Just a few short weeks ago I was in the beautiful living room of Diane and Dennis Horn, meeting with the key people involved in planning for the High Holidays. Although this was probably my ninth year of attending high holiday services at Adat Shalom, this was my first close-up look at the behind-the-scenes work that supports the services and the overall High Holiday program. I am not exaggerating when I say that the High Holidays at Adat Shalom involve a small support army. Some like Len Blackman, super shlepper extrordinaire, are veterans, returning year after year to make sure the job is done and done well. Others like our co-chairs, Diane and Dennis Horn and Camilla Day and Ralph Nitkin, are relatively newer members.
Sitting there that evening observing the High Holiday volunteers at work, led me to think about volunteering in our community and what it means for the community and the individuals who do it.
Adat Shalom has consciously chosen to emphasize volunteerism. It is a value that permeates our community, and is largely responsible for the high-energy active programming that we enjoy. Behind every event there is a volunteer, probably several. This is true for the oneg lunches, ushering at services, Shabbat slams, the retreat, shivah minyanim, the Shabbaton, the woman’s Seder, villages, Adult Education classes, Can Jams, art shows, Storahtelling, meet the community, potluck Shabbat dinners, Hoops for Hunger, etc., etc. Volunteerism makes possible the number of activities going on in any one week, as well as the diversity in the programs offered. But it does something more. It enriches our community and it provides members with opportunities for engagement, self-expression, growth, and for feelings of belonging; feelings that make it “our shul,” rather than just “the shul” on Persimmon Tree Lane.
Although volunteerism is part of the “culture” like all culture based practices, it needs continual affirmation and reinforcement. When we were a congregation of 100–150, even 200 member units, it was easier for each member to feel a sense of responsibility for “lending a hand” in whatever way was needed. There was an immediacy to the need, and members knew that if they wanted the job done, they needed to be part of the doing. The more than doubling of membership in the last three years challenges us to find ways to maintain the sense of connection and involvement which makes Adat Shalom so dear to us.
Last year we introduced the village concept, the organization of our members into 12 geographically-based communities. It was an effort to foster connectedness by creating smaller groups (30-40 member units) within the larger community. Although the concept is new, the villages are beginning to act on their potential for mutual support, a greater sense of intimacy and village-based activities, including tikkun olam.
This year, we began to explore other ways of affirming and acting on our commitment to volunteerism. We created a Program Council, a sub-group of the Board comprised of committee chairs, whose focus is on sharing the observations and success experienced in creating community programs and engaging members. We are also considering offering a series of workshops to help our members gain the skills and confidence to become leaders in the community, a kind if win-win opportunity, where members benefit and Adat Shalom flourishes.
I hope that both long-time and newer members will seek out the myriad of opportunities that exist to create connection and find meaning within our community.
B’shalom
Myrna Seidman