10/22/21: Shabbat Shalom From Interim Executive Director Nora Gorenstein

Watch the third in our Community Partner Highlights Series, featuring our Partnership2Gether region, Afula-Gilboa!

Dear Friend, 

When the Jewish Federation of Greater Springfield was founded in 1926, these leaders knew that their support was needed to bring together and sustain the Jewish people. Today, 95 years later, we see the crucial impact of their foresight and the flexible plan that was developed to meet community needs and adapt with the times. In 2006, when our name changed to the Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts, our leadership recognized the importance of engaging community members outside of Greater Springfield, and expanding a network of support to reach our broader Jewish community.

Western Massachusetts is home to some of the strongest, most creative Jewish programming and engagement work, serving as an incubator for ideas that travel across the country and around the world. As we continue to plan for the future and the needs that we cannot yet predict, we are taking a close look at our Planning process.

The Grants, Allocations, and Planning Committee has the difficult and multi-faceted task of identifying the most urgent current and future needs of our Jewish community and determining how our community can best sustainably support those in need locally, in Israel, and around the world. This is a monumental task and we are fortunate to have the support of our Federation network and experts from the Jewish Federations of North America.

You can help: take five minutes to answer 3 questions about our Jewish community! Share your perspective and help us evaluate the most pressing needs and how we can help locally, in Israel, and all over the world.

Today’s video from our new Community Partner Highlights Series features our Partnership2Gether region, Afula-Gilboa! This video series will continue to introduce the partners we support through the Annual Campaign, grants, and other community resources and programs.

If you are interested in getting involved or sharing your input, please reach out at any time.

Shabbat Shalom,

Nora Gorenstein
Interim Executive Director