The summer, as usual, has flown by. While synagogue life and work continue on, the summertime brings a much-needed slowdown. The staff and clergy get their well-deserved holidays; the bar/bat mitzvah season came to a close at the end of June; our volunteer meetings take a hiatus in July so we can enjoy some down time ourselves; and our programming quiets down with so many of our members away at the lake or on holidays. This summer seems even quieter than last summer because we celebrated the two wonderful weddings of Rabbi Larry Pinsker and Cantor Anibal Mass. To both couples I wish a happy first anniversary.

However, August is here and synagogue activities are ramping up. The committees are starting to meet, the clergy are back from holidays and the plans for new programs and activities are being set into motion. The most important item on the agenda, as it is every year, is the rapidly approaching High Holidays. Our staff and clergy worked very hard on this year’s agenda and format. I am told that our clergy have created a wonderful new programming experience for day 2 of Rosh Hashanah. I am really looking forward to it and will see you there.

The clergy and ritual committee have been working hard on new ideas for Shabbat morning services that reach out to more of our congregants. I am happy to announce that we will be having more family Shabbat morning services this fall. In addition, our clergy has developed a new "Learners Minyan for Shabbat mornings" that will be led by Rabbi Pinsker and Leslie Hajer. These services will take place in addition to our regular services on several Shabbat mornings this fall. Please check out our website or contact the synagogue for more information on these Shabbat programs.

I am going to take this opportunity to welcome our new Executive Director, Ian Staniloff. Ian started in the middle of June and has had the summer to acclimatize himself with his duties, the staff, our members and our volunteers. I have heard nothing but positive feedback about Ian’s performance so far. I have been working with Ian this summer and it has been an absolute pleasure to do so. If you haven’t met Ian yet, I urge you to do so. Please remember that he is still new to the position and is learning every day, so try not to be too hard on him.

That reminds me, I have to once again thank Jackie Wassermann for her help over the last seven months. She stepped back in as "interim executive director" to help us through until we could get Ian on board. I don’t even want to think about what could have happened if she had not been able to do so. Jackie, you are an amazing woman and I want to wish you all the happiness and good health that you deserve in your retirement.

I close my report by reminding all of you that the main goal for my term as President was to continue the visioning process for our Synagogue that my predecessor, Rick Lee, started. I truly believe that we need a strategic plan for the future to guide us in our spiritual and financial planning in order to maintain the viability of our synagogue for future generations. I am happy to tell you that under the guidance of our Strategic Planning Committee Chair, Rocky Pollack and with the help of our consultant, Dr. Suzanne Stier, the process has been going on behind the scenes since April 2008. Our timetable is to complete this project by the end of May 2009. You will be hearing a lot more on this issue from Rocky and I over the coming months.

L’Shanah Tovah