This past November in Washington, DC, a small group of colleagues and lay leaders from our Jewish community joined thousands of Jewish leaders from around the world at the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) General Assembly (GA).
Personally, I drew much inspiration from the GA. From the incredible scholar-in-residence, Mijal Biton, who provided motivating words of Torah throughout the conference in regard to three top priorities of Jewish Federations: support for Israel, combatting antisemitism, and building Jewish life in our communities; to hearing from plenary speakers such as Bari Weis, Sheryl Sandberg, Israel President Isaac Herzog, and our own Annie Sandler, president of the American-Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC); to the numerous break-out sessions on a plethora of issues important to our communities.
A particularly inspirational plenary afforded us the opportunity to hear from three renowned clergy: Rabbi David Wolpe, rabbi emeritus at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles; Rabbi Sharon Brous, senior rabbi of IKAR in Los Angeles; and Rabbi Ari Berman, president of Yeshiva University in New York.
The rabbis began what was a mesmerizing conversation on the power of community and memorable moments they had experienced since October 7, 2023. Rabbi Wolpe discussed his multiple trips to Israel, and the poignancy of meeting with hostage families and other Israelis, as they prayed together and found comfort in their shared fear and anxiety.
Rabbi Sharon Brous also spoke about her visits to Israel and her family there, including about her brother attending a hostage’s funeral. The crowd of mourners extended blocks from the main gathering, and the words of the mourner’s kaddish “Yitgadal v’yitkadash sh’mei raba…” rolled through the crowd at every block, which, for Rabbi Brous, represented the power of a people who will show up for each other.
Finally, Rabbi Berman spoke about the Yeshiva University Macabee basketball team (ranked at one point in the past year #1 among Division III universities), who traveled to an away game in a small community in Pennsylvania. To their surprise, the arena was full of fans they did not know. They came from the local Reform synagogue to support the team. That was when the team realized they were playing for someone larger than themselves – they were playing for a people.
All of us have our own memories and experiences, post-October 7, 2023. Our community has shown up for one another, for Israel, and for the Jewish people in so many ways over the last 14 months. We have showed our financial support for Israel through both our Annual and Emergency Campaigns, we have stood up against antisemitism through education, outreach, and advocacy, and we continue to build Jewish life in Tidewater through our synagogues, our Jewish days schools, our JCC and in so many other ways. We are a people who have and must continue to take care of one another – we are a community.
Wishing you and your loved ones a happy 2025.
Betty Ann Levin is executive vice president and CEO for United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC.
Power of community
