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Month: July 2024

Fall Into Action with Volunteer Services: Make Your Mark This Election Season

Posted on by Emily Braley

As the fall elections approach, many of us are looking to fulfill our civic duty and make a meaningful impact. This season presents a unique opportunity to strengthen our democracy and contribute to the greater good. Whether you’re drawn to becoming a pollworker, writing postcards to get out the vote with the Center for Common Ground, or serving in our community, there are many ways to channel your passion into action. Each effort, big or small, plays a role in shaping our communities and ensuring that every voice is heard. Here are some impactful ways you can get involved and make a difference this fall.

National Pollworker Recruitment Day: August 1

Mark your calendars for August 1—National Pollworker Recruitment Day! Pollworkers are essential for ensuring that elections run smoothly and that every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast their ballot. Your involvement helps uphold the values of democracy and strengthens the foundation of our communal life. Learn more on Wednesday, July 31st at 2pm with JCRC at their “Help JCRC Power the Polls” webinar. Sign up for the webinar here: Help JCRC Power the Polls | Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington (jcouncil.org) Ready to sign up to be a pollworker? Click this link from A More Perfect Union to get started – Power the Polls.

Democracy as a Jewish Value: Getting out the Vote

Democracy is deeply woven into the fabric of Jewish values and tradition. From the biblical principles of justice and communal responsibility to the Talmudic emphasis on the importance of individual participation in communal affairs, Jewish teachings underscore the significance of each person’s role in shaping a just society. Helping to get out the vote is a manifestation of our commitment to justice and communal well-being. This act of outreach aligns with the Jewish principle of tikkun olam, or repairing the world, as it fosters a more inclusive and representative democracy. We will have several opportunities to write postcards to voters this fall including at the Pozez JCC’s open house on Sunday, September 22nd (more details to follow… save the date!) and on Tuesday, October 8th during the day and in the evening. Sign up at volunteer.theJ.org to join us.

Volunteering – Another Expression of Civic Responsibility

Another way to contribute to our vibrant community is to volunteer with us this fall. At the JCC, volunteers contribute to the well-being and cohesion of our community. Volunteers engage in activities that support social services, educational programs, and cultural enrichment across our organization and community. We would love to have you contribute this fall by volunteering with us – from cleaning up a park to making costumes for kids in need, we have something for everyone to contribute! Volunteering is a powerful form of civic engagement this election season.

Join us!

However you choose to volunteer this election season, you’re helping to build a brighter future and a stronger, more connected community. We hope to see you soon! See everything we have to offer by making an account on volunteer.theJ.org.

Families with young children engage, find community through Pozez JCC’s Growing Jewish Families

Posted on by Shana Medel

Looking to connect with the NoVA Jewish community? Pozez JCC’s Growing Jewish Families helps parents and their little ones feel right at home. Quickly and easily.

The program, created in 2008 and made possible through the generous support of The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, connects young families who share interests and most importantly, are navigating a similar stage of life, raising children under the age of 8. From playground playdates to campfires to game nights to Jewish holiday fun — there’s something for everyone.

“Being connected to other moms in my area, who have a shared culture and background, is so important to me,” said Marissa Newberry, a mother of two girls, Maeve, 4, and Maudette, 1. “This program gave my entire family an in-person community.”

Growing Jewish Families is meant to be a low-pressure entry point to Jewish engagement, said Amy Lummer, who heads the program through her role as Family Engagement Director at Pozez JCC. Having been a participant herself, along with her two children, Lummer said the program meets families where they are to create friendship and fun, all through a Jewish lens.

“All of our programming connects to Judaism, whether through a holiday, a value, a mitzvah, or culture,” Lummer said. “We’re here for every family, wherever they may be on their Jewish journey.”

Because Growing Jewish Families creates an open space, where all kinds of practice and identity are welcome, people come as they are. There are self-described “High Holiday Jews” and regular shul-goers. Jews of color, Russian-speaking Jews, and LGBTQ+ Jews. Interfaith couples and single parents who represent different cultures and speak multiple languages, including Hebrew, Spanish, and German.

By coming together, families also grow together, said Maya Thiellen, who has two children, Mackenzie, 5, and Noah, 3.

“Our family has been given opportunities to connect with other Jewish families who have kids the same age as ours,” Thiellen said. “And as we connect, our kids are introduced to Jewish customs and stories in an age-appropriate way,”

Each program is hands-on and accessible, designed to create community for the whole family, and sometimes, just for parents.

There are also a number of adult-only programs. Readers can be a part of Pages and Perspectives, a book club that recently read and discussed “The Amen Effect,” a national bestseller by Rabbi Sharon Brous. The monthly Divas and Diners program for women usually centers around food and games. And dads have their own get togethers, Guys’ Night. The most recent gathering, “In a Pickle” (which sold out), creatively combined pickling and pickleball for a fun night out.

Participant Rachel Birns said these outings, as well as ones geared for parents and their children, have helped her and her son Jack, 3, make new friends through doing.

“There are many different kinds of activities where my son and myself are able to connect with other young families in the area and wider community,” Birns said. “And because of that, we feel more connected to the NoVa Jewish community.”

Finding and engaging new faces usually goes something like this: Pozez JCC connects with families through PJ LibraryÂŽ, Jewish events or programs, a quick email, the newsletter, an online form for new parents, or on a playground with their own children. From there, J-Family Ambassadors, who welcome newcomers and schedule family-fun events, reach out to set up a coffee talk.

There are six ambassadors, all of whom are moms and have participated in Growing Jewish Families themselves. Each serves a different area of NoVa, from Arlington to Aldie.

Somewhat of a neighborhood concierge, the ambassadors provide families with information on preschools and synagogues, introduce them to Pozez JCC and other community programming, connect them with other families, and get to know their interests.

One of those ambassadors is Faith Plavchan, a mom of three with more than 15 years of experience in early childhood education. She recently connected two new moms, one in Arlington and one in Alexandria, who registered their children for the only Jewish infant program in the area, run by Pozez JCC.

“This is what we do, we make those connections to make an impact,” Plavchan said. “By bringing more families together in our Jewish community, we go beyond the boundaries of our JCC building.”

More than 900 families have been engaged this past year through 12 or so programs per month, along with individual coffee talks between ambassadors and families.

To meet people where they are — geographically and Jewishly — a majority of the programs exist outside of the walls of the Pozez JCC. And this month, many will be happening outdoors.

Throughout the summer, Brie Ribner, ambassador for Prince William County, has been organizing two recurring programs: Trail Tuesdays and Water Wednesdays.

Families gather on Tuesday mornings, before temperatures climb too high for comfort, to hike one of the many trails snaking through Northern Virginia. On Wednesday afternoons, parents are taking their children to cool off and splash about at a creek or water park. The location of these events and others are never listed online, ensuring the safety of all participants.

“There’s a real hunger for a sense of belonging, and we create that belonging in a secure environment,” Ribner said. “Once families are here, they keep coming back.”

Among those who keep coming back are NoVa resident Heather and her daughter, her only child. One of their favorite programs was Pajamuary Planetarium Havdalah, where they experienced outer space, up close and personal.

Just before Havdalah, an astronomer welcomed attendees into a large, inflatable planetarium, a dome-like structure. Once inside, he projected and explained a video of our entire solar system. Heather and her daughter sat in darkness and watched planets spin across the ceiling of the planetarium.

“This sparked our interest in astronomy, and soon after, our family visited the George Mason University telescope for the first time,” Heather said. “We’re thankful for Growing Jewish Families for their hard work and attention to details and our J-Family Ambassador for building outgoing, caring, and positive connections.”

Danielle Arthur, an ambassador in Alexandria, said Growing Jewish Families is creating a Jewish engagement pipeline, with the first touchpoint rooted in early childhood. Every parent is seeking something different, and no matter what that something is, there are friendly faces ready to point them in the right direction.

“We are a resource for raising Jewish children,” Arthur said. “This is a flexible program, where people get out of it what they want to get out of it.”

At programs, she gauges success by the number of families who connect themselves, without her prompting. When she notices parents trading phone numbers and then sees them post photos from their playdates, those are wins.

Arthur was in their shoes just a few years ago. A former program participant, she and her daughter Norah met some of their closest friends through Growing Jewish Families.

Now, Norah goes to elementary school with some of them, including one boy who she says she’s going to marry, often telling her mom, “I can’t believe I met the boy I’m going to marry in preschool.”

“These connections we make between families are so important,” Arthur said. “Oftentimes, they’re life-changing.”  

Why I am Donating My Car to the JCC

Posted on by Sarah Braesch

I have had a car that no longer works sitting in front of my house for five months.

You know that thing when you know your car is dying, but you are in denial, so you will spend $150 to fix it, and then like six months later $300, and then three months later $493 and then one day your kid is driving it and it just completely stops running on Little River Turnpike and they try to coast home and they miraculously make it into the neighborhood but not to your house and also it isn’t exactly on the curb, so there is pushing and also towing involved and also another $2400 to fix it and you know that this car is probably is not worth $2400 so you have to figure out what to do next and that is why you have the car that no longer works sitting in front of your house in the first place?

I assume that middle part is just me, but the part about having a car that cost more to fix than it is currently worth might be familiar. The part about having a non-working vehicle in the street in front of your house (or in your driveway, or in your yard, or in your garage, or in your barn if you have a farm) might be hitting close to home. If you can relate to any of this, you, too, should consider donating your car to the J.

Why should I donate my car to the JCC? I can hear you asking it, and I will tell you why right now:

  1. TAX DEDUCTION – you can deduct the value your car gets at auction, which is probably more than you could sell it for on your own. We are a 501(c)3 and more than happy to provide you with documentation for the IRS.
  2. You don’t have to sell it on your own. You don’t have to take pictures. You don’t have to pay for ads. No creepy want-ad stalkers are going to come to your house.
  3. You can stop thinking about it. A nice lady named Pam will call you and schedule a tow truck to come pick it up and it will all be over.
  4. Your neighbors will stop resenting you for having a dirty, not driveable car just sitting there.
  5. IT IS FOR A GREAT CAUSE. Here at the JCC, we have no-cost camps for kids with pediatric cancer, we have programs for seniors, we have outreach programs to provide social impact all throughout Northern Virginia and beyond, we support growing Jewish families, we enrich lives through cultural arts, disabilities and inclusion, recreational and educational activities, we offer amazing group exercise classes, a fantastic early childhood learning center, language classes, camps for all ages and abilities, Shabbat Connections, a gorgeous pool and state-of-the-art fitness center, and we provide a place for people to come and be a part of our community. And also… we need a new roof.

These are only some of reasons I am donating my car to Pozez JCC. I started working out in J-FIT after COVID and I liked it so much that I started working here full time. The staff and members here are my community and a second family. The J provides so many different types of experiences and opportunities for people throughout Northen Virginia… taking pride in being a vibrant Jewish community while welcoming people of all faiths, identities, cultures, backgrounds, and abilities as an important part of our fabric.

If you made it this far in my post, you clearly know you can donate your car (unless you are a skip-around reader, which is weird) and you are probably already a member and a supporter, but did you know you can donate stocks or other investments to the JCC and avoid paying capital gains taxes if you’ve had the investments for over a year? Did you know you can make a bequest or establish an endowment fund?

If you don’t have a car, there are so many other ways to give.

Please consider donating to the JCC. Our development team makes it easy. They take checks or cash or you can make a secure gift online with a credit card, Venmo, Google Pay, PayPal or bank transfer. If you have any questions, you can  contact Michelle Pearlstein, our Development Director, 703.537.3033, or you can stop by the Membership Office, where I spend most of my time, and we can chat about it. I am always happy to talk about ways you can support the J.

NURTURING BEGINNINGS: ELEVATING THE WORK OF EARLY CHILDHOOD

Posted on by Hillary Gile

Pozez JCC’s Within the Reggio Emilia approach, documentation serves many purposes. As early childhood educators, the process of engaging in documentation forces us to be mindful, intentional, and attuned to the learning processes of the children. It requires us to listen deeply to what the children are communicating, which takes place through “one hundred languages” of expression. It beckons us to truly see each child, and for them to feel that they are seen, heard, affirmed, and valued. In capturing the learning of the children, documentation makes this learning visible to fellow early childhood colleagues, the children themselves, families, and the greater community, becoming not simply something to show, but a source of reflection, conversation, and a means of further extending the meaning-making processes of children. 

For the past 14 years with the exception of Covid, the ECLC has created an annual Exhibit sharing documentation of the unique and emergent learning journeys that have evolved in classes over the course of the school year. These journeys, depicted in narrative form with photographs, videos, and artifacts of the children’s work, share with a greater audience the importance of early childhood, and the wonder and innate wisdom that children hold. 

Inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy, the ECLC assumes a constructivist approach to learning (meaning that children are active participants in the building of knowledge) and implements an emergent curriculum (the curriculum is not preset or predetermined, but rather evolves based on the educators’ observations of the children’s questions, intrigues, and theories). This allows for learning that is rich, meaningful, and diverse from class to class, and year to year, making each annual Exhibit new, exciting, and hopefully thought-provoking.

The exhibit also serves to illustrate what high quality early childhood education looks like as a point of advocacy to voice the need to address the early childhood education and care crisis that currently faces our nation. Throughout the United States, access to high quality early childhood education and care remains inequitable. The ECLC is fortunate to be part of a community and organization where the value of early childhood is seen, and we hope to use this and Exhibit as a platform to advocate for changes made on a policy level.

We were thrilled to host this year’s Exhibit “Nurturing Beginnings: Elevating the Work of Early Childhood” with an opening event this past Thursday, where guests were presented with a brief presentation followed by an invitation to view the Exhibit alongside the children who are featured in these documented learning experiences. The Exhibit will remain up in the Bodzin art gallery until August 5th, we invite you to check it out!  

Volunteer Opportunities Abound at the J. Heed the Call.

Posted on by Zina Segal

Just one week ago, we launched Pozez JCC’s Volunteer Services with two service projects and a presentation about the structure of our new program and our Social Impact priorities. In case you missed our presentation, here are a few insights into why we are doing all these amazing things and what is coming next! 

One of my favorite Jewish texts, Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) opens with the statement (Pirkei Avot 1:2): The world stands upon three things: The Torah (learning), Avoda (work, temple service) and Gemilut Hasadim (acts of kindness). At the Pozez JCC, we agree with the sages of the first century CE (not about everything, but at least about this statement). To that end, there are three important pillars to the foundation of Volunteer Services: 

  • Learning. On each volunteer opportunity, we include two types of learning: Service Area learning (what is needed in our area, why is it happening, how can we help to create systematic change?) and Jewish learning (what does Jewish tradition say about this issue, why is performing this particular service is Jewish value?). 
  • Service Projects. Creating impact on our wider community by working together is at the core of what we do. Pozez JCC is an agent of change in building a more diverse, equal, and just society in Northern Virginia. 
  • Building Community. During each event, we will have icebreakers and an opportunity to meaningfully connect with other participants while learning more about the challenge being addressed. We believe that meeting like-minded people and building relationships is imperative to everything we are doing. We are here for people and because of people. In these times, when you can reach almost anyone on the planet, there are still so many people who don’t have someone locally to grab a coffee with within a 15-minute drive. We want more members of our community to feel connected and bonded to their people. By volunteering b’yachad (together), come find your people and become somebody’s person with us! 

These are the principles we keep in mind while creating all our volunteer experiences. Now let’s talk about what is currently on our volunteer menu. There are three priority areas where one can participate: Volunteer Opportunities at the J, One-off Volunteer Events with Partners, and Community Building Opportunities. In future blog posts, we will talk more about volunteer events and community-building opportunities, but today, we will explore the ways you can help at the J. 

With so many programs and events offered by the various departments daily, weekly, monthly, and annually, I’ll bet that many members can’t even imagine how many different opportunities there are to volunteer! If you come to the J for a workout, you might not know that we are also home to the only camp for neurodiverse teens and adults in NoVA. If you are an ECLC parent, you might not know about our amazing Israel shlichut program, and if you are a regular Mah Jongg player at the J, you might not know about our Jewish Family Ambassadors who work throughout NoVA. Becoming a regular volunteer at the J will help you learn more about all the amazing things happening here, help you get to know new people — who are passionate about similar things — and will help the J grow and serve more people.  

Here are areas at the J that need volunteers NOW: 

Administrative and Outreach Positions 

As you can imagine, we have lots of administrative tasks. Covering these needs will help you better understand the work of each program, help us create more effective procedures, and help you meet new people. Opportunities might include helping our membership team conduct surveys, leading tours for prospective members, helping to promote events on social media and building our online community, and helping to organize printed materials.  

Children and Youth 

If you are passionate about working with kids and teens – we have you covered! Some departments that need help in this area are Camp Achva, Horizon Day Camp and Chai 5 (after-school program). Opportunities might include helping Camp Achva to move in and out of Gesher’s campus each summer, creating meaningful experiences for children going through cancer treatment, helping kids foster relationships, and walking kids from their classroom to after-school activities in the gym and pool at the J.  

Disabilities and inclusion  

We are dedicated to building an inclusive community. Our D&I services provide social skills classes, adaptive sports, camp for neurodiverse teens and adults, and programs to help these members build community and friendships. Volunteering in this area will help participants become stronger and more independent and you’ll become more familiar with the needs of this community. 

J-Fit Health Club  

We all love a great workout! And what could be better than meeting other health-minded people by helping them check-in for group exercise classes, answering questions about equipment (once trained) and helping them to find the best machine for their needs! Our J-Fit and aquatics programs have 10 volunteer positions open! Most of them can be combined with your favorite workout while at the J! 

Whether you decide to volunteer for any of our ongoing volunteer positions, come to our one-off volunteer events, or choose to build community in your own neighborhood, we are here to support you and super grateful for your time!  

If you would like to learn more about Volunteer Services, have ideas about ways to give back to the community, or want to meet the people who are helping to fill these needs, Program Manager, Emily Braley (Emily.Braley@theJ.org) and I (Zina.Segal@theJ.org) are happy to treat you to coffee and conversation! 

We look forward to hearing from you and to seeing you giving back to our community!