FROM THE CONGREGATION PRESIDENT Bob Spector
Shalom Chaverim, I feel so honored, privileged, and truly blessed to be your President over the next two years. It was never part of my intended life journey to become your President, but as my wife, Chris, constantly reminds me, “you never can say no to Beth Shalom.” I have learned over the years to never make promises because life sometimes gets in the way of keeping them, but it is my intention to offer you to the best of my ability the leadership you all so richly deserve as we navigate together through what will hopefully be a post pandemic world.
I have been frequently asked if I have a theme or agenda for the next two years. If you have followed my Keruv Korner column over the years you know that I am a strong advocate for Tolerance, Openness, Patience, Understanding, Acceptance, Compassion, and Health (physical and emotional). I am not sure if that qualifies as an agenda. I aspire that we continue on a path paved with stones of warmth, respect, and kindness, and I believe if we do this, they will come. It has been pointed out that as painful as it was to close our building in March of 2020, that decision was unambiguously clear and necessary given the rapidly growing pandemic throughout the United States. Our staff and lay leadership did a phenomenal job of keeping Congregation Beth Shalom open as a community spiritually, religiously, and programmatically through the use of technology. These online opportunities allowed us to stay connected to each other as well as to our loved ones. But I think we would all agree that this is not the same as being together in-person. In June we held our first in-person Board of Trustees meeting since March of last year. We were scheduled to start right after minyan. Generally, our Board members are particularly good about starting on time, but that night 10-15 minutes went by, and people were still chatting. I was growing a bit impatient, but then the big DUH hits me (even Psychologists can be a bit dense at times). For many, this was the first time they were able to see each other for 16 months. The joy in the room was intoxicating. It is for this reason that our staff are working tirelessly to re-open our doors for meetings, social events, and services including the use of state-of-the-art technology for those who are not ready or who are not able to join us in-person. Unfortunately, there is no road map for this transition because the science is not exact, and our individual psychology of feeling comfortable in large group settings may not necessarily evolve at the same pace science may allow. We have an in-person plan for the High Holidays that I believe will capture the essence and meaningfulness you have come to expect (as well as live streaming at CBS). There will be many logistical challenges to make this work. The success of our communal spiritual journey this year is dependent upon our ability to work together with patience, flexibility, and compassion. As we learned last year, different does not mean less than. I would be remiss if I did not express my appreciation for Tanya Solomon’s leadership over these past two unprecedented years. Tanya - thank you for your support and guidance as we worked together in making a seamless leadership transition, and for everything you have given and will continue to give our Beth Shalom community. I will continue to support the core traditions and values of our Past Presidents as well as to add an occasional wrinkle of my own (stay tuned for my articles in the coming months). I so look forward to meeting you, both individually and collectively. I truly expect that we will share a wonderful journey together these next two years. B’Shalom, Bob
AUGUST 2021• VOLUME 93 ISSUE 63
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