Presidents Message
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
(Speech Delivered at Installation, May 18)
For those of you who do not know me, I grew up in this Congregation with Rabbi Zielonka and then Rabbi Sundheim. From the time I was 4, my parents regularly drove my brother and me to religious school from then distant Dade City. I was confirmed here, and yes, my picture is on the wall. Rabbi Birnholz officiated at our marriage, Katie’s naming and Jacob’s Bris. My love of SZ has grown through the years. About 9 years ago, I brought our then 6-week-old baby, Katie to Bagels and Blocks. Before I knew it, I was meeting with Sherry Stein and Judy Rosenkranz to discuss my responsibilities as Chair of that committee. (Who can say no to those two?) Soon after I became Membership Chair and served on the Board of Trustees. I volunteered at the Amy Gail Buchman Congregation Schaarai Zedek Preschool and served on the Preschool committee. I served as VP of Membership and Programs under the leadership of Debbie Garber and for the past 2 years I have been VP of Religion Education and Youth. I have been your President Elect for the past year. It is my honor and privilege to serve you as President of CSZ and I pledge do my best.
From the time I was a little girl, I can remember sitting in this sanctuary and being in awe of the Ner Tamid. Never could I have imagined its true significance in my life or that of this congregation. I have always found the Ner Tamid to be inspirational. Now, more than ever, its significance has become clear to me. As your President, my role is to partner with you all in order to make sure that our Ner Tamid continues to burn brightly. How do we do this? It is only with the help of you, our congregants, that we will be able to make sure that CSZ continues to thrive.
In many ways, we can move forward with what our prior leaders have started. So many people already volunteer here. Each person who gives of herself or himself is a valuable part of our Schaarai Zedek family, and I thank you for doing so. I would like to broaden our volunteer base. The more volunteers we have, the stronger we become. As part of that, it is critical that we remain a warm and welcoming congregation. We are almost 1000 families strong, and it is easy for those new to our family to get lost in such a large congregation. Each year, especially around the High Holy Days, we see many new families walk through our doors. It is my goal to make each new family feel welcome and feel that this is their home. We offer something for everyone at Schaarai Zedek, and we must all play a role in making certain that our new members feel comfortable as they find their way. Our Sisterhood and Brotherhood offer many ways to become involved in our Schaarai Zedek family.
Sisterhood, you have always been so very generous with our congregation; we owe so much to you. We are blessed to have such amazing Sisterhood co-Presidents in Jamie Blumenthal and Judith Mish; I look forward to the many great things we will accomplish together.
And Brotherhood, you also do so much for our congregation, often behind the scenes! Under the outstanding leadership of Joe Perotta, our brotherhood will continue to thrive and to be there for us, and I look forward to continuing our wonderful relationship.
Our exceptional clergy and staff play a critical role in making our congregation so very special. Beginning with our extraordinary Senior Rabbi, Richard Birnholz, whose leadership, wisdom, and insight continue to guide us on our journey. I value our relationship, Rabbi, and look forward to working in partnership with you for the good of Schaarai Zedek. You are brilliant and amazing and I thank you for the countless hours you give to us! Our thanks go to Donna as well. Not only is Donna an outstanding Religious School Administrative Assistant, but she selflessly shares you with us each and every day.
Cantor Bain, your beautiful voice and music have added new dimension to our worship. We appreciate your hard work in reaching your goal of becoming a Cantor. Thank you for all you do.
Sherry Stein, our Executive Director, soon to be our Life Long Learning Director, knows most if not all of our members and has served us with excellence in one capacity or another for over 13 years; Sherry, my sincere thanks to you for all you have done and will continue to do for us. I look forward to working with you in your new role as Life Long Learning Director.
Ian Bernstein, our preschool director has developed the absolute best preschool in the community in just a few short years. Ian, I know we will continue to have a great working relationship, and I thank you for all you do for our Preschool as well as for our entire congregation.
As you know, our Educator of 18 years, Ann Rubin is retiring. Ann has served our congregation with excellence and dedication and has educated an entire generation at Schaarai Zedek. Ann, we are not letting you go completely and are grateful that you will continue to be a part of our congregation.
Our youth group has thrived under the leadership of Rabbi Conover and Ian Bush. You are both such amazing professionals and have touched so many lives during your time with us! We shall miss you both, and our best wishes go with you. I want to assure our youth that we will continue to support them and find the best possible professionals to provide a smooth transition. You are the future who will keep the Ner Tamid burning brightly!
Our dedicated office staff and teachers are second to none; my thanks to all of you for all you do. And my thanks also to our committed maintenance staff for keeping our facilities running smoothly. You are all vital to everything that happens here. We are blessed to have such an excellent staff!
As I mentioned, several of our staff members are moving on. We are in the process of filling these positions, and change seems to be the word of the day. We will soon be building additional classrooms and updating the old ones to better serve our Preschool and our Religious School. While volunteering is all important, your financial support is critical. Thanks to our Torah Circle Challenge Givers and our Torah Circle Members. Your pledges are more important now than ever before. In addition, we need to increase our Eternal Light Foundation, our endowment. This is one of the many challenges that we face in the coming years, and it is my hope that this fund will continue to build and grow in order to preserve our future. This must be a priority.
In closing, I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to many people. I cannot begin to name all of the volunteers at Schaarai Zedek with whom I have developed friendships over the past several years, but you know who you are and I am grateful to you all.
Mark Wolfson, you are one of the smartest people I know and I have learned so much from you. It goes without saying, that I have some big shoes to fill. Thank you for all of your hard work and leadership as President.
Debbie Garber, you have been my mentor and my inspiration. Thank you for always putting the Temple first and for your unending commitment and dedication. It will be my honor to serve as President as we complete the building project that began under Debbie’s leadership and continued throughout Mark’s term. And my thanks go to all of the past presidents for leading the way.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention that I have the best employers anyone could ever ask for. Thanks to Michael and Janet Kass for your generous support in allowing me the opportunity to work and to give of my time here. Gil Singer, thanks to you for always being in my corner. To my Board and Executive Committee, you are exceptional, and I look forward to working with you over the next two years!
Last but certainly not least, thanks go to my family. I would not be able to give of my time so freely if it were not for the support and understanding and patience of my loving husband, Marc and my wonderful parents, Elaine and Otto Weitzenkorn. I have their full support. My children, Katie and Jacob are also understanding of the many nights Mommy is not home because she has a meeting at the Temple. I am so proud of you both! Thank you for sharing your mommy with your Temple. You are the best! I love you all!
In conclusion, my vision is quite simple. It is to work in partnership with all of you in order to keep this very Ner Tamid of which I have been in awe for over 40 years burning brightly. And so I say tonight to this amazing congregation, thank you for putting your trust in me. I will do my best in serving you.
Joan Wadler
President
