wool for senior homes, shelters, street people, or
anyone who needs it.
In honor of Mitzvah Day in early December, the knitters made
200 hats and scarves. Half of them were distributed in lunch
bags for people living on the street, and the other half went to
the Snowsuit Fund. They made blankets that were paired with
stuffed animals and distributed to children who have been
removed from their homes. This remarkable group of women
is keeping Ottawa warm and cozy, one stitch at a time.
Wee Recyclers Clean Up
Sid Jacobson JCC, East Hills, NY
The Sid Jacobson JCC Early Childhood Center (ECC)
is going green and supporting different environmental
initiatives.  The drive began last year when a conscious
effort was made dramatically to reduce the amount
of parent notices being printed. Instead, the JCC sent
them electronically.  Parents reacted positively, and the
amount of paper saved was considerable.
The next phase of the program began in October,
when teachers and students started recycling water
bottles.  The classes made a spot for the bottles in the
classrooms and then brought them to a big recycling
can in front of the ECC office.  The children became
enthusiastic recyclers and pushed their carts to the bin
to dump their bottles.  In just three months, the ECC
has recycled over 1,350 water bottles that otherwise
would have gone into the landfills.  
Staying with the theme of water, the ECC donated one
month’s tzedakah money to the Jewish National Fund’s
Reservoir Project.  Last year they purchased a garden
of trees in Israel, and this year they helped fund the
reservoirs that water those trees. During Tu B’Shevat, the
ECC donated money to plant a circle of trees in Israel’s
Children’s Forest, in addition to planting a tree and 50
bulbs closer to home through Bette Midler’s New York
Restoration Project.

I
t’s no surprise to learn that
Enid Rosenberg likes to get
things done. The lifelong
Cleveland resident exudes energy
and optimism. She sits on ten
different boards including JCC
Association’s, meets many people,
and revels in making connections.
“I’m a professional volunteer,”
Rosenberg says, and the best
part of her work, to her mind, is
bringing different people together
and building bridges—within the
Jewish community and beyond. “I
connect people I know from here to
there,” she says. “What I’m trying to
connect is talent.”
After several years as a teacher,
Rosenberg started her volunteer
career by serving as PTA president
and then president of the Orange
City School Board. She then moved
to the board of trustees of the
Jewish Community Federation of
Cleveland, and also the Oakwood
Country Club, a 100-year-old
organization where she served as
the first female president. She’s
active in the American Jewish
Committee as well as United
Way of Greater Cleveland and,
an enthusiastic golfer, with First
Tee of Cleveland, a group that
introduces disadvantaged children
www.jcca.org jcc circle 25
Enid Rosenberg:
Making Connections
Is Her Goal
by Miriam Rinn
to the pleasures and discipline
of golf. A tomboy when she was
young, Rosenberg says that despite
often being the only woman sitting
at meetings, she always feels
comfortable. She’s currently the
chair of Menorah Park Center for
Senior Living, again the first woman
to serve in that position.
Cleveland hasn’t changed much
since her childhood, according to
Rosenberg. It’s still easy to get
around and a great place to raise a
family. “It’s Midwestern but it thinks
East. It’s a very giving community,”
she says of the area’s 75,000 Jews.
“We feel we’re sort of leaders in the
country.” She is justifiably proud of
a community that produced national
leaders such as Morton L. Mandel,
who she credits as a mentor.
Rosenberg first became involved
with the JCC in Cleveland when
she and her husband, a physician
and head of occupational health at
University Hospitals of Cleveland,
returned from several years in the
Washington, DC area. That was
the time when the community was
starting to build the Mandel JCC.
As soon as she learned about the
project, she wanted to get involved.
“It was a way for me to get excited
about something, to use my skills
leadership profile
as a volunteer leader,” she recalls.
“The JCC was the connector to
the broadest spectrum of Jews.”
Later, Rosenberg served as chair
of the JCC and presided over a
turnaround. She’s very proud of
the Mandel JCC and what they’ve
accomplished. “We’re vibrant, we’re
alive, we’re doing a great job.”
While Rosenberg chose to return to
live in Cleveland, she acknowledges
that the city’s Jewish community is
shrinking. “People don’t stay close
to home anymore,” she says, and
when teens go away to college they
often don’t return. Her own two
children, both lawyers, settled in
New York and Chicago, and now the
Rosenbergs enjoy visiting a little
granddaughter in Chicago.
Rosenberg has served on the board
of JCC Association since 2006 and
been the Marketing Committee
chair since 2008. “It’s been a
delight to be involved and be part
of a larger picture,” Rosenberg
said, adding, “I like people. I want
to make the world a little better.”
That could serve as the mission of
all professional volunteers.
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contend with the perils of the shifting economic landscape.
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