October 1987: NJOP launched. November 1998: NJOP launches READ HEBREW AMERICA/CANADA

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1 1Outreachs xc N A T I O N A L J E W I S H VOL 23 NO. AUGUST 2012 l AV 5772 N E W S L E T T E R 25 Years By Ephraim Z. Buchwald When the National Jewish Outreach Program was founded in October of 1987 (yes, on the day the market crashed!), we hoped that our first Hebrew Reading Crash Course campaign would reach 800 students. Instead, we were astonished that 5,000 North American Jews responded. But we were still not convinced. After all, Hebrew language may Photograph by Doris Levin only be of cultural interest. Would North American Jews be at all interested in learning more about real Jewish spiritual life and its rituals? We proceeded to offer the 5,000 students who had responded to the Hebrew Reading Crash Course campaign the opportunity to take the Crash Course in Basic Judaism: Belief in G-d, Prayer, Shabbat, Jewish Observance, and Sexuality. Of the 5,000 Hebrew students, 3,000 responded! We immediately recognized that we were on to something bigger than we had ever imagined. 25 years have passed, and to say that NJOP s achievements and the number of participants are staggering may be a vast understatement! More than 1.3 million North American Jews have participated in CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 Join NJOP at a Very Special Evening Celebrating 25 Years of Unparalleled Outreach Achievements Featuring a Provocative Dialogue Between Michael Steinhardt and Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald and a Tribute to NJOP s Founders Wednesday, October 31, St. Regis Hotel, NYC October 1987: NJOP launched November 1998: NJOP launches READ HEBREW AMERICA/CANADA June 2010: NJOP s Director Ephraim Z. Buchwald launches video blog on YouTube Summer 1994: NJOP subway ads: This Rosh Hashanah Pray in the Original October 2005: NJOP launches SUKKOT ACROSS AMERICA March 2011: NJOP s popular video, Best Seder in the USA makes its debut on YouTube April 1997: SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA launched, attracts close to 400 temples/synagogues TWEETS JUICY BITS OF JUDAISM. March/June is launched on Twitter Jewish Treats blog is launched March 2012: NJOP publishes its first ebook:99 Fascinating Jewish Personalities

2 RABBI YITZCHAK ROSENBAUM After 23 years of dedicated service to the National Jewish Outreach Program, Associate Director Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum retired this past April. In honor of his myriad contributions to the Jewish people, we cite Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald s tribute from the 18th Annual Dinner: I first met Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum in the Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum early 1970s at a remarkable outreach program sponsored by Yeshiva University, known as Torah Leadership Seminar. He was, by then, a beloved seminar teacher and advisor. Rabbi Rosenbaum s love for outreach went beyond the normal enthusiasm of other leaders and advisors. He had a passion for outreach that was unquestionably in his genes. It soon became obvious to me from where his enthusiasm came. Rabbi Rosenbaum was the only leader whose parents, who were probably then in their 60s, loved the program so much, that they would regularly come and visit the seminars. So, it is no exaggeration to say that Yitzchak Rosenbaum developed the passion for outreach from his mother s milk and his father s inspiration. Yitzchak Rosenbaum is a paragon of gentility and kindness. We say about the Torah, D rah cheh ha darchei noam, the ways of the Torah are pleasant ways. So it is with Rabbi Rosenbaum. Although he s big and strong, and was once a champion college wrestler, he is truly the kindest and most caring individual that one could ever imagine. Rabbi Rosenbaum has worked tirelessly over the last 23 years at NJOP to build the organization, first as Program Director and then as Associate Director. Much of what we celebrate here tonight is the work of his hands. Yitzchak Rosenbaum is truly one of the great leaders of Jewish outreach in our generation, and we at NJOP were privileged to have him on our team, and even more privileged to have him as our leader. We wish Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum and his wife, Judy much good health, long life and the ability to continue their wonderfully noble and enriching deeds. Rabbi Buchwald, Dr. David Samadi and Sahar Danielpour Rabbi Buchwald, Rabbi Daniel and Diane Cohen Rabbi Buchwald, Susan Hecht and David Cohen Thank You to Paul J. Taubman for Sponsoring Incredible PASSOVER ACROSS AMERICA Experiences in Memory of his Father, Joseph L. Taubman This year, almost 4,000 men, women and children attended 70 inspiring explanatory sedarim. These incredible sedarim were offered at over 50 locations in 21 states! Young Israel of Orange County, Irvine, CA (Rabbi Dov Fischer) During the second Seder, I noticed a teen girl [the daughter of a Jewish woman hired by the caterer]... they live in a shelter for battered women, and the girl never before had attended a Seder in her life, so she had asked her mother whether she could come and just stand outside and listen. She had been standing in the hallway, listening for nearly an hour, well into Maggid. Obviously, I brought her inside... JLIC Amherst, MA (Rabbi Yosi Eisen) Even counting those who are [normally] involved [in campus Jewish life], for many this was their first traditional seder; continuing the seder after the meal was a new experience for some...we used the NJOP Haggadahs with positive results--the Haggadah balances the desire for a traditional seder that covers the standard material with the diverse backgrounds of participants. The Points to Ponder section was great. 2

3 18th Annual NJOP Dinner In the contest between the forces of assimilation and the National Jewish Outreach Program, I put my money on NJOP. These words were spoken by the distinguished Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, Guest of Honor at the Eighteenth Annual NJOP Dinner held on February 13, 2012, at the Grand Hyatt New York. Senator Lieberman has not only made invaluable contributions to American cultural, civil and political life, but to Jewish American history as well, when he was selected to serve as the first Jewish Vice Presidential candidate. Turning his attention this year to Jewish life, Senator Lieberman authored The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath, a book about the Jewish Sabbath. The National Jewish Outreach Program also honored Sahar Danielpour and Dr. David Samadi, both natives of Iran forced to flee as a result of the 1979 Revolution. A world renowned urologist, Dr. Samadi is the Vice Chairman, Department of Urology, and the Chief of Robotics and Minimally Invasive Surgery at The Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. Additionally, NJOP presented this year s Leslie Nelkin Special Service Award to the popular and indefatigable rabbinic team Diane and Rabbi Daniel Cohen of Congregation Agudath Sholom in Stamford, CT. The 2012 Carl and Sylvia Freyer Young Leadership Award was presented to Susan Hecht and David Cohen, active members of the Lincoln Square Synagogue community, and long-time NJOP activists. In addition to honoring these auspicious men and women, Rabbi Buchwald used the Dinner as an opportunity to offer a farewell tribute to Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum, who, after 23 years, retired from his position as Associate Director of NJOP in April At the Dinner, Rabbi Buchwald also announced the first time winners of the Jewish Treats: Jewish Influencer Awards, NJOP s list of the top ten people who this year greatly influenced Jewish life through social media. The beautifully appointed pre-dinner reception featured a broad variety of cuisine types, including Mediterranean, Asian and American. Additionally there was a grand Silent Auction that offered many exciting prizes. This most elegent evening was made possible by the hard work and dedication of NJOP s talented Events Coordinator, Renee JewishTweets Gets Verified! NJOP Strengthens Its Social Media Lead As the National Jewish Outreach Program s acclaimed social media brand Jewish Treats enters its fourth year, it has received the great honor of being officially verified by Twitter. This honor is usually reserved for celebrities, top companies and other well-known organizations, such as the Red Cross. Twitter utilizes the process of verifying accounts in order to help users identify high-quality sources of information and, 27,000+ followers, this means that they can be confident that they are receiving educational tweets about Judaism from a reliable and highly respected source. While our Outreach Newsletter has previously reported on the profound impact that Jewish Treats are making via Twitter, Facebook and subscription s, Jewish Treats has also recently joined the latest social media craze of Pinterest.com, a virtual pinboard whose stated goal is to connect everyone in the world through the things they find interesting. NJOP has quickly gathered a following on Pinterest by sharing Jewish-themed images and introducing our new series of inspirational Jewish posters. YOU CAN T HAVE QUALITY TIME WITHOUT QUANTITY TIME. TRY SHABBAT. - Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald Senator Joseph I. Lieberman Mr. Sam Domb 3

4 SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA AND CANADA How do you make Shabbat services special? For synagogue leaders across America and around the world, this is a challenge that they constantly face. Each year, the National Jewish Outreach Program looks forward to partnering with, and learning about, the delightful creativity of the many rabbis and coordinators who participate in SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA AND CANADA. Here s a quick review of that creativity: The Pacific Jewish Center (Venice, CA) featured the Pella Singers, a male a capella troupe for entertainment. The Sandhills Jewish Congregation (Pinehurst, NC) sponsored a kugel contest, which was judged by local culinary celebrities. Trophies went to the Kugel in a Bundt and Everything But the Kitchen Sink Kugel. Beth Shalom Congregation (Columbia, MD) literally used the theme Across America and researched the history of Jews in different states and regions of the continent. Each dinner table was labeled with a different state - which had as its centerpiece a map of that state. Each place setting had a 4x6 card on it with a question about Jewish history or a particular person on the front and the answer on the back. They sponsored a children s program that mimicked the adult educational plan. The Gershman Y (Philadelphia, PA) offered a lecture about Jews and the Garment Industry. This year, due to SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA AND CANADA s close proximity to the holiday of Purim (less than a week later), NJOP offered its partner organizations a Preview of Purim workbook. This additional programming material demonstrated the unique links between the celebration of Shabbat and Purim. NJOP is proud of the huge impact SAA/C has made on North American Jewry. Among the approximately 40,000 Jews who attended this year s SAA/C, which included over 1,600 people who are unaffiliated with any synagogue, we are delighted to note that synagogues reported the participation of over 600 Jews who had never previously experienced Shabbat in their lives. Reading by Touch The Jewish community goes to great lengths to make the holy books available to any and all who wish to study them. While the vast majority of these texts can be read and understood in any language, the Hebrew itself has certain nuances. Throughout its history, NJOP has had the privilege to offer its Hebrew Reading Crash Course, in numerous languages. The course s acclaimed primer, the Reishith Binah, has been translated into Spanish, French, Hungarian and Russian. The visually impaired, however, have a greater challenge than most others have in trying to overcome the language barrier. Several years ago, NJOP worked with the Jewish Guild for the Blind and created a large print edition of Reishith Binah. Recently, however, a patron of the Jewish Braille Institute (JBI) requested that NJOP s Reishith Binah primer be transcribed into Braille. Today, the JBI has added a Braille version to its incredible repertoire of audio, large print and braille liturgical publications. (If you know anyone who is visually impaired and would like to learn Hebrew through NJOP s Crash Course program, please contact JBI directly at 4

5 Jewish Treats, Juicy Bits of Judaism, Daily This short, uplifting daily contains an inspirational Jewish thought (perhaps a mini-biography of a Jewish personality or the description of a Jewish practice or custom) together with a Jewish action and a Jewish prayer. Sent to over 3,000 subscribers, these Juicy Bits of Judaism, Daily are archived on and tweeted to over 27,000 followers $3,000 per month/$36,000 for one year Crash Course in Jewish History and Companion Guide NJOP Music Videos Great Ways To Dedicate Dedications in celebration of a significant family milestone or in memory of a loved one are wonderful ways to support NJOP s important work and enrich Jewish lives across North America. For more information, contact Larry Greenman at or lgreenman@njop.org. NJOP s outstanding Crash Course in Jewish History (CCJH) presents four thousand years of Jewish history in five FREE lectures. With proper rebranding and a digital version, it can reach thousands of new students. $25,000 The CCJH Companion Guide, offered as NJOP s gift to every student, provides thought-provoking additional curricular reading material and an expanded view into the lives of many fascinating Jewish personalities and historical Jewish events. $6,000 (3,000 copies) Dedicate a new music video to inspire thousands to appreciate an upcoming Jewish holiday in a completely new and exciting way. NJOP s previously created YouTube music videos have attracted hundreds of thousands of views, have been featured on NBC s The Today Show, and have received many favorable reviews. $20,000 READ HEBREW AMERICA AND CANADA and Reishith Binah Hebrew Reading Primer Help NJOP inspire its Facebook Fans and Followers in the world of social media to learn more about READ HEBREW AMERICA AND CANADA by supporting NJOP s RHA/C online advertising campaign. $25,000 NJOP s widely acclaimed Hebrew Reading primer, used in conjunction with the Hebrew Reading Crash Course and the annual RHA/C campaign, is often the first Jewish text owned by students. The Reishith Binah is given out to thousands of students annually, FREE of charge. $10,000 (5,000 copies) High Holiday Webisodes and Abridged Beginners Services Four new High Holiday webisodes, featuring Rabbi Buchwald s insights into some of the most important aspects of the High Holidays, will be released in time to inspire hundreds of viewers before Rosh Hashanah. $6,000 NJOP s acclaimed Abridged High Holiday Beginners Services make the experiences of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur accessible to, and enjoyable for, all Jews. Each location receives NJOP s unique combination of Leader s Guide and Participant s Guide that allows them to create a fully interactive event. $5,000 (dedication of Leader s Guide and Participant s Guide) 5

6 Jewish Influencer Awards When NJOP s social media team realized that the 18th annual Dinner coincided with Social Media Week (SMW12), they recognized the overlap as a perfect opportunity for announcing the recipients of NJOP s first Jewish Treats: Jewish Influencer Awards. The finalists were selected by an expert panel of judges. They were evaluated based on creative and strategic use of social media to positively impact on the Jewish community. In announcing the awards, Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald, Founder and Director of the National Jewish Outreach Program, noted: We in March 2008 and from the outset, embraced it for the way it allows us to connect with people everywhere. It has allowed NJOP not only to be heard, but to listen and be inspired by others every day. In particular, we wanted to take time to recognize some of those who are leveraging the power of social media to raise Jewish social consciousness and shine a positive light on Jewish life. Allison R Yonah Esther Lisa Dave William Jewish Treats: 99 Fascinating Jewish Personalities R Jason Chaviva The R Josh Have you ever heard of Two-Gun Cohen? Did you know that the artist Man Ray was Jewish? And what happened to Elisha ben Abuya that caused the other Talmudic sages to begin referring to him as Acher, which means the Other? These are only a few of the incredible assortment of Jews whose lives are highlighted in Jewish Treats first ebook: 99 Fascinating Jewish Personalities. There have been many books written about the history of the Jews and the impact of Jews on history, and even the impact of history on the Jews but Jewish Treats: 99 Fascinating Jewish Personalities is a collection of essays about interesting Jews, some who changed the course of the world, others who gained renown only in their own time, and a few who might have been forgotten if not for others love of trivia. From the familiar figures of the Bible to little-known war heroes and even modern day novelists, these biographies have been culled from the popular Jewish Treats blog that presents Juicy bits of Judaism, daily. This exciting ebook may be purchased at a token cost on a variety of sites such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, itunes and Kobo. As Reviewed on Amazon.com: "Fun book. Downloaded it to Kindle. Great information about Jewish people. Would recommend it to others. Many facts we might not know otherwise." Jewish Treats Holiday epublications Once again, NJOP has brought the holidays to the Jewish social media community. The newest addition to our series of guides to the holidays, The Jewish Treats Guide to Celebrating Purim, delivers the who, what, where and when on the holiday of Purim. Over 500 people demonstrated an interest in the new Purim eguide. 6

7 25 YEARS...CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 NJOP programs and courses. This number represents about 700,000 individual Jews--that is about 10% of the entire North American Jewish community! Through participation in SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA, hundreds of thousands of North American Jews have had Shabbat experiences (many for the first time). If only, for that alone, the entire investment would be fully justified. Speaking of investments, it costs only about $15 to reach a Jew through the NJOP programs, and the return is obviously manyfold. The fact that so many hundreds of synagogues (over the years, NJOP has worked with over 4,000 North American synagogues) are eager to offer these classes, year in and year out, is a testimony to the great benefits that accrue to the local congregations from these collaborative NJOP outreach efforts. Since NJOP s founding, we have constantly refined and updated our regular retinue of programs and courses: Beginners Services, Hebrew Reading Crash Courses Level I and II, READ HEBREW AMERICA, the Crash Course in Basic Judaism, High Holidays Beginners Services and SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA. Because of our efforts to keep these programs fresh and vibrant, they are still attracting significant numbers of participants. We have also added many other exciting courses and programs, such as, Hebrew Writing Crash Course, the Crash Course in Jewish History, PASSOVER ACROSS AMERICA, SUKKOT ACROSS AMERICA, Parents Are Teachers, One Day Hebrew Reading Review, High Holiday Prayer Workshop, Passover Workshop/Model Seder, Sukkot Workshop, Chanukah Workshop, Virtual Shabbat CD-Rom, Jewish Treats, Project Forgiveness, Twebrew School, and JewishTweets. Please note that NJOP programs have been offered in 39 countries around the world. National Jewish Outreach Program 989 Sixth Avenue, 10th Floor, New York, NY l HEBRE(W) l info@njop.org l NJOP Board Members Marc Belzberg Ludwig Bravmann Valerie T. Diker Brandon Dunn Fred Ehrman Alec L. Ellison Adam E. Fine Sylvia Freyer Lawrence Greenman Assistant Director Levon Arutyunov Database Manager Rivka Bornstein Production Coordinator Renee S. Erreich Events Coordinator Sofiya Ginzburg Financial Associate Amy Gugig IT Director Tracy Gerber Bernard Goldberg Hillel A. Gross Howard I. Hoffen Ilan Kaufthal Dr. Elizabeth Konecky Jack Nash, k z George Rohr Marc Rowan Eli Salig Lawrence Saper Cyrus Schwartz Leonard Shaykin Saul Spitz Moshael Straus Jeffrey I. Zuckerman NJOP Staff Founder and Director: Ephraim Z. Buchwald Beryl Levenson Yitzchak Rosenbaum Associate Director Emeritus Associate Director Emeritus Elly Krimsky Florence Wiener Program Director Hebrew Reading Specialist Jessica Hanfling Assistant to the Director Sarah Rochel Hewitt Publications Coordinator Lois Karp Locations Coordinator Helen Koenig Donor Registrar Esther Langer Financial Administrator To me, what is, perhaps most impressive about the evolution of NJOP over the years, is, that NJOP remains clearly focused on its original mission, determined to provide Jews with little or no background positive, joyous Jewish experiences and meaningful Jewish educational opportunities. Most Jews today who walk away from Judaism, do so not out of disenchantment or disillusionment, but out of ignorance. By providing them with these positive experiences and opportunities, we hope to enable them to make an intelligent choice of whether they want to be part of the Jewish community, to happily embrace their Judaism, and become part of Jewish life. Despite the keen focus on our defined original mission, our staff has been exceedingly creative in responding to the contemporary needs of the hour. As a result, NJOP has emerged as the number one influencer in Jewish social media in America. This achievement is a significant tribute to the dynamic and creative forces of those who work at NJOP. Their creativity and devotion results in more than 250,000 daily impressions from our s and communications that we share with Jews all the world over. These amazing achievements are a tribute as well to the vision and generosity of our early supporters, many of whom have been with us for 25 years, since the very beginning, and to the many tens of thousands of supporters who have joined us along the way. We certainly hope, with your support, to continue to see the unprecedented response from our brothers and sisters throughout the world, enabling NJOP to achieve even more. Certainly this could not have happened without your loving devotion and loyal generous support of NJOP throughout these past 25 years. Todah Rabba. Susanne Goldstone Rosenhouse Social Media Professional Freeda Rudman Senior Coordinator Chava Blumenthal Naomi Robin Lea Schulman Regional Program Coordinators Evana Arazi Janice Klein Avraham Silbergleit Production Associates 7

8 National Jewish Outreach Program 989 Sixth Avenue, 10th Floor, New York, NY NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Brooklyn, NY Permit No.1235 HERE S WHERE YOU CAN FIND NJOP ONLINE JEWISH FACEBOOK.COM/JEWISHTREATS TWITTER.COM/JEWISHTWEETS YOUTUBE.COM/JEWISHTREATS Words of Torah for everyone! To receive Rabbi Buchwald s exciting and thought-provoking weekly message, please send an to: ezbuchwald@njop.org To receive a juicy bit of Judaism, daily, from Jewish Treats, please send an to: jewishtreats@njop.org Mark Your Calendar November 2012 Rosh Hashanah: September Yom Kippur: September Sukkot: September 30 - October 7 Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah: October 8-9 READ HEBREW AMERICA AND CANADA February 2013 NJOP ANNUAL DINNER 8