On behalf of the Board of Directors I wish you a shanah tovah. This year the sounds of the shofar marking the first days of school occurred quite close to the blasts marking Rosh HaShanah, an auspicious start to the year as Weizmann celebrates its 30th anniversary of serving the students of our community.  The school stands strong under the continuous improvements lead by Lisa, our incomparable Head of School; our passionate parents, staff, and students; and the community commitment to the financial viability of the school under the responsibility of the Board.  You will shortly hear from the 30th Anniversary committee about their plans, but I want to share with you a perspective and context on the year of fundraising and celebration to come.

Last year our Annual Appeal met a fundraising target well beyond our historical norms. With 100% Board participation, 100% staff participation, and nearly 100% parent participation (a record high in my years on the Board) we were well poised to turn to the broader Jewish community that has silently supported the operation of the school with generous and longstanding contributions to the Annual Fund. This generosity reflects the importance of Weizmann in the lives of our children as well as for the broader Jewish community in which we live. In addition the PTO hosted two community celebrations, a Hanukkah play and a springtime fiesta, that served both to bring together current Weizmann families and to raise money for our school. These fundraising goals are included in the budget we pass each year and success is vital to our operation.

The 30th Anniversary celebration will not replace any of these programs, but instead serves as an opportunity to reach out to and recognize the longstanding and generous benefactors in the broader community. We will be looking to the parents to maintain their generous giving through the Annual Fund and the parent-sponsored events, and we will continue to rely on the broader community to maintain our Annual Fund goals. For the 30th Anniversary celebration we are not looking for high participation, but are rather cultivating and recognizing the participation of community members able to support Weizmann most generously. It will be an elegant (and correspondingly pricey) affair aimed at our often-silent community benefactors who have given generously in the past and as a way to capitalize on the mitzvah of our 30th year to recognize this generosity and to increase giving from this community. 

I hope your New Year is off to a sweet start. If you have any questions or wish to contact me I can be reached by email at bill.klipstein@gmail.com.

L'Shanah Tovah, 

Bill