Spring 2021
PJCC
Supporter Spotlight
INSIDE: Your Purposeful Life COVID Recovery Legacy of Love
“YOU ARE MY LINK TO LIFE...” — Theresa Bruno, PJCC Program Participant
exceptional This has been a year of extreme hardship and need at our amazing PJCC, and your generosity has made all the difference. You’ve kept our programs alive, and with YOU as our partner, we have served our community in so many ways. Our programs bridge the lifespan to foster health, learning, joy, connection, character, and community. To sustain our efforts in this exceptional time, a generous anonymous donor has given us a $100,000 challenge, and will match gifts raised by June 30, 2021 dollar for dollar. To contribute, or to learn more about how to create your own challenge, please contact Shari at srick@pjcc.org.
TIME PEOPLE GENEROSITY
I also hope you’re planning to join me on Sunday, May 2. We will come together to honor our beloved Rabbi Lavey who is retiring in June. We can’t wait to celebrate Rabbi Lavey’s accomplishments with you. See you on May 2! Lorna Siepser, PJCC Board Member & Development Committee Chair
We Can’t Do It Without YOU! Thank YOU to all who generously donated to the PJCC this fiscal year and helped sustain us during this difficult time!
Donor Honor Roll
Visit https://pjcc.org/honor-roll for the list of supporters from July 1, 2019 through December 31, 2020. The PJCC’s fiscal year runs from July 1, 2020- June 30, 2021. If you would like to make a gift, please visit pjcc.org/donate
living a
purposeful life
Our sense of self, of what makes our lives significant, develops from a connection to purpose. A purpose is a passion and, when embraced, it becomes both our priority and our mission. As one thoughtful writer put it, “the purpose of life is a life of purpose.”
By Rabbi Lavey Derby As a rabbi, I have delivered more than my share of eulogies and have listened to hundreds more. Some are serious, some are funny, most are meaningful, and all are attempts to articulate what was most significant in a person’s life; what, if you will, made their lives special. Most of us readily know what it is that we spend most of our time doing in our life. Are we equally clear on what is most significant to us? If it’s comfortable for you to do so, I invite you to try this exercise: Find a quiet place, sit down and relax in your seat, close your eyes, and ask yourself: “What in my life is most important?” Sit quietly and see what thoughts or feelings come up for you. After about five minutes, ask yourself a second question: “What is the purpose of my life?” Continue to sit quietly and again observe what thoughts and feelings arise. When you are ready, slowly open your eyes. Are your surprised by any of your thoughts?
Looking for guidance from Jewish wisdom regarding a life of purpose, I am drawn to a teaching from the Talmud: “The only purpose of the mitzvot is to purify human beings;” that is, to make ourselves better. Interestingly, the Hebrew word “le’tsaref,” to purify, also means “to bring together.” A Jewish purpose is never solitary; it always involves a concern for others, for community. At the PJCC, our mission is to create community, and our passion and purpose is, in the felicitous formulation of our CEO, Paul Geduldig, “to help everyone who walks through our doors have a better day.” This is our mitzvah, our sacred task. Whether you are 9 months old or 99 years old, we will make your day better. Whether you come to our virtual JCC to learn something about Jewish wisdom, to exercise with a trainer, to discuss the issues of the day, or to share a meal and socialize with friends with the Senior Friendship Club, we are here to help you be a “better you.” Even in the midst of the pandemic, our programs go on. We are here for you, and for the community. When I sit quietly and ask myself what my purpose is, I hear the same words again and again: I want to do something that will help others. I want to do something to make people’s lives better. It has been my privilege to do this work at the PJCC. It is critical work, a sacred task. I am grateful that you have been, and will continue to be, a partner with me in this holy work.
PJCC PANDEMIC COVID RECOVERY
As a PJCC supporter, you probably know that the COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted the Center. Our revenue has been reduced by 80%, and many staff have been furloughed or laid off. But the PJCC has been serving our community for more than 70 years — and with your support, as well as the dedication of our determined staff, we will continue dynamically working for our community for years to come. We hope you are proud of the important work YOU are supporting in our community. We are grateful to YOU, because with your gift, even during the pandemic, we are continuing to connect people to health, wellness, and, most importantly, to one another!
VIRTUAL CONNECTIONS FOR LIFE
An example of our recent programming that brings people together is our bagel tasting lunch with David Jablons (and it doesn’t hurt that delicious bagels were involved!). Theresa Bruno, a regular Zoom participant in PJCC’s adult programs, is a retired Spanish and French teacher from Bowditch Middle School. Theresa loved the opportunity to have bagels delivered to her doorstep, and to share the experience with friends over Zoom. She says, “[The PJCC provides] such joy and especially for those who otherwise would not be privy to these opportunities. The services the PJCC offers are not matched by any other organization!” Theresa does not drive, and participating in programs like this one “is the social part of my life… this feels like I am actually going somewhere and doing something.”
These programs are about so much more than the chance to try a home-made bagel — it’s all about caring connection at a time when many are feeling isolated and alone. Our focus and commitment is to keep our community connected, because that is at the heart of what we do at the PJCC.
One Way Rides Delivered
1,488
To Medical Appointments Helped With
1,512
GET UP AND GO: STILL GOING & FEELING VITAL!
After a brief break due to the pandemic, our Get Up & Go senior transportation program is up and running and going strong! Since the pandemic, Get Up & Go delivered 1,488 rides to medical appointments, grocery shopping, and essential errands, helping those who cannot drive retain their independence and mobility. Our staff drivers also made 1,512 Meals on Wheels deliveries. A rider who regularly rode with us was so relieved when we reopened that she reached out to express her appreciation: “You provide such joy and especially to those who otherwise would not be privy to these opportunities. You are my link to life. The Get Up & Go program is invaluable to getting to the doctor, shopping, and physical therapy.” Thanks to YOU Get Up & Go is able to help out!
Meals On Wheels Deliveries
YOUNG FAMILIES THRIVE WITH THE NEST & SHABABA For the youngest in our community and their families, our Nest parenting center programs have moved online to make sure that parents and their children can continue to find joy in community, event in difficult times. Maria T., a full-time mom of a 3 ½ year old girl and one year old boy, shared “We love logging on every Friday and celebrating Shabbat with Jeni [Clancy] and the puppets.”
Thank YOU for making this work possible. Your support keeps our community together, even in the toughest of times!
A LEGACY OF LOVE
Kathy & Don Williams On the passing of Don Williams this past October, the PJCC and our entire community lost an important and beloved benefactor and friend. For Don and his wife and business partner Kathy, service to the PJCC has been a “family affair.” The story started in 2000, when then-Board-President Seth Gersch asked Don to “help out” with the construction of our Foster City campus. Don joined our board, eventually becoming President, and deeply engaged himself in all aspects of campus construction. Then, fittingly, Kathy came alongside Don, serving on Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day School’s board just as the PJCC and Wornick joined forces to create the North Peninsula Jewish Campus. As Kathy — who now herself serves on the PJCC’s Board of Directors — said, “The PJCC is a central location for the Jewish and greater community to come together…. We have brought a stronger sense of connection among Jewish organizations and we strengthen the community.” For Don, his service was always focused on children: “It makes me happy to see the kids having a great time. It makes it worth the time and effort,” Don shared in early 2020. Don and Kathy’s establishment of the Don and Kathy Williams Endowment is designed to ensure that programs for our youngest children thrive. Our PJCC community is indebted to Don and Kathy for their decades-long vision for what is possible for children and families. We are immensely privileged to carry forward their legacy. May Don’s memory be a blessing for generations to come.
Legacy Society Your legacy. Their future. Your gift to the Legacy Society will ensure our Center is there for future generations, with the flexibility to evolve and address needs as they arise. Questions about legacy giving? Please contact the Development Department 650.212.7522 | development@pjcc.org
PJCC PRESCHOOL:
GROWING WITH JOYFUL CONFIDENCE Thanks to our nurturing teachers and staff — and generous donors like you — our wonderful Preschool provides an engaging, safe community that fosters values-based learning, friendships, and curiosity. Our preschoolers exercise their imaginations and self-expression through creative play, music, art, and outdoor discovery and exercise. Jewish values and culture come alive through stories, song, and holiday events — like our recent Pesach celebration that included Seder plate artwork and baby Moses “floating down the Nile” in a reed basket.
Celebrating Rabbi Lavey Derby and His Dedication to Jewish Educational and Spiritual Leadership Virtual Reception and Community Gathering Sunday | May 2, 2021 | 6:30 pm
We promise an unforgettable gathering, as we celebrate and honor our beloved Rabbi Lavey who will be retiring in June. Tickets and details available at www.pjcc.org/rabbilavey To learn about opportunities to make a gift supporting the PJCC in Rabbi Lavey’s honor, visit pjcc.org/rabbilavey or contact Shari Rubin-Rick at development@pjcc.org or 650.378.2742.
Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 822 San Mateo, CA 94402
Peninsula Jewish Community Center 800 Foster City Blvd. Foster City, CA 94404
YOUNG LIGHTS OF LEADERSHIP: This Year’s Dan Cook Award Recipients Mia Solomon and Jacob Rozansky, both participants in the PJCC’s Peninsula Jewish Youth for Community Action (PJYCA) program, received the Dan Cook Award for their leadership in the community. PJYCA educates, empowers and inspires political, social, environmental, and cultural awareness and action in young activists, guided by Jewish values of social justice. As a part of JYCA’s Board of Directors, Jacob, has been tasked with making impactful and community-minded organizational decisions. “Making an impact within the greater community and learning lifetime skills has been my driving focus with PJYCA, says Jacob, a senior at Hillsdale High School. “It is an honor to be recognized with the PJCC’s Dan Cook Award. I want to thank the Cook Family and the PJCC for this recognition.”
Mia Solomon has strengthened the PJYCA program with her critical thinking, commitment, and wit. As a facilitator for the Organizing Group program, Mia has supported youth participants to tackle big issues such as voter suppression, and indigenous sovereignty. She says, “[PJYCA] taught me that I, like everyone, have the power to advocate for issues I care about. It’s easy to feel helpless and alone, especially during this isolating time. JYCA is a place where teens can strengthen our connection to ourselves, our peers, and our community.” The PJCC is proud to honor Dan Cook’s memory as a leader in our local Jewish community, and to ensure that Dan’s legacy continues. May Dan’s memory always be a blessing.
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The PJCC is proud to be a part of the Koret Initiative on Jewish Peoplehood. We are honored to present this program through the Taube Center for Jewish Peoplehood at the PJCC.