3 minute read
It took a village
By Robin Mintz, Greater Naples Jewish Book Festival Chairperson
The 2024-25 Greater Naples Jewish Book Festival will soon draw to a close. Only one event, which takes place on April 2 at 1 p.m., remains.
Carole Greene has written a delightful review of this book that appears on page 3A. Please plan to join us as this event promises to be a lot of fun.
Putting on the Greater Naples Jewish Book Festival involved many people; one might say it “took a village.”
“Behind the scenes” work on this year’s festival started last May when our volunteer “readers” began reviewing the many cartons of books and PDF files we received from the Jewish Book Council. Also in May, our “Selection Committee” comprised of Emily Berkowitz, Carol Hirsch and Susan Pittelman, along with Reneé and me, listened to nearly 300 authors present their books (for two minutes each!) via Zoom. Between these marathon Zoom sessions, we evaluated the author presentations, taking into account the book reviews from our readers. From there, we narrowed down the list, then extended an invitation to the authors we hoped to include in our festival.
Once the season was underway, Volunteer Chair Carol Hirsch recruited a cadre of dedicated volunteers. At each event, teams of volunteers greeted guests at the door, checked-in guests and ushered them to their seats. Head Usher Spencer Forman and his dedicated team helped to seat between 250 and 420 guests efficiently and with a smile.
We all agree that food is a very important component of any Jewish gathering! Susan Pittelman and Joni Zalasky planned and executed the delicious, themed refreshments and decor that you enjoyed at each event. Pittelman, Zalasky and their talented team approached each event more creatively than the previous one.
All our volunteer moderators did an outstanding job both preparing for and engaging with each of our authors. We are fortunate to have “local experts” to facilitate our events.
And, of course, Program Director Reneé Bialek was with us every step of the way.
Our “village” is rounded out by our very generous sponsors and patrons. Your financial support enables us to continue to bring outstanding authors to our community. It also helps Jewish Federation of Greater Naples further fulfill its mission.
Last, but certainly not least, are you, the members of our community. Thank you for enthusiastically attending and supporting this year’s highly successful Greater Naples Jewish Book Festival.
