Exciting Times

by Joel Brown, March 2, 2015

It is an exciting time to be a Solelnik. We are well past the half-way point in our transition year. We have found a wonderful new leader, Rabbi Audrey Pollack, to help us build our future together. We’ve also taken an important step in repairing our roof so that we have a strong, dry, safe place in which to come together as a community. Our future is indeed a bright one.

 

The transition has brought with it many challenges. We’ve worked hard as a community to examine who we are and what we value. We’ve talked a lot about where we want to go together. Many dedicated volunteers have spent a lot of time working very hard so that we could find the right rabbi to take us there. We knew that the transition would be a challenging time. Most people don’t love change as a rule, and change is especially hard when there has always been so much about Solel that we cherish.

 

One of the challenges that this transition year has brought us is a dip in our membership and revenues. This is typical for congregations in transition. Unfortunately, it’s also typical for expenses to rise during a transition year because there are some additional costs associated with the process of hiring a new rabbi and getting them settled. We expected both the dip in revenues and the additional, one-time costs. We have had a good sized capital reserve to fall back on, just in case of a “rainy day”. Unfortunately for us, the rainy day came, and our roof wasn’t up to it! The roof repair has been necessary, if not overdue. We are doing it in a way which makes the very best use of the congregations resources. Our new roof will be even better than the original and will last for many, many years to come. However, the roof repair has been expensive and it comes at a time when we have extraordinary financial pressures because of the transition. The roof project will exhaust our reserve at a time when our operating budget is under extraordinary, if temporary pressure.

 

We need every Solelnik who can to help keep Solel financially strong by making a contribution to our Raise the Roof campaign. Any amount is welcome and greatly appreciated. We encourage you to consider donating at one of these levels.

Sustainer $100
Steward $250
Patron $500
Guardian $1,000
Builder $2,500
Founder $5,000+

 

All donations are tax creditable. Every dollar you donate costs you as little as 60 cents after your tax credit. Please contribute whatever you can to help Solel begin our next great chapter on a strong footing. Together we will build a bright future for our Jewish home.

Filed under: President's Message

« Read more articles