November Family Record Column

In order for you to become engaged, I thought it would be good to review what some of our committees do starting with one of our core committees – Membership. The Membership Committee helps introduce prospective members to the synagogue, and shepherds them towards becoming a member and integrating them into the activities of our community.

Let’s assume you are a prospective member. Perhaps you hear of us from a friend or see an ad in the Jewish Post. You then call the office to obtain information about us or go to our website. If you called the office, then a membership brochure is sent. You then are contacted by a member of the committee to acknowledge and thank you for your interest, and see if you have any questions. Now it is time to meet existing members, the Rabbi, and the director of the Preschool and/or Learning Center, so you are invited to a prospective membership social hosted by this committee. You are so impressed, you decide to join. You submit your application which is reviewed by the membership committee and presented to the board where it is approved. Now it’s time to begin the welcoming process. A welcome basket is assembled and delivered. You come to services for the first time where you are warmly greeted by fellow congregants. Finally, later in the year you will have the opportunity to participate in an orientation to the synagogue, to learn more about the various committees and activities, and whom to contact for different areas.

The Membership Committee could use your help in various ways, depending on what you like to do and how much time you have to offer. There are opportunities to plan and/or host events, such as the Prospective Member Open House or the New Member Orientation. If you enjoy meeting new people individually, you can volunteer as a “gesher” (bridge) family to help introduce someone to the Beth Torah community, or help deliver welcome baskets or make phone calls. We are also looking for ways that the Membership Committee could help serve existing members. That is an entirely new opportunity which we are striving to address. If you have some thoughts on this aspect of membership, we would love to hear from you.

I have just scratched the surface here as to what the membership committee makes happen. If you are interested, please contact Bennett Robinson to sign up. In my discussion, I mentioned three other volunteer
opportunities: the ad that caught our prospective member’s eye was placed by our publicity committee (*/if you like to write, I am sure Publicity would love to have you join.);/* their visit to the web site meant they were exposed to the efforts of another volunteer activity (*/anybody interested in designing content for our web/*?). In terms of the membership brochure, if you like graphic arts, or are handy at brochure development, here is an opportunity to use your skills.

I hope this has given you some insight into areas where your expertise can be put to good use. We look forward to having your help on any of our committees.

B’yedidut,

Chuck Smith