Anybody Have a Map?

Eric Imley & Gale Swartz, Co-Presidents

eimley@yahoo.com  swartzplace@gmail.com

Two former corporate level managers walk into a temple presidency…” Sounds like the punchline of a joke, doesn’t it? One of the great things about working together as Co-Presidents and each having managerial background is that big questions that we grapple with in our spiritual home are similar to ones across industries or types of organizations. Management, simply speaking, is the allocation of time and resources to various tasks often big but sometimes very small. The other part of management and administration is that the people who do these jobs often like to have and keep updated is long term planning. There are dozens of clichés that pay homage to this. Once we were able to catch our breath after hiring Rabbi Kail, we knew long term planning was the next thing we wanted to look at.

One of the wonderful things about TBE is that within our religious home is a thriving non-profit. Like all non-profits, its primary function is to keep things running on time, both on an annual and daily basis and to also to find resources to support the organization and cover operating expenses. It is the job of the Presidents, in collaboration with the professional, administrative staffs and the Board of Directors, to periodically take a step back to look at where we have been and develop a road map to the future.

We are envisioning a path for community growth without losing the “small shul” feel that we all love and cherish. We understand the importance of also preparing new leaders to be able to bring plans to reality. We understand the importance of attracting talent and filling a pipeline for lay leadership. We believe that without a plan to keep watch over our many priorities, accomplishing any of them with will be an uphill battle.

We, along with Board of Directors, will be working on a concise one-page document that we will be able to share with the congregation containing our vision and priorities for the next several years. A document that will lend guidance when decisions are being considered and articulate our shared values in a way that’s accessible and more importantly can be acted upon. In future articles and communications, we will be disseminating the results of our collective work. We always welcome feedback and look forward receiving input from many different viewpoints. Please continue to communication with us early and often so that you can help us navigate the many twists and turns ahead of us as we travel to the future of our beloved TBE.