It is hard to believe that this will be my last message as President of the Congregation! It has been an amazing two years, which has sped by. I am truly blessed to have had the opportunity to serve the Congregation during a very special period of time in the history of Shaarey Zedek. We have an exceptional clergy and staff and a committed Board and Executive. Everyone has played an important role in enhancing the opportunity for Shaarey Zedek to play a meaningful role in the lives of our members and our community.

 

I believe we have the finest team of clergy anywhere. I cannot imagine a finer spiritual leader than Rabbi Green. I have been inspired by the creativity and knowledge of Rabbi Pinsker and the energy and enthusiasm of Cantor Mass. Our Congregation has been blessed to have a most remarkable young Chazzan Sheini, Matthew Leibl, and a truly dedicated and compassionate Shammes, Bill Weissmann, as well as the very special talent of our Chazzan Shlishi, Leslie Hajer. One of the greatest rewards of serving as President of the Congregation is to get to know and appreciate all of our wonderful clergy, not only as professionals, but as truly exceptional human beings.

 

Another reward is to have gotten to know the amazing staff who keeps the Synagogue running so smoothly. It has been a real pleasure to work so closely with Jackie Wassermann, our recently retired Executive Director. Her dedication to the job was amazing and she did everything she could to ease the load of all the presidents she worked with. She will certainly be missed, but we all wish her a long and joyous retirement. The team of staff that Jackie assembled and supported is equally remarkable, a dedicated group of men and women who look after every detail of the Synagogue operation, from the physical plant and cemetery, to the programming, communications, funeral details, and the always important food services. I know that we can look forward to ongoing excellence under the leadership of our new Executive Director, Faith Kaplan.

 

I am so fortunate to have had a particularly supportive Board and Executive Committee. The decisions facing a Synagogue Board are not always easy ones, but the members of the Board and Executive always discussed issues civilly and respectfully. Board meetings were always a pleasure. I have learned so much from the wise and thoughtful men and women who have made such an important commitment to our community by serving so capably on the Board and Executive, always with the best interests of the Congregation foremost in their minds.

 

Finally I want to express my appreciation to all of the members who have been so supportive during my time as President. I have met many wonderful people who I likely would never have known if I had not had this rare experience. I have made many friends and will treasure these new friendships for years to come. I have experienced the strong sense of community, which is so important to the mission of the Synagogue, the sharing of joy at simchas such as baby namings, birthday and anniversary aliyot, and bar and bat mitzvahs, as well as the sharing of sorrow and comforting of our members experiencing loss and suffering. This is a very special aspect of Jewish life, something that cannot be taken for granted, something that is so worthy of protecting, nurturing and passing on to future generations. I look forward to working with our future leadership in trying to ensure that we do just that!

 

Have I accomplished everything I set out to accomplish as President of the Congregation? Of course not! Am I proud of what we have accomplished over the last two years? Absolutely!