What do you expect from your Jewish community?
Maybe it’s a warm welcome for newcomers to the community or a wonderful summer camp program that integrates Jewish values throughout the day into engaging programs that keep children wanting to come back.
Maybe it’s ensuring that seniors can gather with their friends for hot kosher meals, travel to plays and restaurants, and engage in programs that help keep them fit physically, mentally and emotionally.
Maybe it’s offering counseling services to those facing family crises even when they can’t afford the fees or Jewish educational opportunities for children and adults or Hillel programs for college students and BBYO for teens.
Here, in Louisville, you can find all that and more in your Jewish community through the family of Jewish agencies supported by the Annual Federation Campaign.
But just as you have expectations of the Jewish community, the Jewish community has expectations of you. All of these wonderful programs and services that we have come to expect from our Jewish community depend on the financial support of the Campaign; and the dollars raised by the Campaign come from you, the generous donors.
Doug Gordon, the chair and Ariel Kronenberg co-chair of the 2015 Federation Campaign, and the Campaign Committee have designated the week of December 7-11 as the Week of Giving that will culminate with a Million Dollar Dinner.
During this week, Gordon explained, there will be an expectation that donors who believe in the work that the Campaign makes possible will step forward to make their pledges. Volunteers will be working hard to ensure that the Campaign reaches the $1 million mark by the dinner on December 13.
Donors of $1,000 or more, as individuals or couples, are invited to celebrate our community’s success. The dinner will include local stories of Jewish Journeys and how your Campaign donors have made a difference in people’s lives.
• Learn how a newcomer to Louisville was made to feel welcome in the community immediately when she connected with our Jewish Community Center, became active in the Federation’s Young Adult Division and her children were enrolled in the JCC Summer Camp.
• Discover how a young man from Uzbekistan came to Louisville and underwent a transformation from viewing his Jewish identity as a liability to one that enabled him to make deep connections and form friendships through his participation in Hillel on the U of L campus.
• Understand how one of our community’s young leaders was so moved by her March of the Living experience that she established a fund at the Jewish Foundation of Louisville to help provide scholarships that will enable other teens to make the same trip.
The Million Dollar Dinner will also feature Hollywood writer David N. Weiss, who will also share his Jewish journey and how it has given him a sense of joy and inspiration in learning and living Torah values. The Emmy-nominated Weiss has written or co-written some of Hollywood’s most endearing and successful family films, from Academy Award-nominated features, Shrek 2 and Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius to the Rugrats Movies, the surprise hit, The Smurfs and Smurfs 2. Weiss’ combined box office now exceeds $2 billion, world wide.
A member of the Motion Picture Academy and former vice president of the Writer’s Guild of America, Weiss has traveled the world, teaching and lecturing on writing and religion. He is in great demand as a speaker and was a hit at TribeFest last spring.
He has also written three books for children, including Kay Thompson’s bestseller, “Eloise in Hollywood” (with Mr. Stem, for Simon & Shuster).
Weiss lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Eliana; their children, Channah and Sam; plus three cats, two birds, a tortoise and Sandy the dog.
The Million Dollar Dinner will be at 7 p.m. at Standard Country Club. A Vaad- approved option is available upon advance request. A couvert for the dinner will be charged to event attendees to ensure all proceeds go directly to support the 2015 annual campaign.
RSVP by December 4 to Kristy Benefield, 238-2739 or kbenefield@jewishlouisville.org.
