Jewish Federation Foundation of Northeast Florida Facts... Did You Know?

FOCUS

JEWISH FEDERATION & FOUNDATION OF NORTHEAST FLORIDA

Reprinted from the community-wide security update email, January 1�

Like everyone, we are deeply relieved by the outcome of the hostage taking at Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas. And, like everyone, we are shaken to the core that this act of hate and terror happened in the United States and in a house of worship. It gave us time to refl ect and to support a decision of action on behalf of our Jewish community.

Those who watched the press briefi ngs after the successful release of the hostages heard the FBI acknowledge and thank the Jewish Federation and Secure Network Community (SCN). They pledged to continue its work with both organizations on the safety of all the Jewish communities in this country. "In the last hour of our hostage crisis, the gunman became increasingly belligerent and threatening. Without the security training from Jewish community experts, we would not have been prepared to act and fl ee when the situation presented itself." Those are the powerful words of Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker recounting the role of Jewish community security training in helping end the harrowing 11-hour ordeal at Congregation Beth Israel in January.

For those unaware, our Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida is one of 146 Federations throughout North America. Our umbrella organization, Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) has taken responsibility for developing and implementing comprehensive security plans for each community. JFNA also created SCN to provide expertise and support for these eff orts, and to work directly with law enforcement agencies, especially the United States Department of Homeland Security and the FBI.

In the past few months, our Jewish Federation & Foundation of Northeast Florida Board of Directors has made bringing a Community Security Initiative (CSI) to our community a priority. The Director of CSI, to be housed in the Federation’s Foundation offi ce, would be overseen by both the community and SCN. The security of our Jewish community is of vital importance, and we cannot wait any longer to start implementing an initiative that supports and protects all aspects of Jewish life in Northeast Florida.

We want to make you aware of our intentions and pledge to keep the community informed of upcoming SCN visits and community-wide training programs as we develop a plan to fund and implement this critical initiative.

As Mark Wilf, JFNA Board Chair, wrote in a recent memo, “Our Jewish Federation system was built to provide leadership on challenges for which the only path forward is a coordinated, collective action. Security is one such challenge. We will not hesitate, and we will not fail."

- Mariam Shpeen Feist, CEO and Jennifer Plotkin, Board President