Proposed Budget

Combined Treasurer & Financial Secretary Report Submitted by: Neil Heuer & Scott Newman

This was the first full year for both Neil Heuer (Treasurer) and Scott Newman (Financial Secretary) acting in their perspective positions. Consequently we spent a lot of time gaining an understanding how the temple operates financially. We familiarized ourselves with Temple Shalom’s financial structure as respects where the money goes and jointly reviewed every disbursement that was made during the year.

With the help of President Neil Shnider, we were successful in renegotiating our line of credit at the bank. Many of the temple funds were previously held as collateral for the line of credit and we are happy to report that the bank has done away with that requirement entirely.

Significant progress was made with the URJ over our MUM (Maintenance of Union Membership) annual dues and our outstanding liability for previous year’s underpayments of $76K. With President Shnider’s guidance, we made our case to the URJ that due to the unique fiscal challenges of our temple, our annual dues will be capped at $23,830 for fiscal year 2014/2015, go to $24,000 for 2015/2016 and then rise to $26,400 for 2016/2017. In addition, the URJ has agreed to write off our outstanding balance of $76,103.15 for the prior years.

Above and Beyond collections have been exceptional this year and for that we thank the entire congregation. We are pleased to note that 100% of the board contributed to the A&B campaign.

While we were forecasting a $164k loss for the current fiscal year, we believe that we may actually end with a small surplus on June 30, 2015. The reasons for this are many and include the strong Above & Beyond contribution, the lack of having to pay a salary and benefits for an Executive Director, the lack of having to pay for health insurance for several new employees who had their coverage elsewhere and other cost saving measures the financial team implemented during the course of the year.

We had several meetings of the Finance Committee during the course of the year and those meetings are always pretty lively as we debate anything from investment returns, dues increases, membership needs, budgetary considerations, tutoring fees, insurance program changes, etc.

We took the opportunity to improve the temple’s property and casualty insurance program as respects the financial coverages and also purchased terrorism coverage for the first time in many years as the world’s geopolitical state became more fragile.

In all it has been a good year at Temple Shalom both from a fiscal and activity perspective. We thank all the members for helping to make this a great year.

Submitted by: Caren Plotkin, Religious School Director

Our first day of Sunday school (9/14/14) and the first day of Hebrew school (9/17/14) began with orientation and a breakfast sponsored by the Men's Club. All students and parents congregated in the Sanctuary for Tefillah and then proceeded to class. The parents attended an information session with the teachers, reviewing the curriculum and class expectations, followed by a Parent Orientation with Caren, Rabbi and Cantor.

Our Consecration service for our 14 kindergarten and new students and their families took place on October 17, 2014 and we held our annual “Pizza in the Hut” Sukkot celebration when the families come together for a pizza dinner and take turns shaking the luluv and etrog. We continue to celebrate Shabbat at the Shir Joy Shabbat Family Service on the first Friday evening of each month when the students participate in the service together.

School-wide Programs:

In order to continue with the theme of “One Family” we changed our weekly T’filah experience to the middle of each Sunday morning session and held it in the Multi-Purpose room where all of the student body comes together as one community to sing, pray and hear a lesson or story with Rabbi, Cantor and Caren.

During the second semester, the students and parents participated in Temple Shalom’s annual Mitzvah Day program. The Purim Carnival was fun for everyone, and we are grateful to Jeremy and Jessica Schaab, who chaired the event and to the Men’s Club and Sisterhood for their help and support, which made this event a success. Our annual citywide Teacher Appreciation Shabbat service will be held on Friday, May 1st and will be a beautiful tribute to our Preschool and Religious School teachers and all community teachers, leaders and mentors. A delicious oneg will be provided by the Sisterhood.

This year we held an Intergenerational TuB’Shevat Model Seder. Each class invited some Temple congregants to join them at the Seder and participate in the readings and songs. Thank you to all of the parents who assisted and set up that morning.

Class Programs:

Each class participated in a Parent/Child Interactive program, focusing on the grade’s curriculum and parents were invited to join their child in an interactive learning experience. Our Kindergarten students created a class quilt, which is displayed in the hallway of the Religious School along with our collection of quilts made in prior years.

In November, our 5th grade students received their Bar/Bat Mitzvah dates during a special ceremony with their parents, and our 6th graders and parents attended a B’nai Mitzvah Orientation where they learned about each aspect of the preparation process and the celebration of their own Bar/Bat Mitzvah.

As part of the 6th grade curriculum, our 6th grade students hosted Operation Nachas, an

intergenerational program for their grandparents and some invited guests and also attended a field trip to the Collier County Holocaust Museum.

B’Nai Mitzvah Program:

There have been 13 B’nai Mitzvah students during this school year. Cantor Donna Azu and our B’nai Mitzvah tutors: Hari Jacobsen, Howard Moeckler, Michael Rubner and Perry Switzen have been instrumental in each of the students’ success. We are so very fortunate to have these role models at Temple Shalom.

Confirmation Program:

This 3-year cumulative program begins in 8th grade and concludes with our 10th grade students leading a Confirmation service and ceremony. Classes are held on Sundays from 9:30am-12:00pm. The 8th grade class includes a thirty-minute Leadership & Skill-building session and a curriculum focus on social issues and making good choices. The 9th grade’s focus is Comparative Religions and is taught by Cantor Azu, while the 10th grade Confirmation class, taught by Rabbi Miller, will take a look at their own Jewish identity and prepare to lead the Confirmation service on May 17th. Each grade includes one hour of curriculum instruction; and one hour in an assigned classroom as a Madrichim (Student Assistant)

Conclusion:

In closing, I have been very fortunate to have worked in a career that I love and am passionate about for the past 40 years. I have learned and grown from my teachers and students and am appreciative of the guidance and support that I have received from the Clergy. I would especially like to thank all of my dedicated teachers and staff, our parent volunteers and Rabbi Miller and Cantor Azu, who have worked with me to make this year so successful. I would also like to thank the Room Parents, the Temple Board, Sisterhood, Men's Club and Congregants for investing in the future of Temple Shalom by their support of our children in Religious School. Serving as the Religious School Director for the past 17 years has been my honor and privilege.

Submitted by: Seyla Cohen, Preschool Director

This year Temple Shalom Preschool is celebrating the 25th year Anniversary. The growth and development over the past quarter century is astonishing, our staff’s strength and dedication over the years is responsible for our success today. Today we can boast a progressive curriculum, a dedicated staff, professional child development methods and philosophy, and exceptional family involvement. Temple Shalom Preschool has been acknowledged by local educators, prestigious publishers and parents as a top rated preschool in the Naples area. Enrichment opportunities in science, music, technology, movement, art and storytelling provided to children in the two, three and four year old classes. We are offering Spanish classes on Wednesdays from 2:00-3:00. Special activities such as Science days, Story hour in the Storyland, Safety Day, Super Family Shabbat, Mitzvah Day, Thanksgiving Feast, Chanukah Sing along, Art Auction, Passover Seder, focusing on holiday celebrations provide opportunities for family participation. Parent and community involvement is encouraged and parents volunteer for a variety of activities. Professional training opportunities are provided for the staff by colleagues and invited guests. Some of the training classes were; First Aid/CPR by American Heart Association, Effective classroom techniques by Seyla Cohen, Sensory Integration by Mary Fellenz, “Bullied you are not Alone” by Jeremy Satterfield, Judaism in Early Childhood by ECE-URJ and Promoting Children’s safety by Collier County Safety Organizations. Teachers and the director work closely together, sharing ideas and strategies that support the education of young children. Parents and children participate in fundraising activities that support enrichment opportunities. “Shalom Cafe” which is nutritious hot lunches we offer to our children, the sale of school T-shirts , school pictures, spirit nights , Square Art projects and Parent directory are some of our fundraisers. On April 30th, 2015, we are having our annual TSP Art Show and our 25th year Celebrations. We are so proud that this event made $27000.00 last year. With moneys raised from the Art Show, we were able to enrich our school also able to offer partial financial assistance to families. We are anticipating a huge success this year also. Temple Shalom Preschool continuously participates on Mitzvah projects. We helped St Jude Children’s Hospital, Boys & Girls Club, Humane Society, Abused women’s Shelter, Homeless children of Collier County, Purple bag project and many more….. We are currently offering 7 weeks of summer camp in June and July. In addition we are offering Camp Einstein, an academic summer camp program for children between 5-8 years old. Summer camp hours and days are very flexible, this makes it easy for families to sign up their children. We get a lot of children from other schools. They fall in love with TSP and end up signing up for the school year.