Read the May/June/July 2021 Connections here
President's Message - Herb Sachs
As another fiscal year ends for Beth Sholom, I find myself reflecting on what an extraordinary year it was. This was the first year of my administration and I knew to expect many challenges. However, one issue I did not fully consider was the difficulty of managing Board meetings via Zoom. Typically, we would have about 55 participants on each call and my computer screen only holds 16 boxes. As a result, I had no way of measuring the reaction of the group to the issues being discussed. There was no way to get a “sense of the room.” Of course, it was much easier to get people to attend the meetings. Since everyone was at home anyway, they were something of a captive audience! One particular positive of adapting to using the new technology was the realization that our community could tap into programs created by other Jewish and secular organizations all over the country. Attendance at a particular event was no longer limited to considerations of distance, travel time, or the seating capacity of a venue. At noon one could attend a lecture on Israeli politics given in Jerusalem, at 3:00 pm a lecture on Frank Lloyd Wright in Scottsdale, and at 7:00 pm a Beth Sholom committee meeting! I am certain that the ability to participate virtually in meetings and webinars will be at least one positive and lasting consequence of this sorry episode. As we approach next year, I think we can all take pride in how we have weathered the past 15 months. At the same time, I anxiously look forward to getting back into the building and returning to a more “normal” way of conducting affairs.
