Staying connected as a community

Jeffrey Feld Federation President/ CEO

Please accept my best wishes for each of you, and all those dear to you, for a happy and healthy 2021 new year. These past nine months of calendar year 2020 have certainly been a challenge. The coronavirus pandemic has affected each and every one of us in more ways than we can identify. Through it all, the Jewish Federation of Greater Naples continues its essential services to our community.

Thanks to your generosity in the Annual Community Campaign, Federation has been able to provide the financial wherewithal for agencies and programs directly helping individuals who may be struggling at this time. The struggles may be financial, emotional, physical and even social. Even in these challenging times, we are able to continue to build our community, together!

Virtual platforms have become a new way of life. We have all had to learn new skills in order to stay connected. “Zooming” is a daily occurrence. Technology is essential in building our community. Our Federation and all its program affiliates are providing a multitude of opportunities to stay connected. It is a challenge! Being together, in person, would be preferable; however, we just cannot do that, as yet.

A fatigue sets in when we are not able to do what is “normal” for us. We’d all like to get back to “normal,” whatever that is. But in the meantime, we are all working to continue building our community, staying connected in helping each other.

Our Federation does have a “Federation Reopen Committee” that is exploring how and when we can begin having in-person programs and/or meetings, either outdoors or indoors. For the moment, we are not able to provide that in-person experience.

Serving on the Federation Reopen Committee are Dr. Jerry Shier, Dr. Art Seigel, Dr. Bernie Lublin, Dr. Brian Wolff, Dr. Karen Ezrine, Dr. Nat Ritter, Stanley Deutsch, Bill Petasnick, Josh Bialek, Jane Schiff and Jeffrey Feld. This committee has determined that we will follow CDC guidelines as they relate to our functioning and finding a way to be able to reopen. The committee recommends that there should be no Federation-sanctioned, in-person programs, outdoors or indoors, until there is a positivity rate of less than 5% for two consecutive weeks.

This committee will continue to monitor the situation and make recommendations for how we should be able to go forward. We are all aware that vaccines will be available at some point in the, hopefully, not-too-distant future. That will also help us return to in-person opportunities.

In the meantime, we need to continue to work together as a community. We need to continue to find ways to stay connected. We need to find ways to be able to help each other. And we need to continue to find ways to stay safe.

As we enter calendar year 2021, let’s hope that this pandemic will soon be in our rearview mirror and we can enjoy being together again. I thank each and every one of you for all that you do to help us build our community, together!

Jeffrey Feld Federation President/ CEO

Israel Consul General to address community via Zoom

By Jeff Margolis

The Israel Advocacy Committee (IAC) of Greater Naples is pleased to announce the second program in its speaker series. On Monday, Jan. 4, at noon, guest speaker Galit Peleg, the Interim Consul General for the Consulate General of Israel in Miami, will address the topic, “New Map of the Middle East.”

Prior to her entry into the Israeli Foreign Service in 1998, Peleg served as an officer in the Israel Defense Forces and, upon completion of her military service, earned two degrees at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Her areas of studies were international relations and Island and Middle East Studies.

Consul General Peleg has served as Deputy Ambassador to Morocco (1999- 2000) and Deputy Ambassador to Serbia (2001-2005), where she focused on reestablishing the mutual relations between Israel and Serbia. From 2007-2011, Galit was head of the liaison office to the European Parliament at the Israeli Mission to the European Union in Brussels.

Most recently, Consul Peleg served as the Head of the Department for Public Diplomacy and Academic Affairs at the Consulate General of Israel in New York. Her responsibilities included promoting Israel’s academic relations with local colleges and universities in five states (NY, NJ, PA, OH and DE). Galit is fluent in Hebrew, English and French, and is conversant in Arabic and Serbian.

There is no cost for this program. Please register through the Federation website (jewishnaples.org), so that you may obtain the Zoom link. For more information about the Israel Advocacy Committee or to suggest topics for future programs, please contact Harvey Cohen, IAC chair, at hwcohen@gmail.com.

Galit Peleg