December 4, 2008
In uncertain times, certainty has value. Perhaps that’s why O magazine focused its November issue on the concept of “what I know for sure,” and perhaps it explains the popularity of the NPR feature “This I Believe.”
After kicking off the 2009 UJA Campaign here in MetroWest in September and October and then spending nine days in Israel during the month of November, there are a few things I know for sure about this community, things that form the core of my beliefs about what it means to be Jewish at this moment in time.
I believe that we in MetroWest benefit from being a part of an extended family that is committed to caring for each other. This is why UJC MetroWest launched MetroWest HELPS, the effort to raise additional funds for the increased needs at Jewish Family Service and Jewish Vocational Service.
When your family is in need, you help. It’s as simple as that.
I believe that our relationship with the State of Israel is vital and enduring, based on real partnerships and friendships. In a two-week span, members of the MetroWest community were able to travel the length and breadth of Israel, visiting more than simply sites and scenery. Through our five partnership communities, we participate directly and meaningfully in the life of Israel — when we come to Israel, we are family there, too.
I believe that we are building our Jewish future. Through our family and teen programs run through and with the Israel Program Center, The Partnership for Jewish Learning and Life, and JCC MetroWest, we are creating innovative programming that will ensure the future of this extended Jewish family. The strength of commitment to our day schools demonstrated by the MetroWest Community Day School Fund for Academic Excellence and Affordability is another mark of a community that is determined to keep the flame of Judaism and Jewish leadership burning.
I believe that we are a community that wants to be together, as much when times are tough as when they are good. We have seen record attendance at our Major Gifts Dinner and at Hineni. And we have another opportunity to be together, on Dec. 7 at Super Sunday.
This event has grown into a celebration of our values of caring and connection, while at the same time serving as the means to ensure we can continue to serve those values. The energy of an entire community working toward a common goal is contagious. Come participate, come see Jerusalem built in Legos, come shop for Hanukka with our Israeli vendors, come be a part of the MetroWest family.
I believe in this family, and I know for sure that we want you to feel included.
Leslie Dannin Rosenthal is chair of Women’s Philanthropy for the United Jewish Communities of MetroWest NJ.
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