Making it Home

A Jewish News Editorial

While first-class amenities make the Valley a nice place to visit, it takes a warm, welcoming Jewish community to make it home. Vibrant congregations and outreaching, responsive communal agencies and organizations offer opportunities for friendship and for those new to the Valley to become involved.

With the Valley's some 60,000-80,000 Jews spread from Gilbert to Glendale, the Sun Cities to Sun Lakes, and institutions and agencies located throughout the Phoenix metropolitan area, it often is difficult for new arrivals to connect. Now, beginning Feb. 1, Shalom Newcomers, a program co-sponsored by Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix and Jewish News, in cooperation with area real estate agents, will help make it happen.

Welcome baskets containing an eight-week subscription to Jewish News, the newspaper's 1997 community directory, Federation's informational video and current calendar of community events, and other goodies will be distributed to families referred by local real estate agents.

A Federation hotline - 234-0995 - will put newcomers in touch with a real person who can answer questions about where to buy Shabbat candles and where to find a Jewish preschool.

A plethora of bagel shops and beautiful Southwest scenery often are not enough. Through the Shalom Newcomers program, the community is taking a critical step welcoming new families and helping them feel at home in the Valley.

More and more Jewish families are choosing to put down their roots in the desert soil. The community's reaching out not only gives newcomers an opportunity to enrich their lives; it also creates avenues to involve them in sharing their ideas and perspectives, their time and talent, to help make Jewish life in the desert bloom.