Volume 10 • Issue 3 Summer 2015 URGENCY IN UKRAINE Under Siege and Displaced STRIVING TO PROVIDE Voices of Local Agency Heads SOLIDARITY AND SPIRIT Rock 3,000 at IsraelFest CHALLENGE ON THE CAMPUS Boca Raton, Florida 33428 Florida Raton, Boca Preparing Young People to 9901 Donna Klein Boulevard Klein Donna 9901 Step Up, Speak Out & Act 1 CHAILIFE We’re Saving you a Seat! JOIN US FOR OUR COMMUNITY MISSION TO ISRAEL! PASSENGER B OA R D I N G your naMe here PASS DATE NOVEMBER 13-19, 2015 DATE 11.13.15 - 11.19.15 DEPARTURE USA ARRIVAL TEL AVIV, ISRAEL MISSION CHAIRS KAREN & MARK DERN ADELE & HERMAN LEBERSFELD See the Innovation Nation Enjoy food, wine and culture Meet with security experts Experience outdoor adventures Attend sessions with Celebrate Shabbat in Jerusalem and more! government officials jewishboca.org/spirit For more information, contact Barbara Kabatznik at 561.852.6050 or [email protected]. PRICE: $3,200* per person – land only, double occupancy *$500 subsidy per person available A minimum individual gift of $500 to the 2016 UJA/Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County Annual Campaign is required to attend. C atCh the Spirit! We’re Saving 6 JOIN US FOR OURyou COMMUNITY MISSIONa STO ISRAEL!eat! 8 PASSENGER B OA R D I N G your naMe here PASS 16 DATE NOVEMBER 13-19, 2015 DATE 11.13.15 - 11.19.15 DEPARTURE USA 36 ARRIVAL TEL AVIV, ISRAEL MISSION CHAIRS KAREN & MARK DERN ADELE & HERMAN LEBERSFELD 44 FEATURES 4 AN URGENT CALL See the Innovation Nation Enjoy food, wine and culture Ukraine in Need Meet with security experts Experience outdoor adventures 6 JOURNEY TO IMPACT Attend sessions with Celebrate Shabbat in Jerusalem and more! Our 2015 Annual Meeting government officials 8 IN SOLIDarity AND SPIRIT CONTENTS IsraelFest 2015 14 THEY STRIVE to PROVIDE Voices of Agency Heads 14 Federation Partnerships 20 Campaign 2015 jewishboca.org/spirit 16 COMMUNITY OF unity For Naftali, Gil-Ad & Eyal 26 Men’s Division For more information, contact Barbara Kabatznik at 561.852.6050 or [email protected]. 27 Women’s Philanthropy 22 Rally tallieS 60 Days of Impact 30 Young Adult Division 32 Business & Professional Division 28 REFlection & REDEDication PRICE: $3,200* per person – land only, double occupancy At Women’s Installation 38 Jacobson Jewish Community Foundation *$500 subsidy per person available 43 Israel & Overseas 36 STEP UP, SPEAK OUT, ACT A minimum individual gift of $500 to the Confronting Campus Challenges 44 Jewish Community Relations Council 2016 UJA/Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County Annual Campaign is required to attend. 45 Jewish Education 38 moDEST LIFE, POWERFUL legacy 48 Local Beneficiary Agencies Irving Eckhardt’s Bequest Cat irit! 52 Synagogue Updates Ch the Sp 44 CHRISTIANS & JEWS UNITE 55 Corporate Sponsors To Vow “Never Again” This issue of Chai Life is brought to you through the generous underwriting of Commercial Printers, Inc. and the support of our corporate sponsors and advertisers. Welcome to CHAI LIFE This publication is produced by the AFTER ANOTHER BANNER YEAR, THE BEST IS YET TO COME Marketing & Communications Department of the Jewish Federation of As we wind down our 2015 season, we celebrate yet South Palm Beach County. another year of tremendous growth and success. Our PUBLISHED FALL, WINTER & SPRING Chief Creative Officer Annual Campaign is on the rise for the third year in a Andrew M. Rose row and the assets in our Jacobson Jewish Community Vice President, Marketing & Communications Janet Izaak Foundation are reaching unprecedented numbers. We Chai Life Editor, Communications Director are funding more agencies, engaging more young leaders Andrea Schuver and attracting more residents of all ages to our events – more than 3,000 attended our recent Chai Life Design Director, Creative Director Shanna E. Vinig IsraelFest celebration in Mizner Park. Chai Life Photo Editor/Assistant Editor, Communications Manager Spirits are on the rise as well as we have added many new exciting programs and initiatives and Laura Kokus most notably hired our first-ever Director of Community Engagement, Rabbi Josh Broide, who Web & Multimedia Manager Paul Kranowitz has been enthusiastically connecting unaffiliated Jews to local Jewish life. Graphic Designer Diego Ureña But that’s just the beginning. On the horizon this upcoming season are several new milestones. Graphic Designer In addition to many innovative outreach programs and events, we will be embarking on our Melissa Young Marketing & Communications Coordinator community-wide mission to Israel in November. On our Jewish campus, we will be celebrating Carrie Galkowski the opening of the Sinai Residences, a Continuing Care Retirement Community, and the Cover and Photo Credit: Jeffrey Tholl Photography groundbreaking for the new Weinbaum Yeshiva High School. And we will be extending our Federation OFFICERS caring reach to new agency partners, both locally and internationally, as part of a newly Chair improved process of needs-based planning and allocations. Albert W. Gortz, Esq. Chair Designate Anne L. Jacobson Things are looking up as never before here at the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach Vice Chair, Financial Resource Development County. As we approach a new year, we invite you to join in the excitement and be a part of our David Pratt vibrant, dynamic Jewish community. Vice Chair, Campaign Lawrence Feldman Vice Chair, Jacobson Jewish Community Foundation B’ shalom, Richard D. Steinberg Vice Chair, Women’s Philanthropy Judi Schuman Albert W. Gortz, Esq., Matthew C. Levin, Vice Chair, Planning & Allocations Chair, Federation Board of Directors President & CEO Joseph S. Mishkin Vice Chair, IOC Eric Stein Vice Chair URGENCY IN UKRAINE Wesley E. Finch Vice Chair Former FEDeration CHAIR FINDS DESolation, DESperation ON JFNA MISSION Arthur Goldberg For 18 months, Ukraine has help 70,000 impoverished Jewish Vice Chair Etta Gross Zimmerman been wracked by political and children and elderly meet their Secretary economic instability. A growing basic needs. But those needs Debra Halperin number of the country’s 350,000 have multiplied. Assistant Secretary Jews are profoundly affected by Carol Smokler destruction and deprivation in The situation came close Treasurer this ongoing humanitarian crisis. to home in June as Etta David H. Galpern Assistant Treasurer For many, aid from Federation’s Zimmerman, former Federation David Kirschner overseas partners means the Board Chair, current Federation SENIOR Federation Professionals difference between life and Vice Chair and Board Member President & CEO death. During times of calm, they of the American Jewish Joint Matthew C. Levin Continued on Page 58 Chief Operating Officer Mel Lowell ON THE COVER: Executive Vice President Marla Weiss Egers Tali Amihud - Engagement Associate at Hillel of Broward and Palm Beach Lital Pendler - JAFI Israel Fellow at Hillel of Broward and Palm Beach Menachem Schandelson - FAU student Follow Federation on: Tara Levy - FAU student facebook.com/jewishboca @jewishboca jewishboca.org/linkedin 9901 Donna Klein Blvd. Boca Raton, FL 33428 The wealth management products offered by Barclays in the United States clear through, and where applicable, assets are custodied by, Pershing LLC, a subsidiary of the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. Pershing LLC is a member of FINRA, NYSE and SIPC. a Journey to imPaCt From the hub oF our Community Where JeWish Paths Converge: Emily Grabelsky, Dorothy Wizer our 2015 annual meeting With applause and cheers ringing throughout the night, an outsider might have thought they had entered a rally rather than our Federation’s 2015 Annual Meeting. Indeed, on April 29, 260 Federation leaders and donors, rabbis and agency heads, volunteers and staff arrived at Zinman Hall with plenty to celebrate. Margie Baer, Bob Marton Anne Jacobson, Richard Steinberg We all came together at the hub of our community to kvell about the year’s shared accomplishments, pay well-earned tribute to our leaders, and look more strategically than ever toward needs and challenges that lie ahead for our community and our people. From the moment the evening’s Co-Chairs Emily Grabelsky and Dorothy Wizer welcomed the crowd aboard, everyone knew they were in for a quite a ride! By video, we toured our Federation’s work across the campus and around the world. With Nominating Chair Roxane Lipton, the meeting welcomed Mel Lowell, Les Campbell of HJ Sims, Wes Finch the 2015-16 Board of Directors, including our first Chair Designate, Anne Jacobson; new Financial Resource Development Chair, David Pratt; new Campaign Chair, Larry Feldman; and new Treasurer, David Galpern. Five extraordinary members of our community were honored for their contributions to our organization, our community and our people. Dotti Seaman (z’l) was remembered with the JFNA National Endowment Achievement Award. Betty Kane, our brilliant Larry Feldman, Ellen R. Sarnoff, Diane Feldman Campaign Chair for the past two years, received the James H. Nobil Community Leadership Award. Bob Marton accepted the James and Marjorie Baer Outstanding Young Leadership Award, and the James H. Nobil Professional Achievement Award was presented to Tom Forlenza and Robyn Kimmelman. “Looking around this room and back over the past year, as a Founder of this Federation I see this is the caring Jewish community we envisioned. It is a privilege to work with leaders who view their roles as a sacred responsibility and Al Gortz, Anne Jacobson, Matt Levin who share an emotional commitment to the vision and purpose so crucial to our success.” -Al Gortz, Board Chair in his remarks (read more at jewishboca.org/almessage) CHAILIFE 6 Bob Marton, Betty Kane, Nancy Seaman Thornton, Robyn Kimmelman, Tom Forlenza Anne Jacobson, Richard Steinberg Past and Present Federation Chairs: Allan Solomon, Etta Zimmerman, Ellen R. Sarnoff, Al Gortz, Cindy Orbach Nimhauser Laurence I. Blair, Esq. - Shareholder “Yes, something very special is happening here as more people 2255 Glades Road, Suite 400 and entities come together in new ways to fulfill our mission.