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August 13, 2004/Av 26 5763, Vol. 55, No. 47
Future leaders gather in Scottsdale
LEISAH NAMM
Managing Editor
Future Jewish leaders gathered in Scottsdale Aug. 4-7 for the United Jewish Communities National Young Leadership Cabinet Retreat.
"Letting Your Own Light Shine" was the theme of the gathering of 325 representatives of 70 communities across North America at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess resort for educational, motivational and inspirational sessions.
"In this hotel was basically the future of Jewish leadership in this country," said Dave Sherman of Scottsdale, co-chairman of the retreat. The Cabinet is made up of "the most dedicated, passionate, dynamic, up-and-coming young Jewish leaders in this country," he said.
Other local members are Courtney Green, Ken Feldman, Hannah Goldberg, Keith Mishkin, Jennifer Schwarz and Mike Schoor.
Session topics included decision-making, solicitation training and leadership development. United Jewish Communities (UJC) is the umbrella organization representing North American Jewish federations.
At the retreat, Cabinet members made 300 pledges totaling more than $2.4 million, said Marla Landis, UJC senior development executive. Funds raised go to each donor's local federation's annual campaign. The Phoenix delegation donated $28,800 to the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix's 2005 Campaign for Jewish Needs, she added.
At the retreat's opening dinner, Lanny Lahr, president of the Phoenix-area federation, welcomed participants. He later hosted a men's cocktail evening in his home.
Cabinet members must be nominated by their local federations and make a minimum donation of $3,600, said Hal Ossman, local YLD director. Nominees, typically in their 30-40s, then go through an interview process.
Cabinet members are required to attend the annual retreat and are "seriously encouraged" to attend regional and national conferences and participate in UJC missions, Landis said.
The idea for the National Young Leadership Cabinet began in the late 1950s when Rabbi Herbert Friedman, a former executive at the United Jewish Appeal, became concerned about the next generation's diminishing emotional connections and concerns for world Jewry, according to the UJC Web site.
About 250 men attended the first conference in 1960.
In 1963, after hosting a number of conferences and events, Friedman gathered a core group of 44 men as inaugural members of the Young Leadership Cabinet. A Women's Cabinet was started in 1974, and the two merged in 1986 to become the National Young Leadership Cabinet. Today there are more than 550 Cabinet members throughout the country.
Dave Sherman is starting his fourth year on the Cabinet; his wife Randi recently com-pleted a seven-year tenure.
"The highlight of my Cabinet experience has been being exposed to speakers and scholars who have shown me the beauty of Judaism, as well as traveling to places I wouldn't (otherwise) have traveled to," Randi Sherman said. She's participated in missions to Budapest, Buenos Aires, Israel, Kiev, Poland and St. Petersburg and calls her time on the Cabinet a "life-changing experience."
To learn more about local young leadership opportuni-ties, contact Hal Ossman, 480-634-4900, ext. 1102.
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