From the President's Desk

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This is my last column as your President. How fast three years have gone by. In the beginning, I had no idea what I was doing nor had I any idea of what was to lie ahead. What I knew is that I had skills that I thought could use to make a difference. It wasn’t until the Dines family donated their family Torah that I understood. I stood on the bima that evening with Marlene and her mother as they passed the Torah to Josh Cohen, the President at the time and he passed it onto me. L’Dor V’dor: from generation to generation. There was a connection made for me in that very instant that was so incredibly powerful it is hard to explain. The meaning of L’Dor V’dor hit me like a ton of bricks. The responsibility I had taken on as President of the Board was overwhelming. All these new questions ran through my mind. What made me think I can do this job? What ever made me think I had any qualification to take on the most sacred of tasks when I was struggling to find my own way? How can I lead the Board that needs a leader so badly? Standing there, holding that Torah, I had so many answers and so many more questions. I just felt the urge to sob.

In all that I have said and done over the course of the past three years, I have always tried to do what was right for the Temple mission and the members. I am happy about all the progress we have made during my tenure, especially the implementation of many of the suggestions from Hazon. There is still much to do. I have come to know many of you and love our Temple community. We are small and we are unique. We are a wonderful representation of what can happen when people really care about each other.

Observations and thoughts I would like us all to ponder:

When faced with adversity, we roll up our sleeves

and work together to create solutions.

When new people bring in new ideas, be open, listen

and be willing to change. Doing things the way we

have always done them breeds complacency and stagnation.

Jewishness = Joyfulness – In my mind they are

synonyms. Let’s teach our children through the joyful

expression of Judaism. Then they will feel the joy of

being Jewish and not just be educated to know what it

means to be Jewish.

	Be willing to take risks.
	Besides our staff and clergy, work only gets done

through volunteers. If you see something that needs to

be fixed, don’t complain. Volunteer to help fix it.

Remember, people who volunteer (including the

board and the WTI) do so out of their love and commitment to our Temple.

However, all of these volunteers

have personal lives, so have patience.

Before jumping to criticize, put yourself in the

other person’s shoes.

Reach out, get to know each other. Make everyone

feel welcome.

Our diversity makes us strong.

Everyone adds value to our Temple.

It has been a privilege and an honor to be your President these past three years. I will continue my work at Temple Israel by doing what I really love, which is education. I will work with Mindy to bring great adult and family educational offerings to the Temple.

Thank you

B’Shalom,

Reva Kopel

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