Minute with Moshe
How Do We Strengthen, Enrich, and Grow Our Community?
Our Federation was born in 1945 out of the ashes and horrors of World War II. Fifty-five years later, community leaders funded and built our beautiful community center on 28 acres in 2000. Fast forward another 20 years -- here we are a generation later! Moving forward, our organization will need to think and act differently than we have in the past. A new roadmap will be required to move us from where we are (our current situation) to where we want to be, a destination we’d like to travel to based on our aspirations and needs.
Understanding where we are and where we want to be and having a plan to get there will be the heart and soul of my administration. During COVID, your JFED professional team focused on improving our internal processes, optimizing staff roles and responsibilities, and rebranding the Federation image to drive our organizational transformation as we ask ourselves the question, “What is our once-in-a-generation opportunity and responsibility?”
With the installation of our new slate of board members at the Annual Meeting, I’m excited to take bold steps into our future. The following steps include developing deeper connections among all the parties in our beautiful and diverse Jewish ecosystem. In turn, these relationships are the building blocks to create a more meaningful dialogue and the bridges we need to journey into our future.
With this goal in mind, I’m extending an invitation to all community members to schmooze in our big tent in the coming year. Together, we can dig deeper into assessing community needs and how they fit into the Federation’s mission, vision, and values.
Regarding our mission, vision, and values, I can say unequivocally, we have the resources, the smarts, and the infrastructure, but do we have the will to repair, renew, and remake our community to become the best little Jewish town in America? Realizing a bright future for the Jewish community of Michiana starts with you!
To jumpstart the listening process for our Big Tent initiative, I’m pleased to announce the creation of a Community Listening & Planning Forum, or what I would like to call the Hineni Group, the I am HERE Group.
If you or your organization are interested in participating in the Hineni Group, please call or email Sheri Alpert at 574-233-1164 or [email protected].
Also, if you haven’t already, please take a moment to complete our Community Survey. Your participation is critical as we take essential steps to envision our community and all that it can be.
Finally, if you want to speak with me directly, I would love to hear from you. I encourage you to visit TheJewishFed.org/MinuteWithMoshe to place time on my calendar.
As we head into a new and exciting era, we each have the ability -- and obligation to advance the overdue change and create a better future for everyone. Please join me in dedicating your best efforts to this
noble task.
Now is our time Michiana. Our time for healing, innovation, and action to strengthen, enrich and grow our community.
