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ADULT EDUCATION
Stephen Sklar
This year, our Adult Education program was headlined by book reviews conducted by Pat Reich and a cooking course run by the Cantor. We were forced to interrupt our movie program, but will resume it again in the fall. We had a comparative religion program with a presentation by Rev. Hall and the Rabbi conducted a class for Temple Thursday.
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BUILDING COMMITTEE
Kenny Shapiro
With the help of Alan Hartstein and Mary Price we have done well this year. Repairs have been accomplished efficiently and quickly at minimum costs due to competitive bidding. The sale of Rabbi Zion's house went very smoothly thanks to the very hard work done by Les Martin and Alan Hartstein. We realized a top price with little costs or repairs. That money is essential for the years ahead. Apart from the normal maintenance and various leaks common to old structures costs were well in line with our budget.
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BULLETIN
Penny Schuster
The purpose of the bulletin is to keep the Temple's membership updated on upcoming events. Monthly articles are written by key people including the Rabbi, Cantor, President and Education Director. Temple activities are highlighted in the bulletin and advertising space is available at very reasonable rates. This year, thanks to Ellen Gwozd and Vanessa Quiros in the office, we began doing the bulletin "in-house" thereby saving the Temple valuable time and money.
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BUDGET AND FINANCE
Ira Himmelstein
The Officers and Trustees of Temple Israel with the assistance of Lenore Kubit, our bookkeeper, have prepared the budget for the fiscal year 2010-2011. The new budget approved by our officers is for $1,538,000.00 an increase of $10,718.50 over the projected total expenditures of this year. We as Officers and Trustees continually look at ways of reducing our expenses, thru competitive bidding and the assistance of our congregants. In this new budget, our costs for Health and Property Insurance were significantly decreased, but with the rising costs of oil and electricity our projected fuel costs have risen.
The new budget includes a $45,000.00 loan repayment to Morrell Caterers as per a clause in the contract with Morrell. This payment is calculated by a formula that states Morrell would get a 50% rebate on the difference between the Base Rent and the actual rent being paid. If this item was not included we would have a decrease in our projected expenses of $34281.50 or approximately 2%.
The Temple will continue to subsidize our Religious School, Membership Dues and all facility repairs and improvements thru the generosity of our congregants.
I am pleased to report there will no increase in membership dues and as of this time we are not asking our members for a fuel surcharge. We have also not increased our tuition for Hebrew School and in fact have offered a discount for early enrollments.
I want to thank the Board of Trustees and the Officers and Congregants of Temple Israel for giving me the honor of serving as your Treasurer this year.
We look forward to a very successful 2010-2011.
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CARING COMMITTEE
Joan Brickman
The Caring Committee makes itself available to the Temple family. We offer a variety of services for congregants who may have a need, ranging from emergency help shopping or getting to a doctor to providing transportation to Friday night services. This year it has started to come alive with several people availing themselves of our services. Please call the Temple office and ask for a member of the caring committee to call if you need some assistance.
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CATERING COMMITTEE
Ross Whitehead
For year ending December 31 2009, Morrell held 64 events at the Temple, not inclusive of the Journal Dinner Dance, Simchat Torah Dinner, and Rosh Hashana buffet. Morrell did not exceed their contracted revenue thus the Temple did not receive any additional payment from Morrell. The Rosh Hashana buffet following morning services went off without any problems or serious issues. The set up was more fluid than past years, and we had more seating. The Simchat Torah dinner was well attended and overall successful. We will have to make a point, in the future, to work out scheduling/serving issues as the start of service was delayed due to guests still working on their dinners. The Journal Dinner Dance, with 249 guests in attendance, the evening was a test of strength for both catering and journal committee. However, we all handled the evening with aplomb. A fabulous evening was had by all.
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CEMETERY COMMITTEE
Laurence Abrams
Our cemetery continues to be an asset to our temple and our temple members. While we have had a relatively quiet year in the sales of plots, we are very close to having an electronic map integrated with our cemetery information. This will allow our office staff to see what plots are sold and which are available. We are continuing to work with Beth Moses to be certain our plots look satisfactory and are being well maintained. I would like to thank Lenore Kubit, Ellen Gwozd, Vanessa Quiros, and Rabbi Rosenbaum for their help during the year.
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CHOIR
Penny Schuster
The adult volunteer choir has just finished its' fourth year under the skillful direction of Cantor Galina Paliy. The choir usually sings the 4th Friday night during services and each year has added new pieces to their repertoire. The choir is comprised of members of the congregation who like to sing and have fun. They enjoy bringing their music to the congregation. If you would like to join the choir next year, please contact the Cantor.
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COLLEGE COMMITTEE
MaryAnna Price
Once again I had the pleasure of heading the "Home Away From Home" project for Temple Israel. This program is charged with sending gift packages and holiday mementos to our children who are presently attending college or graduate school away from the area.
The nineteen students currently enrolled in the program (eight new to the program) received gift packages to help celebrate the holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Hanukah and Purim. I missed Passover because I could not find the inflatable Matzoh Beach balls in time. Each package was specifically designed to reflect the holiday. We sent apple cookies, honey, apple candies at Rosh Hashanah, Toys and chocolates for Hanukah. Purim is always a favorite as our packages are stuffed with so many goodies we can barely get them to close. We are all set for Passover next year.
It is always wonderful to start off the year, especially for students away from home for the first time, to receive a little gift to keep them "connected". It always gives me such pleasure when a student calls to say thank you for thinking of them. It makes all the work worthwhile.
Although our committee sends information fliers to each member family who has a college age child, not every family participates. There is no cost incurred by the participating student or their family, the only requirement is that they complete a form listing the student's address. They can just fax the form to the Temple. It is that simple.
My hope is to have every college age student member enrolled for this coming fall semester.
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FUND RAISING
Kenny Shapiro
We have done relatively well during this difficult financial economy. Most of our Kol Nidre collections have been received, the dinner dance went as expected, and our normal large contributors have done their share. Having said that, there is never enough that can be done to raise desperately needed funds for our Temple.
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GIFT SHOP
Bea Franklin & Michele Perlzweig
Special thanks to Michelle and Bea for keeping the shop looking great. It continues due to their tireless work. The Temple Gift Shop carries a wide range of items, from Judaica to housewares. We have beautiful merchandise for all holidays. The Temple Gift Shop is open by appointment. Please feel free to call either Bea Franklin or Michele Perlzweig. We would love to help you find that special gift for any occasion or perhaps for yourself. Buying at the gift shop is an easy way to support the temple, while saving yourself some money.
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JOURNAL GALA COMMITTEE
MaryAnna Price & Kenny Shapiro
The Journal Gala is the largest fundraiser held by the Temple. This year we finally convinced Dr. and Mrs. Arnold Koopersmith to let us honor them at the 2010 Journal Gala. It is hard to find two more deserving candidates. Arnold and Nancy have given so much of themselves to better Temple Israel, our temple family, and our community at large. With 249 guests in attendance, the 2010 Journal Gala was truly a testament to the love and respect held for Nancy and Arnold.
Morrell of Lawrence helped us achieve the goal we always ascribe to, a perfect evening. The food and service were nothing less than expected from a first class caterer, and the menu was enjoyed by all since selections were chosen to specifically accommodate all tastes and diets.
As is the committee custom and precedent, most of the, "big ticket" expenses were underwritten by temple members. Most specifically, we would like to thank Barbara and Allan Hartstein, Grace and David Land, Irene and Les Martin, Karen and Kenneth Shapiro, and Carol and Jim Rotenberg for their generous contributions. Once again Wayne and I donated the cost of the invitations and mailing so that the Temple was not saddled with this expense.
I am very pleased to advise that this year almost all of our Trustees pitched in with a donation to our silent auction, which raised a profit of over $10,000.00 for our Temple. Whether it was wine and purses, sunglasses and pillows, toys and books, each of these donations helped keep costs down, putting more profits back directly in the Temple office.
Also, part of the Journal Gala is the 50/50 raffle and for the first time, the winner was not a Temple member and was not in attendance. This raffle continues to earn steady revenue for the Temple with no expenditures whatsoever as the tickets, printing costs and time are donated by the Geri and Alan Krim and this committee chair. This year the Temple netted $3,350.00.
As is our standard custom for the past six years, the committee, numbering 20 members, and their spouses ,will again gather shortly for a working barbeque to dissect the current Gala, acknowledge any glitches that may have occurred, and start planning for next year.
As always, we acknowledge and thank everyone for their support and hard work.
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LEGAL
COMMITTEE
Les Martin
The Legal Committee, chaired once again by First Vice President Les Martin, and "staffed" by outgoing President Garrett Gray and incoming President James Rotenberg, had an extremely busy and eventful year. The year began with the temple being embroiled in a financial dispute with our exclusive caterer, Morrell Caterers, over Morrell's refusal to pay its contractually mandated annual utility fee adjustments. The caterer also unilaterally changed the arrangement that had previously existed regarding the payment of fees to our rabbi for weddings that were performed in our sanctuary. After intensive and protracted negotiations with our caterer and his legal counsel, during which the caterer submitted various requests for contract modifications that we believed would have been against the temple's best interests, it became apparent that we could not resolve the ongoing disputes without litigation, and we commenced a lawsuit against the caterer in New York State Supreme Court, utilizing the services of outside legal counsel. That lawsuit is now pending, and counsel for the temple has submitted a motion to the court seeking summary judgment. We believe that a resolution is still a long way off.
On the positive side, our "in-house" legal committee, spearheaded by Chairman Les Martin, represented the temple in the marketing and sale of Rabbi and Harriet Zion's former residence on Oak Ave. in Cedarhurst, after being informed that Harriet wanted to re-locate to New Jersey to be near her family. The sale of real estate by a Not-For-Profit Religious Corporation requires us to obtain the approval of the New York State Attorney General, as well as the State Supreme Court, which we accomplished, and the sale of the premises resulted in net proceeds to the temple of approximately $760,000, after payment of closing expenses and broker's
commissions. Special thanks to Kenny Shapiro and Alan Hartstein, our Building Chairmen, who worked tirelessly to prepare the property for sale and closing, and took care of all of the physical emergencies that had to be handled along the way.
In addition to the major issues described above, our temple's Legal Committee drafts and reviews all legal contracts in which the temple is involved, and functions as full time "in-house counsel" to assure that all of the temple's legal needs are met and fully protected.
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LONG RANGE PLANNING
Jim Rotenberg
Long Range Planning continues to evaluate the future requirements of the Temple so as to best guide the present action of its Officers and Board of Trustees with a view towards securing the Temple's future. Two of its initiatives, outsourcing the summer camp and nursery school to the JCC and refurbishing and reconstructing the catering facilities have been successfully implemented.
Much to our great disappointment, discussions with the JCC regarding the building of their new facility on our campus have been terminated by the JCC. However, the JCC has confirmed its continuing interest in leasing space for the foreseeable future from the Temple for their summer camp, nursery and day schools, and other JCC activities.
Importantly, we are in discussions with a well-known public institution regarding the use of our front-side lawn area. Any such use will be subject to the approval of Temple Members.
While our merger discussions with Temple Sinai were unsuccessful, discussions with other Liberal Temples regarding the consolidation of services and possibly congregations will continue to take place.
Efforts to attract unaffiliated Jews, including those involved in inter-faith marriages are being made.
In addition, the Temple continues to explore other ways to make use of its beautiful campus and other properties to generate additional revenue.
The Committee welcomes your thoughts and seeks additional participants.
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The Membership Committee was reorganized this year under the leadership of Joan Brickman and Patricia Reische. A group of forward-thinking congregants volunteered to serve with us. We brought back TIBS, which now operates as a separate entity. The Membership Committee has been working on a number of innovative programs to attract new members as well as trying to entice present congregants to become involved in Temple activities. We are looking forward to a productive, fulfilling year.
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Extra expenses were very carefully monitored. No check was issue without checking and an officer signer and most times 2 officers. Thanks to Mary Price's efforts we have been able to substantially lower our insurance costs. This will definitely continue with even more emphasis for the coming year. We all look forward to a prosperous new Temple Fiscal Year.
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TIBS is pleased to report that it is doing well. We have had three successful events - two in 2009 (dinner at Ayhan's in November and belly dancing in December) and one in 2010 (the Adult Purim Party in February). All were well attended and enjoyed by the attendees. Future events are being planned. Our committee is growing as well. TIBS has been seeing continued interest from our congregants. New members are always welcome.
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This past year the Nominating Committee, consisting of Beth Brenner, Michelle Jaeger, Grace Land, Linda Sklar, Dr. Steven Fischthal, Alan Hartstein and Alan Krim, had the monumental task of finding the most suitable selection of officers to lead us in this coming year. This was not an easy task as we had numerous qualified candidates from which to choose. We believe we have made the best decisions in the interest of the Temple as each party is willing and eager to take on the challenges currently facing Temple Israel
I wish to thank the members of the nominating committee for giving up many evenings to interview candidates and, more importantly, their spouses and/or significant others who encouraged and supported them in taking on this important project.
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PULPIT COMMITTEE
Geri and Alan Krim, Co-chairpersons
The Pulpit Committee acts as a liaison between the congregation and the clergy.
This year, the Pulpit Committee discussed and had the honor to oversee our Inter-faith Thanksgiving service and collation, Hanukah service and dinner, Martin Luther King, Jr. service, Purim service and baskets projects, Shabbat Across America dinner and service, Passover service, and Shavuot service. We are very proud of our Temple Israel Facebook page and hope if you have not already joined, you will very soon.
The Pulpit Committee would like to thank our spiritual leader, Rabbi Rosenbaum, for his suggestions and guidance and Cantor Paliy for her input. Serving on a temple committee is not only a mitzvah, but it is another way to make our temple better. Therefore, we as co-chairs would like to thank the many hard working members on the committee. Finally, thank you to Ellen, Vanessa, Fred, Eric, and Frank for making our meeting area ready for us.
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This was a very exciting year for the religious school. We launched our annex at Young Israel in Hewlett, holding classes once per week on Tuesdays while having special events 5 times in our own magnificent space, in addition to an optional day of enrichment which was available. About 51 students were enrolled in classes from first to seventh grade and there were 28 students including 8 graduates in our wonderful Hebrew High School.
We are very grateful to Mordhai Mahfouda and his outstanding faculty for all their hard work in making this year a success and wish him well as he retires from being our Educational Director after 9 fabulous years.
Our religious school program is defined by a clear mission and a curriculum which is based on knowledge of Hebrew, Bible, liturgy, history and holidays. Our caring teachers have enthusiastically presented lessons to our children incorporating the curriculum into an enjoyable afternoon of learning and fun. We thank Rabbi Rosenbaum for his support and Cantor Paliy for her wonderful music classes.
Next year we are very excited to move our annex to Lawrence Woodmere Academy where once again, we will hold classes once per week on Tuesday to help accommodate our member's busy schedules.
It was a good year for the Risk Management Committee, as we were able to see positive effects resulting from our labors. The Risk Management Committee's job is to see that the Temple, and the Temple family, are properly insured at the best possible price. We also annually review all events sponsored by our Temple to be sure we are properly covered, and are continually updating old coverages and eliminating unnecessary coverages to maximize savings. Our diligence this year has been successful.
A positive Worker's Compensation audit has brought the Temple a significant return premium, and the sale of the Oak Street property has saved the temple approximately $1,400.00 for the balance of this year. This year we were also charged with the task of finding replacement coverage for our employee health insurance. By changing carriers and passing a slightly higher co-pay to our employees, we were able to save the temple over $31,000.00 dollars annually, while still affording our employees excellent coverage comparable to what they were already receiving. All in all, a positive year.
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WEBSITE
Penny Schuster
Maintenance of the website and keeping our presence on the internet current and updated has recently been done by the office staff. The bulletin and calendars are added to the site each month so members can stay up-to-date on upcoming events. This year, we hope to add an online photo gallery of Temple events giving you the opportunity to look back and enjoy yourself again.
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