On a ‘day to help,’ callers raise $1.6 million
Pols cheer volunteers as hundreds attend Super Sunday event
Rita Waldor — who received the Muriel Walter Volunteer of the Year Award at Super Sunday — with her son Peter, his wife Jodi Miller, and two of their children, Nathaniel and Gabriel.
Photos by Johanna Ginsberg
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December 9, 2009
Part pep rally, part Hanukka festival, and all fund-raising, the Super Sunday phonathon for UJA MetroWest raised $1,623,258 with 2,385 gifts.
Hundreds of callers filled the phone banks at the Aidekman Family Jewish Community Campus in Whippany for the all-day phonathon, asking folks at home to renew or increase their gifts to the umbrella Jewish philanthropy.
Rooting them on were politicians from near and far, including NJ Gov. Jon Corzine and Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, who was raised in West Orange (see sidebar).
Organizers called the event “a blowout success.” Event cochair Ronald Silbermann said, “In light of what is going on in the world today, Super Sunday was a huge success all around. Kudos to all the professionals and volunteers who helped make this happen. It was also a tremendous community-building day.”
Volunteers came from every age group. Robin Amster of West Orange brought her 10-year-old son. “I came to help,” said Joe Amster. The fifth-grader at Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy is already a three-year-veteran of Super Sunday. “I do the dialing,” he said. “Mom does the speaking.”
“We feel we are doing our part,” said his mother. “These are tough times for a lot of people. This is a way everybody can help out.”
Some volunteers came with larger groups and wore “team” T-shirts, like the table full of callers representing JCC MetroWest’s Camp Deeny Riback.
Rabbis from all denominations could be spotted, including Rabbi Menashe East of the Mount Freedom Jewish Center, who brought along his young children, Ayala and Erez. New to the community, it was his first MetroWest Super Sunday. “Incredible,” he said. “Massive.”
“This effort is very important for our community and for the broader Jewish community.”
East’s children were among those who enjoyed Hanukka activities set up in the gym, including an olive press, sand art, edible dreidel-making, and an NJJN art contest.
Shana Slater, eight, of Livingston was painting her name while her older sister Veronica, 11, was busy making phone calls. “My mom doesn’t allow me to make calls yet,” she said by way of explanation. “We’ve been coming to Super Sunday forever to support federation,” said mom Lisa Slater.
There was Hanukka shopping in the atrium and plenty of community chatter, but the main event remained the phone bank area where, toward the end of the day, more than 100 teens and college students came to make calls.
Rita Waldor was presented with the Muriel Walter Volunteer of the Year Award, which she accepted with two of her grandchildren, Gabriel and Nathaniel, standing with her.
Following Super Sunday, volunteers participated in a second day of calling, known as Terrific Tuesday, on Dec. 8. Those who make annual gifts but were not reached on these two days can expect a call over the next couple of weeks.
Oren: ‘I believe in your mitzva’
Back home in the community where he was raised, Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, greeted Super Sunday volunteers with a warning about the high stakes facing supporters of Israel.
He framed his brief remarks by holding up a “No Nukes for Iran” car magnet distributed at the event by members of the Teen Advocacy Program of the National Council of Jewish Women’s Essex County Section.
“I was particularly gratified to walk in and be greeted by three wonderful young people who gave me this. This just made my day,” said Oren, who said he would like to see such advocacy become a priority at every American-Jewish institution.
“Why don’t we have banners like this on our JCCs?” he said. “I’m very gratified to see there are often banners on Hillels and Jewish community centers that say, ‘End the genocide in Darfur’ or ‘End the plague of AIDS in Africa.’ All of that is important and it’s important that we as Jews stand up for that.
“But where are the stickers, where are the banners that say, ‘Stop the Iranian bomb’?” he continued. “This represents a threat to a country of seven million people — seven million people in the State of Israel whose future safety and security are jeopardized by a regime that threatens to wipe us off the map and is assiduously working to acquire the nuclear military capability for doing that.”
On a lighter note, Oren joked about the state where he was raised: “I spend more of my time defending New Jersey than defending Israel.”
The ambassador was introduced by his former rabbi, Stanley Asekoff of B’nai Shalom in West Orange. The audience included Oren’s wife, Sally, and his parents, Marilyn and Lester Bornstein, who still reside in West Orange.
Local politicians came out to show their support and make phone calls, including Freeholder-at-large Pat Sebold, who comes every year but skipped 2008 because she was hospitalized. Fully recovered, she said, “I’m happy to be back.”
Gov. Jon Corzine arrived around noon and praised the local Jewish community for its commitment to philanthropy.
“It’s something that’s inspiring to those of us who care deeply about public life and about having a better world to live in. I believe in your mitzva,” he said, “and I believe what you are doing is for the right and benefit of all of us.”
Corzine, who relinquishes the governorship to Republican Chris Christie next month, thanked the community for working so closely with him on issues like Darfur and promised, “I will be back.”
Other dignitaries who attended Super Sunday were Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen; State Sen. Tom Kean, Jr.; Assembly members Mila Jasey, Jon Bramnick, and Tom Giblin; Freeholder Jack Shrier; Mayors Victor Deluca of Maplewood, Sandra Haimoff of Millburn, Joseph Tempesta Jr. of West Caldwell, and V. Nelson Vaughan III of Chatham; Council members Tim Smith of Roxbury and Gary Schneiderman of Livingston; Deputy Mayor Arlene Johnson of Livingston; and Essex County Sheriff Armando B. Fontura.
— JOHANNA GINSBERG
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