It is the middle of winter and I think I will take this opportunity to kvetch. Over the last several weeks I have heard rumors that some people think we are a "sinking ship". We are not! Others wrongfully think we are facing an imminent move. We are not.
We all want change, yet we fear it more than most other things. We want better facilities, more programming, and we want it now. Your board, the staff, and I all want the same thing and we also want it now. The reality, my dear fellow congregants, is we must first get our financial house in order.
Thus, I am saddened that so few of our members have accepted the challenge of keeping Judaism alive and well in the Mid-Cities. Some of you may not like the present administration or one of the staff members. Nothing in this world remains constant except that we are Jews with a 5,000-year history of overcoming adversity.
I ask each of you to put aside your personal feelings. Don’t let someone or something effect your belief in, and love of Beth Shalom. Don’t punish our entire Jewish community because of some personal affront. I ask you to remember why we are here and to put the welfare of Beth Shalom first. None of us can know for certain what the future holds except that things will change.
We are not helpless in effecting the direction of that change for better or worse. We need you to step up. We need every one of our 168 families to do the right thing, the Jewish thing. We must meet the challenge of our "Free in Three" campaign.
I congratulate those members who answered the call. Now I need the rest of you to step forward and become givers. I need you to help share the burden with the rest of us. I want you to be able to say: "I did my part." You expect Beth Shalom to be here for you in your time of need; Beth Shalom expects you to be here in her time of need.
I attended a Federation function in early January. We discussed the plight of our brethren in the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia, as well as the impoverished here locally. We all know that our tradition commands us to be generous in our tzedakah contributions. We are also instructed not to give so much that we ourselves may become condidates to be recipients of tzedakah.
So how do we balance how we allocate our limited resources when so many need so much? Every money manager suggests we begin by paying ourselves first. In this case, I am talking about Beth Shalom. We have an obligation to insure the future of our heritage, our synagogue, and our community. From the President
At that meeting I heard one of our young ARFTY members stand before the leadership of the Fort Worth and Tarrant County Jewish community, the movers and shakers if you will, and talk passionately about the positive value of the Jewish education she received right here at Beth Shalom. She emphasized the meaning of tzedakah while serving as a counselor for disadvantaged youth at Camp Impact, and the added value it has made in her life.
It makes me wonder why so many of us don’t get it. If our children have a sense of community, why don’t we? If they are giving of themselves to help others, why can’t we at least be as supportive with our dollars and our time to our own congregation?
The board and staff are only as strong and as effective as our members are. We need everyone to be a part of the solution. We have three openings on the board. We need volunteers to help with many of our programs and events. We cannot, you cannot, expect the same people to continually step forward and do the work.
We need your fresh ideas, your increased vigor, your new perspective. We need you! Call any officer, board member, or staff person and ask what you can do for your congregation. Together we can insure our future. We will be strong and we will make a difference.
So much for my long kvetch. Let’s end this month’s message with two exciting announcements. First, I am pleased to welcome Naomi Brand back to the board of trustees. Naomi will serve as our education chair, replacing Paul Solomon, who resigned for personal reasons. Second, thanks to our Al Weiss Endowment for Musical Enrichment, the board has engaged Sherri Allen to add a cantorial component to one service a month for the next six months. Please look for her bio and schedule elsewhere in this issue of HaShomer. As always, your comments and ideas are welcome. Shalom,
– Barry J. Schneider, President
817-360-9298; dr_barry@yahoo.com