Vintage

By Glen Gilbert: I had the privilege of representing the JCCH at the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism’s “Sulam” Conference from April 22-25 in Reisterstown, Maryland.  It was a satisfying experience on a number of different levels and, as you’ll soon see, involved an unexpected bit of “bershert” for myself.

As context, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism is one of the pillars of the Conservative movement.  The USCJ works with its member congregations in advancing educational, spiritual and charitable programming.  The JCCH has been a member of the USCJ since our founding in 1954.  We are currently in the process of reestablishing a strong, goals-oriented, mutually-beneficial working relationship.  My attendance at this conference was an outgrowth of our commitment to work more closely together.

Sulam (Hebrew for “ladder”) is a program run annually by the USCJ with the objective of offering insight, enlightenment and spiritual motivation to lay leadership.  This, the 37th Sulam, met and exceeded these ambitious objectives.  Forty of us from synagogues around the country participated along with Bob Leventhal (a consultant from the Alban Institute who has helped guide the development of the JCCH strategic plan) as well as three rabbis (including Charles Savenor, Executive Director of the Metropolitan New York Chapter of the USCJ). It is worth noting that Rabbi Savenor arrived a day late to the conference so he could deliver a presentation to our Board of Trustees on how
the USCJ will collaborate with the JCCH in strengthening our youth and leadership development programs.  At the time of this writing, we are in the process of arranging meetings with Rabbi Savenor and key USCJ staffers designed to advance these critical objectives (more on our progress in future editions of The Scribe).

The surroundings of the Pearlstone Center took us far away from our hometowns and, for that matter, much of civilization.  The setting was very rustic.  The accommodations were simple and basic.  I was paired with a roommate with whom I got along very well—not unimportant given our close, no-frills quarters (think Bert and Ernie).  That said, there wasn’t much time spent in the room as we participated in workshops, presentations and services from early morning until late evening.  It was hard but satisfying work. 

I was struck by how virtually all of the synagogues represented at Sulam face the same issues we do at the JCCH---from the most mundane to the most fundamental.  Not unexpectedly, there was a good amount of focus on financial sustainability, membership growth and the balance between lay and clerical leadership.  Presentations were delivered on these and other topics.  Best practices were shared freely among the participants, especially during break-out sessions.  Bob Leventhal gave a particularly inspiring presentation
on “the charismatic organization.”  He discussed how a synagogue can develop a high degree of social capital such that it attracts congregants, volunteers, donors and champions who, in turn, make available resources like money, skills, sway in the policy arena, media attention and new friends and followers.  I would like to think that the JCCH can and will enjoy this level of vibrancy and “charisma.”

Sulam was also satisfying from a spiritual standpoint.  We participated daily in Shacharit, Minha and Ma’ariv services.  We read from a Torah on loan from Temple Beth El in neighboring Baltimore.  Prayers were offered and songs sung before and after each meal, so much so that, at times, I thought I might be attending a Camp Ramah or USY reunion.  In fact, a show of hands indicated that virtually every Sulam participant (with the exception of myself and a couple of others) were alums of either or both of these organizations. 

Finally, Sulam was satisfying from an interpersonal standpoint.  I found the participants to be warm, enthusiastic, stimulating and fully committed to their respective congregations.  I’m quite certain that I will remain friends with several of my fellow “sulamis” and that we will continue to provide counsel to one another.  In fact, e-mails have already been flying back and forth between us and a Facebook “fan page” is up and active.

In our last session, we went “around the horn” and commented on our perceptions of the past four days.  I shared with the group, as I will with you now, that I experienced a wonderful bit of “beshert” (or fate) before the conference.  My dad, while ill, nonetheless gets great joy when I share with him what I—and the rest of my family—are up to.  When I told him about Sulam and, specifically, who sponsored it, his face brightened as he proudly pronounced, “United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism!  My uncle, Louie Moss, took the United Synagogue through the Depression.  He was one of their great leaders.  You can look it up.”  Well, I did just that.  I “Googled” Louis Moss when I returned home and confirmed that he was, in fact, President of the USCJ from 1931 until 1944.  I even found some of his speeches from that era and discovered that were one to substitute “Great Recession” for “Depression,” many passages would be every bit as relevant today as they were 70 years ago, especially with respect to the consistency, continuity and importance of Jewish values.  This gave me an unexpected connection to the Conservative movement--one I had not known about.  Rabbi Glazer subsequently informed me it meant I had a dose of “yichis” or good bloodline.  Who knew?  Certainly I didn’t.  What I do know is that Sulam only deepened my connection to the Conservative movement and, hopefully, will make me a better leader.  I look forward to sharing and applying that which I learned in the months and years to come.

With May comes the changing of the seasons, and at the JCCH, the changing of the Trustees of the Board and its Officers.  With the shift from Winter to Spring, there might be snow, rain and thunder, but by May, the weather has turned sunny and warm.  And, like the weather, our shul goes through its annual transformations with a few bumps, but ultimately, we arrive at a calmer place.  

This year has been no different.  Starting in August of last year, the Nominating Committee, co-chaired by Paul Hendler and Debbie Schiff, (with Glen Aber, Shari Aronson, Spencer Hart, Dawn Berman, Susan Fisher, Bruce Mendelsohn, Lisa Rosenfeld, Ken Brown and Marge Leffler making up the full committee), started to build a slate of nominees to be approved by the Congregation.  After several months of deliberations, the committee was able to fill the slate with outstanding nominees from many different constituencies for both Trustees and Officers, save one office.  And this one office was the President.  And here was our storm. 

At the February meeting of the Board of Trustees the slate was presented without a President.  A great deal more discussion followed, and in the end, after many thanks to the Committee, they were sent back to work, along with new additions to the committee, Susan Coby and Glen Gilbert. 

It is in times of crisis when leaders emerge, and a ray of light shines through.  We are very fortunate to have had this happen.  Although Karen Goldstick has been our President for the past two years, dedicating many of her days and evenings to the JCCH, she very generously and graciously offered to remain as our President for another year – but within a new model of leadership.  This model will not only make it easier for Karen to continue in this position for another year, but will also continue to develop leadership in others, as well.  The model will be a more collaborative one with many of the President’s responsibilities distributed to members of the Executive Committee.  For instance,  

• Glen Gilbert, incoming Chairman of the Board, will join weekly meetings with Rabbi Glazer and Karen Goldstick, and will also coordinate Shabbat morning Bima participation by our leadership,
• Joan Brustman, Vice President of Administration, will be our administrative and office liaison,
• Abby Mendelsohn, Vice President of Membership, and I will be the lay representatives to the staff’s weekly meetings,
• Susan Coby, incoming Vice President of Personnel, will oversee yearly staff reviews and updates,
• And the President’s Message in the Scribe will now become the Leadership Message, each month written by a different member of the Executive Committee. 

 This model more closely aligns with that of other synagogues, is far more equitable and will allow Board members to grow in their leadership roles.  This latter point brings me to another important discussion – leadership development. 

The idea of leadership development has long been on the minds of many within our shul, with its importance magnified in the wake of efforts to fill this year’s Presidential and Board slates.  In order to formalize these thoughts, in September, the Trustees passed a motion to change our bylaws (thus sending the concept to the Congregation for a vote), changing the current “Nominating Committee” to become the “Nominating and Leadership Development Committee.”  If passed, this new committee would continue its role in finding congregants who can lend their time and experience to our Board, but, in the words of Bob Leventhal, our congregational consultant from The Alban Institute, would also start to “throw out the net” to identify new leadership prospects.  The committee would cultivate and train those members who will become our future leaders – whether they chair a small event or Chair the JCCH.   

To continue my weather metaphor from above, the old adage, “April showers bring May flowers,” comes to mind and has special meaning this year.  The recent thunder has shaken us into taking positive action, but we look forward to seeing brilliant colors soon.