We wanted to update the congregation on our work and our exciting progress.
The Committee has received some tremendous candidates and as a team have met (virtually) and interviewed each of these candidates with care and professionalism. Continue reading
We are thrilled to share that our Rabbinical Assembly questionnaire is officially LIVE!!! Again, we cannot thank you enough for your participation in our survey and focus groups which informed our document! We were told by our liaison at the USCJ that our submission was exemplary. In fact, she said she will be using it as a template for congregations involved in next year’s searches. These were her words:
“It is a joy to read. It shows that you know who you are, you’re proud of who you are, you understand your history and your challenges, and you know where you want to go. It’s also clear that love your rabbi and that he is leaving on a high note.”
The holidays are over and now we are back to work!
Chaverim,
In our last update we shared the work we did in distilling the high-participation survey and 13 in-depth focus groups. We have completed analyzing the data and now are preparing a questionnaire to be submitted to the Rabbinical Assembly to describe what we seek in our next rabbi. Continue reading
Shalom Chevrei,
We wanted to share an update on “What We Did on Our Summer Vacation.”
190 of you participated in our community wide survey, representing over 60% of our members. Another 90+ of you took part in one of our 13 focus groups held in person or via zoom, and the input has been tremendous. We think it is interesting to look at some of the statistics of the participation of those focus groups:
The Committee has been very busy this July with the logistics of gathering input from as many congregants as possible to best inform our search for Shomrei’s next Rabbi. We are so grateful to those of you who participated in the survey – and the focus groups are next! Please sign up here to ensure your individual voice is heard! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0845adad2ba75-rabbi.
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Meetings of the Shomrei Rabbi Search Committee
(most recent first)
Meetings of the Shomrei Rabbi Search Committee
July 12, 2021
July 5, 2021
Shomrei president Miriam Haimes announced this change in an email to the congregation on Wednesday July 7:
Dear Shomrei Community
Art Schuman recently informed us that due to some unforeseen commitments, he is unable to dedicate the time needed to continue to serve on the Rabbi Search Committee. We appreciate his contributions so far and know that we can depend on Art for input as the search continues. As I mentioned in my initial announcement, it is important that the Search Committee “broadly reflects our membership, spanning diverse interests, needs, religious practice, age, family status and gender.” Based on this, we wanted to fill the opening with someone who could represent the same generation as Art, and I am thrilled to announce that Barbara Gollob has agreed to join the search committee. Please join me in welcoming Barbara, a long time Shomrei member, to the Rabbi Search Committee. Please read on for her bio. Continue reading
Dear Shomrei Family,
The Rabbi Search Committee is honored to help serve our community during this transition, and we are striving for a productive, efficient, and transparent process where all voices are welcomed and heard. To that end, we would like to provide an update of what we’ve accomplished thus far. Please check this page for bi-weekly updates on our progress. Above you will see a graphic of our estimated timeline of milestone events in our search for our new Rabbi. Below you will find a brief overview of the substance of each of our weekly committee meetings.
We sincerely welcome your questions, comments, and feedback. Please email us at: email hidden; JavaScript is required. Each message will receive an individual response from the communication subcommittee and will be presented to the committee at large. Continue reading
Shomrei president Miriam Haimes announced the formation of a search committee with this letter to the congregation on Monday:
Since we learned of Rabbi Greenstein’s intention to retire next July, I have used the time to absorb the impact of his announcement and to think carefully about the search for our next spiritual leader. In the process, I reviewed the guidance of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly and recruited a Search Committee that broadly reflects our membership, spanning diverse interests, needs, religious practice, age, family status and gender. For the last 12 years, we have been blessed with a leader who values learning, compassion and inclusion and our search will be influenced by those values and those of the Conservative movement.