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August 8, 2003/Av 10 5763, Vol. 55, No. 50
Strength in numbers
VOSJCC, synagogues team up to reach unaffiliated
LEISAH NAMM
Managing Editor
At least 15 local synagogues have teamed up with the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center to tackle the Valley's high unaffiliation rate.
The first outcome of this union is a synagogue fair, noon-3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 17, at the center, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale.
Typically, synagogues schedule membership drives during the months before the High Holidays, the time of year that traditionally brings the largest number of American Jews to synagogue.
"This is the first time the synagogues have tried recruiting in the same building," said JCC Membership Director Katie Fox. Doing so gives them an opportunity to get the word out to the JCC membership base, which currently numbers 2,050 member units, or about 6,500 individuals, she said.
The partnership among the synagogues began with the release of the 2002 Greater Phoenix Jewish Community Study in December 2002, said Steve Weitzenkorn, Temple Kol Ami president.
The study, directed by the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, revealed that although 91 percent of survey respondents reported that being Jewish was somewhat or very important to them, 62 percent of the 44,000 Greater Phoenix Jewish households have no connection to the organized Jewish community. Only 29 percent report belonging or paying dues to a synagogue.
Weitzenkorn realized that reaching these unaffiliated Jews "was a much bigger task than any one particular synagogue could take on."
He contacted presidents of other Valley synagogues, and together they formed a group that unofficially calls itself The Synagogue Leader's Council.
About 10 of the Valley's 27 congregations are currently involved.
The synagogue fair represents a variety of denominations: Reform, Conservative, Humanistic, Jewish Renewal and Traditional-Egalitarian. As of presstime, no Orthodox congregations had confirmed, Fox said.
This joint membership drive doesn't replace the ice cream socials and brunches for prospective members hosted by individual synagogues; each will still pursue members on its own.
"You need to do that to survive," Weitzenkorn said.
Still, he describes the new attitude as: "Let's forget about the turf wars because turf wars don't serve anybody's purpose. We're better off working together to reach out to the unaffiliated in the community and let them find their own way to the right place for them."
Herb Dreiseszun, Beth El Congregation president, agrees. The low affiliation rate in the Valley is "alarming to everybody," he said. "Right now it wouldn't make a lot of difference to Beth El where people join. ... Our position is that we would like to see people joining someplace."
The first question the council had to answer was "How do we reach these people?" Weitzenkorn said.
One option the council members discussed was creating a "greater synergy" between synagogues and the JCC.
"First of all, the JCC has decided they're not in the religion business," Weitzenkorn said. "They're not going to sponsor Passover seders or Purim festivals. They're not going to compete with temples in that way, and of course we're not building swimming pools and gymnasiums. The idea here is that there are things that we can do together."
Fox said that in the past, synagogues worried that the JCC would take their members away.
"What we want to show everybody is that ... we're not competition," she said. "We just really want to be the recreation component to the Jewish community."
JCC President Mark Shore is "thrilled" that the synagogues approached the center.
"I feel in my heart that what's happening in this community right now is an attempt by the temples, the JCC and other organizations to take the federation's demographic study very seriously," he said. "We recognize that by collaborating with each other, we will find some solutions and we will all work together to begin to reach out to non-affilated or under-affiliated Jews."
One example of how they may work together is a proposed congregational "day at the J," Weitzenkorn said. It would "bring people in from the synagogue and allow them to use the facility whether they're members of the J or not and get exposure to it as part of a congregational event."
In return, the JCC would offer speakers for synagogue programs about physical fitness, health care or other topics.
Other ideas include advertising JCC events in synagogue bulletins, promoting synagogue events at the JCC and the JCC hosting a basketball tournament between the Men's Clubs of different synagogues, Fox said.
Since economic factors are often critical in a family's decision to join a synagogue or JCC - or both - another major aspect of this union is joint affiliation between a synagogue and the JCC.
For instance, if a person is a JCC member not affiliated with any congregation, Kol Ami will give a $250 discount off first-year membership dues, with proof of JCC membership, Weitzenkorn explained. Kol Ami members who join the JCC will receive $250 off their first year of JCC membership.
Each synagogue board will make its own agreement with the JCC, he said.
"If a family is not affiliated with a synagogue or the JCC, a plan is being explored to allow them to get discounts at both places to make it more affordable," he added.
"It's good for the community to see that the JCC and the temples have decided to team up and do something for everybody," Fox said.
Although the Tri-City Jewish Community Center in Tempe doesn't currently have similar membership arrangements, there are several co-sponsored events throughout the year between the center and nearby synagogues Temple Emanuel of Tempe and Temple Beth Sholom, said Cynthia Benedict, Tri-City JCC early childhood director.
Confirmed synagogues participating in the fair are Beth El Congre-gation, Beth Emeth Congregation, Con-gregation Beth Hagi-vot, Congregation Gan Shalom, Congregation Or Chadash, Har Zion Congregation, Or Adam Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, Ruach Hamidbar, Temple Beth Emeth of Scottsdale, Temple Beth Israel, Temple Beth Sholom, Temple Chai, Temple Gan Elohim, Temple Kol Ami and The New Shul. Jewish News of Greater Phoenix will also have a booth.
Participation at the fair is free to Valley synagogues. E-mail Katie Fox, Katief@vosjcc.org.
The synagogue fair will be held during the JCC's open house, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. (See story on page 4.)
Contact the writer at leisah_namm@jewishaz.com.
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