News & Conference Information from AJFCA for April 1, 2011

The Jewish social service network in Boston is dominated by Clark University graduates and our member agencies and their clients are the beneficiaries. Two AJFCA board members, Sy Friedland, CEO of Jewish Family & Children's Service of Greater Boston, and Marc Jacobs, CEO of Jewish Family Service of Metrowest, along with Jerry Rubin, CEO of Jewish Vocational Services of Boston, are featured in the Spring issue of Clark University's alumni magazine for their school ties and the work they do in leading three major Jewish organizations in the Boston area. You can read more about our "Clarkies" in this article. Congratulations to Sy and Marc for this recognition from their alma mater.

D'Var Torah

Lee I. Sherman
President & CEO

As a sports fan, the next few days are the best of the year. College basketball's Final Four takes center stage, culminating in Monday night's championship game which this year will feature at least one upstart program against a traditional hoops powerhouse (how can you not root for VCU after watching the joy with which they play?). And, of course, as spring is now here, it is the start of another baseball season, when once again we let optimism get the best of us and think that maybe this year our hometown team has a chance (or in the case of the Orioles to, at least, show marginal improvement).

The coming week also marks the beginning of the Jewish year. This is Shabbat Hahodesh, the last of the four special Shabbatot preceding Pesach, when we celebrate the start of the month of Nissan, the first month of the Jewish calendar. We read from Exodus 12:1-20, which directs the Israelites in the observance of the Passover holiday as a ritual of spring. It is a time of new beginnings, of hope for the coming year.

The potential for renewal which comes with the emergence of springtime is a theme throughout Jewish history and tradition, just as it is with each new sports season. The warmer weather gives us a chance to spend more time in nature observing its renewal, but we also have the opportunity to reflect on our own place in the world, to consider the possibilities of new beginnings, and to commit to the work necessary to truly make progress.

Play ball! Shabbat Shalom.

2011 AJFCA Annual Conference Update

"Thriving in the New Frontier"

Ann Zeller

Director of Meetings & Conferences

Attention Canadian Agencies . . . Here's another good reason to attend the AJFCA Annual Conference

Linda Kislowicz

This year, the AJFCA Annual Conference will feature a unique innovation - Canada Days.

On Monday, late afternoon, the Canadian representatives at the Conference will gather for a cheese and wine reception, and the AJFCA Canada Annual Board Meeting, followed by a presentation by Andrea Freedman of UIA Federations Canada. The presentation will review a recent demographics study of the Jewish community of Canada. Andrea will present the data with a focus on the communities represented by our member agencies. There will be an opportunity to ask questions following the presentation.

"Canada Days" will continue on Tuesday morning, May 17^th, after the formal conclusion of the conference. At 11:45am the Canadian contingent will regroup for a Luncheon, presentation by guest speaker, Linda Kislowicz, CEO of UIA Federations Canada, and further discussion. Items of particular interest include the impact of the demographic data on our agencies' strategic planning over the next 1-5 years, and our visions and views on our agency relationships to the wider communities in which we work.

Plan on attending Canada Days? Please be sure to register for Monday and Tuesday's events on the Conference Registration Form.

We hope that this focus on Canadian agencies and issues will continue to be a feature of future AJFCA conferences.

Important Conference Links:

Conference Registration - Early registration is only available until April 16^th.

Westin Calgary Hotel Registration - Reservations must be made by April 15^th.

Pre- and Post Conference Optional Banff & Lake Louis Tours - Tours must be signed up for by May 1^st.

Preliminary Program Schedule

CONFERENCE & REGISTRATION

We look forward to seeing you in Calgary!

Program Update

Lisa Budlow

Director of Programs

Congratulations to the 2011 KOVOD Award Winners!

The submissions we received this year for our annual KOVOD Awards were all excellent. It made for a very high level of competition and an extremely challenging selection process for our judges. A total of 16 judges carefully reviewed all of the entries. Each selection discussion included comments on how proud we are to be connected to such professional and creative agencies.

AJFCA would like to congratulate the 2011 KOVOD Award winners:

For Excellence in Marketing Materials

JFS Detroit, A Agency 1st place

JFCS Philadelphia, A Agency 2nd place

JCFS Winnipeg, B Agency winner

JFS York, D Agency winner

For Excellence in Promotional Videos

JFCS Minneapolis, A Agency 1st place

JFS Seattle, A Agency 2nd place

JFCS Phoenix, A Agency 3rd place

JFS Clifton-Passaic, B Agency winner

For Excellence in Agency Websites

JFCS Pittsburgh, A Agency 1st place

JFS Seattle, A Agency 2nd place

JFS Delaware, B Agency winner

We look forward to showcasing the winning marketing materials, videos and websites at our conference in Calgary.

Google Groups are Here

As indicated in the newsletter last week, we have decided to launch the new Google Group Forums prior to introducing the new AJFCA website. The Google Group Forums take the place of the old list serves and are currently ready for use.

To sign up, please send an email to Barbara Tapper with your name, email address, the agency you are from and the forum(s) in which you wish to participate. The forum categories are:

AJFCA All Agency CEO's
AJFCA A/B CEO's
AJFCA D/E CEO's
AJFCA All Agency CFO's
AJFCA Canadian Execs
AJFCA Development Professionals
AJFCA Volunteer Coordinators
AJFCA Human Resource Professionals
AJFCA Senior Managers
Agency Presidents and Board Chairs
AJFCA Board of Directors
AJFCA Marketing/Communications Professionals

Once you are added to the forum, you will receive a confirmation email. Though changes may be made to the appearance of the forum pages as we progress toward the launch of our new site, you should only need to sign up once. We apologize for the inconvenience and encourage all members to sign up and begin using the new Google Groups Forums.