By Scott Rubenstein, NFTY-SW

Kutz Camp teens with URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs

As part of my incredible experience at the URJ Kutz Camp this summer, I had the amazing opportunity to meet with Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Union for Reform Judaism President. The Kutz leadership selected a diverse group of 18 participants for an open forum session with Rabbi Jacobs, and I am very fortunate to have been selected to represent my NFTY region and my home congregation, Temple Chai in Phoenix, AZ.

As an active NFTYite, I am a full and passionate supporter of the URJ’s Campaign for Youth Engagment, and I immensely enjoyed being able to talk about it with the head of our Movement himself. My fellow participants and I expressed our concerns about the lack of youth engagement, as well as potential reasons why we believe this is occurring. We talked about the Bar and Bat Mitzvah Revolution, eliminating the stigma that a Bar or Bat Mitzvah is an ending point in Jewish involvement rather than a step along one’s Jewish journey. We also realized that no matter what youth movement Jewish teens choose to affiliate with, we are all Jewish, so we in NFTY should be partnering with other movements to ensure deeper and broader collaboration towards youth engagement. One participant in the conversation is a Teen Engagement Intern at his temple, and suggested a similar position be created in other communities.

The group also spent a portion of the session on a topic of youth engagement that I was not aware of – Jewish life on campus. While it is important to raise a child Jewish and make sure they are involved and engaged every step of the way, it’s also important to ensure that they will continue to be involved in Judaism post-high school as well. We discussed how Judaism is currently playing a role in the lives of Jewish college students and the effect Judaism has on choosing a college campus. It was an eye-opening experience for me, because as a sophomore in high school, this is a subject I am only beginning to explore.

Rabbi Jacobs was extremely open to everything we had to say and took copious notes on all we had to share. I appreciated being recognized as an enthusiastically engaged teen and enjoyed being a representative of perhaps 180 of the most invested teens in the Movement, my fellow participants at Kutz this summer.

I am honored to have been selected to speak with Rabbi Jacobs during his visit to Kutz. The fact that he took time to come and visit us showed me how committed he is to helping ensure that Reform Judaism thrives into the next generations. I cannot wait to see all the amazing places Rabbi Rick Jacobs takes the Reform movement during his tenure as President of the Union for Reform Judaism, and I, along with so many of my friends, look forward to being his partners along the way.

By Evan Traylor, NFTY North American President

Looking back on my amazing journey through NFTY, there have definitely been some incredible and life-changing moments that have come to define not only my NFTY career, but also some of my favorite memories. These moments define my life in NFTY, and have given me the valuable opportunities to grow and become inspired as a NFTYite and as a Reform Jewish teen.

In the spring of my 8^th grade year, I first experienced the power of a NFTY community when I attended NFTY-TOR’s JYG at Greene Family Camp. Going into the event, I knew one other girl from my Temple and my TYG Advisor. After leaving the event, however, I had made so many awesome friends, many of whom I have become best friends with over the years while attending Greene Family Camp, NFTY-TOR events, and NFTY in Israel in 2010. This was my first ever exposure to NFTY, and it would change my life forever.

The summer after my sophomore year, I had the amazing and inspiring opportunity to explore the great land of Israel through NFTY in Israel L’dor V’dor trip. On this trip, I not only made lifelong friendships with NFTYites from all across North America, but I also got to renew my Jewish spiritual connection to the land of Israel, and renew its position as a driving force of inspiration as a Reform Jewish teen.

In February of my junior year, I drove a mere 3 hours south to Dallas, Texas for NFTY Convention 2011. This enormous and crazy gathering of NFTYites was unlike any other NFTY event I had ever attended. While song sessions and meeting new friends were definitely highlights, the NFTY-TOR regional board’s opportunity to lead Havdallah was my first time leading NFTY at the North American level, and was an incredibly inspiring and motivating moment in my life.

NFTY-TOR Spring Kallah 2011 was filled with incredibly bitter-sweet moments. While I was very excited to be elected and installed as NFTY-TOR President for my senior year, I was also very disappointed that my time with the 2010-2011 TOR board was coming to an end. This was an amazing testament to the true power of generational leadership within NFTY.

It’s hard to believe that only a few months ago, over 5,000 Reform Jews descended upon Washington D.C. for the 2011 URJ Biennial. As a member of the Campaign for Youth Engagement Vision Team, this Biennial was a very exciting time for NFTY and all Reform Jewish teens, as the URJ rededicated itself to the strong involvement and contribution of Reform Jewish youth within our Jewish communities.

Almost four months ago, members of the NFTY General Board gathered at the URJ Henry S. Jacobs Camp in order to make bold decisions that would affect the future of NFTY and the URJ for years to come. In addition to running for NFTY President, I was looking forward to this event in order to build upon the incredibly strong friendships that were begun all the way back in June at NFTY Mechina. This weekend has been, and will continue to be my inspiration as I continue on my NFTY journey. I look forward to our shared future as we carry the NFTY torch through this important time in our movement.

NFTY President-Elect Evan Traylor gave the following speech to his congregation, Temple B’nai Israel in Oklahoma City, OK, last week about the Campaign for Youth Engagement and how to get involved at the local level. Though his suggestions are specifically related to his congregations, they can be adapted for use by anyone – at any congregation – who’s interested in engaging youth in Jewish life. Learn more about the Campaign for Youth Engagement at www.urj.org/cye.

Hi everyone! Can I please ask everyone to stand up for just a second? Alright, I want for everyone to pretend that you all are the youth of the Reform Jewish movement in North America after their b’nai mitzvah. Now, can I please get 80% of you to sit down. The group still standing, only 20%, are the Reform Jewish youth still engaged actively in Jewish life after their b’nai mitzvah. Whether it’s through camp, NFTY, confirmation or teaching Sunday School, this group, only 20%, are still engaged. This right here is the current trend in Reform Jewish youth across North America. Eighty percent are not engaged whatsoever in Jewish life – and this is why the Campaign for Youth Engagement was launched, to reverse this trend in our youth and to make engaging in Jewish life the norm in our temples and Jewish communities.

After more than a year and a half of planning, which including several Vision Team meetings and gathering information from over 1,000 conversations with rabbis, cantors, educators and youth (including focus groups at Greene Family Camp), the Campaign for Youth Engagement was unanimously passed by the URJ Board at the 2011 URJ Biennial in Washington D.C.Here’s some background information on the history of the Union for Reform Judaism’s Campaign for Youth Engagement:

• Already more than $1 million has been pledged directly toward the campaign’s programs and staff.
• Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the incoming President of the URJ, has declared that youth engagement will be the number one priority during his term.

The overall goal of the Campaign is to dramatically improve the ability of Reform institutions to involve young people in meaningful Jewish life and strengthen post-b’nai mitzvah engagement and retention in synagogues, day schools, camps and youth programs throughout North America.

How will we accomplish this? The Campaign will utilize the breadth and depth of relationships that exist within the Reform Movement – its congregations and its numerous governing bodies – and bring to bear the full commitment of talent and resources of the Movement.

You may be asking yourself, what does this have to do with me? Why is this huge Campaign, that will be effecting nearly 950 Reform Jewish congregations and 1.5 Million Reform Jews across North America, significant to me?

The lesson of L’dor V’dor, generation to generation, is a lesson that holds a high place within Judaism, and especially within this congregation. We must ensure that the generations after us have the experiences and passion to continue our strong and vibrant journey as Reform Jews. While Temple B’nai Israel could be considered an exception to the 20% statistic, we are not reaching our full potential as a congregation. And it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to ensure that our Temple community continues its strong tradition of supporting our youth. Join the youth commission. Donate to one of the numerous youth funds we have at the temple. Have a conversation with a teen about their experiences at Greene Family Camp or a NFTY event. If you’re a parent, make a strong commitment to encourage your child to join Jr. OKATY or OKATY. They will have the time of their lives, I promise.

I’d like to end with a quote from Rabbi Rick Jacobs, incoming President of the URJ. This is from the closing ceremony at the 2011 URJ Biennial: “Together we will seize this moment and shape a better tomorrow for our congregations, our Movement, our people and our world. Help me open our doors, our minds and our imaginations. Grasp the Torah with me as we carry it out of seclusion. We are the Reform Movement, so let’s get MOVING!”

By Melissa Frey, Director of URJ Kutz Camp and Associate Director of NFTY

Originally posted on the Kutz Camp blog.

It was just a year ago when I had the opportunity to be part of the listening campaign of the Campaign for Youth Engagement with WRJ District Presidents during their annual retreat to Kutz Camp. Last year these women shared their unique and powerful stories about a time when an interaction with a young person influenced their lives. While there were many remarkable stories that were shared, there is one that still resonates with me on so many levels.

“As a public school teacher most of my career, it was very common for me to spend time with teens. One of the most poignant interactions I remember was a teen asking me if I actually thought that my work mattered. I responded that I knew that it did, because she was willing to ask the question. That young woman grew up and is now a teacher herself.”

WRJ District Presidents at Kutz

A year later, WRJ District Presidents just concluded their annual pilgrimage to Kutz, having planned, programmed, and dreamed about their goals. As the WRJ readies to celebrate their 100^th anniversary, I am reminded of their countless gifts that have helped to influence the youth of our Movement. During a walking tour of camp yesterday, I was able to highlight the direct and indirect ways the work of WRJ has permeated our culture in NFTY and at Kutz, including how our shared values influence camp culture, how Jewish learning and expression is brought to life in new ways through texts like the Women’s Commentary and the Covenant series, and the expansion of our digital media studio, which was seeded by a generous grant from the YES Fund.

While on that tour, we spoke about the listening campaign last year. Some of the women recounted their stories, and stories they heard that impacted them. As we gathered lakeside to take a photo under a perfectly blue sky, it was perhaps articulated most profoundly by WRJ president Lynn Lazar and executive director Rabbi Marla Feldman, “this just feels so right, this is why we do what we do.”

To all of the women who have trail blazed the path of WRJ, whose work has so influenced my passions, of NFTY and Kutz Camp, I wholeheartedly agree. For all of us, this is why we do what we do – because in our souls we know it to be right. As WRJ celebrates 100 years of shaping the lives of Reform Jewish Women, and as we prepare for, in two years, NFTY’s 75^th anniversary, and in three years, Kutz Camp’s 50^th anniversary, we look forward to many celebrations, supporting one another and lifting each other up in our holy work.

By Kate Bigam, URJ Social Media and Community Manager

Originally posted on the Reform Judaism Blog

The following is a speech former NFTY President Forrest Yesnes gave to the Women of Reform Judaism as the 2011 Union for Reform Judaism Biennial at the Gaylord National Convention Center in Washington, DC.

By Forrest Yesnes, NFTY President

Thank you. My name is Forrest Yesnes and I’m this year’s NFTY President. I am a freshman at the University of Minnesota and my family has belonged to Temple Israel in Minneapolis since 1964. In 3 unbelievably short years I have transformed from an awkward, boring high school sophomore with few goals and not a lot tying me down to a confident, driven, passionate, inspired young man with a much stronger idea of who he is and what he wants to do with his life. And I have NFTY to thank for everything.

NFTY… for some, it’s just an outlet from school, a chance to be someone else for a few weekends at a time and escape the everyday stresses of life back home. Others attend kallot to see friends from camp again, to reminisce about the last summer and express excitement about the coming one. Some NFTYites have siblings who laid the groundwork for them to be involved, others create their own identity as they go. Some label NFTY their only connection to Judaism, others say it’s one of many. For everyone, though, NFTY is a second home, a place where they can come with opinions, leave with more open minds, expand their horizons when it comes to working towards tikkun olam. NFTY engages teens in youth-written programming, relevant study, and t’filah that, before NFTY, was never considered, like services where we text our opinions and feelings about prayers or dress up in costumes or share pictures from our trips to Israel. For developing and sometimes confused adolescents, this speaks to us.

There is another classification of NFTYite, however: the one who cannot get enough. This girl or boy could never imagine missing a kallah or a Temple Youth Group event; he would be the first one to sign up; she would be the last one on the bus when they head home. These are the leaders of our movement… and not just NFTY, but the entire Union. These are the young people who want to be sitting in your seats in 20 or 30 years, the young people who can’t wait to graduate from an undergraduate program so they can enroll in HUC to be the clergy members that they have looked up to for so long. These are the ones who are here with us in Washington DC this week as a part of the NFTY Leadership Assembly.

And not one of the over 200 NFTYites in DC this weekend are required to be here. They are not forced to be in NFTY, no one is required to attend NFTY events or participate in NFTY functions. These teens, the hundreds, thousands involved, go out and make a difference in the community or in the lives of others because they want to. Each of them is here because they want to be. Teens engaged in camp and NFTY choose their own level of involvement. I don’t know about you, but I think it’s unbelievably phenomenal how these teens volunteer their time to perpetuate their own Jewish journeys forward in the direction they please.

And their passion is not wasted this year. The NFTY board, me and my four colleagues (who, by the way, you will regret not meeting if you walk away from this event without having done so) are not taking these NFTYites’ dedication for granted. We are all working on projects… initiatives we have put together. Liza, our Programming Vice President, and I, with the help of NFTYites from every corner of our reaches, are putting together a NFTY book. A perfect outlet for NFTY’s Study Theme this year, “Im Ein Ani Li Mi Li, If I Am Not For Myself, Who Will Be For Me: NFTY Studies the Power of Personal Expression”, and knowing that the emotional ties to NFTY make it difficult for our participants to explain and define its importance, we’re hoping this NFTY book will show adults and future NFTYites alike what it means to live and die N-F-T-Y.

Avra, our Social Action Vice President, has been inspiring her network of regional counterparts to teach about this year’s NFTY Action Theme: “Mishpacha: Family, How Does NFTY Fit Into Our Greater Community? NFTY Addresses Human Divides.” Looking at the segregation of minorities like those who are disabled, gay, poverty-stricken and more, NFTYites do their best to knock down the walls responsible for these human divides. We all look forward to the inaugural NFTY Mitzvah Day where Temple Youth Groups across North America will engage in meaningful service learning projects related to the Action Theme.

Austin, our Religious and Cultural Vice President, and Taylor, our Membership and Communications Vice President, are both collaborating with URJ staff to make NFTY more edgy and green… Austin is striving to make creating services more user-friendly by instigating an online program for writing t’filah. And Taylor is transitioning NFTY publications to an online magazine for easier access and less paper usage. Together, the five of us gather the strength to pursue our goals and ambitions to make NFTY that much more enjoyable to its members. But we wouldn’t have been able to this without the WRJ.

The initial support in establishing NFTY, and the continued support of NFTY from the WRJ is changing the lives of these kids, opening up options and possibilities that would be impossible without you all. It is no secret that the WRJ’s focus is on the youth, and that NFTY has so much to thank you for. For one, thank you for your phenomenal donation to the Campaign for Youth Engagement for $90,000 dollars. No words can describe the recognition you deserve. Also thank you for your support of the URJ Kutz Camp through YES grants. NFTY’s Summer Home has been crucial in the development of many of these teens at our Biennial and across the country. A congratulations is in order as well. With your impending Centennial celebration in 2013, you can bet NFTY will be there to celebrate with you all just like you were there to wish us a happy 70th a few years ago.

I would be remiss if I didn’t personally thank the WRJ wholeheartedly. Every part of who I am today is because of NFTY, any successes that I will have down the road will be, too. The same is true for NFTYites across the United States and Canada, and we would not have encountered NFTY without the Women of Reform Judaism.

Peseekta de Rav Kahana said “Of all the tzadikim, the righteous ones, the most beloved are the joyful and sincere teachers of the youth, who shall sit at my right hand.” Everyone sitting here are the tzadikim, the righteous ones, so let’s join our hands together and continue this partnership together. Thank you.

NFTY-NE December Institute Says Happy Channukah!

Just over two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending and participating in URJ Biennial.

Throughout that weekend, NFTY created our own campaign that was displayed on our event t-shirts; submitted entries for the NFTY book in line with the study theme of personal expression; learned about the Campaign for Youth Engagement; and – of course – heard President Obama speak. He even mentioned NFTY twice! I even had the opportunity to shake his hand! Directly preceding his speech, we celebrated the Religious Action Center’s 50th anniversary, during which I spoke alongside Rabbi David Saperstein, Mark Pelavin, Jennifer Kaufman, Rabbi Al Vorspan, Wendy Wallach-Delucia, Rabbi David Stern, Allison Grossman, and Julie Silver, each of us sharing our perspectives on how the RAC makes a difference.

All throughout Biennial, I thought to myself: “This is what it’s all about.”

And then last week, I traveled to NFTY Northeast’s December Institute at URJ Eisner Camp, where I once again found myself thinking: “This is what it’s all about.”

During the course of five days I had the utmost pleasure of being immersed into the NE community—a true kehillah k’doshah. The event’s theme was “mistakes,” and the programming covered all aspects: the difference between accidents and mistakes; the importance of perspective; taking responsibility for our mistakes; the Jewish perspective of how to make decisions in difficult situations; the power of the positive; and understanding the power in a word, examining the social action aspects of choices we make on a day-to-day basis. We also learned about decision-making in the Torah, led by our outstanding faculty of TYG advisors; understood NFTY and NE terms through the lens of Nemo, the mascot, through skits from “Finding Nemo”; and made the best of friends during hofesh (free time) and the talent show.

Since it is difficult to encompass the richness of this event, I’d like to highlight some of the most meaningful moments…

LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE

• One of the most unique parts of this event for me was getting to know the region’s leadership structure. Before each Institute, the overalls, officers, and PCs meet at camp a day before the event to go over programs, materials needed, and the general schedule of the event. Overalls are the 5 or 6 seniors chosen for each institute to help the officers write and execute the programming; the 10 PCs – short for ‘prayer coordinators’ – work with the RCVP to plan all of the services throughout the event. Part of the behind the scenes work includes making up program packs for each program’s group leaders so all the materials are already split up and ready to go. I saw for myself, in being a group leader for most programs, how the beforehand meetings culminated into running such a seamless event.

• As many of you know, NFTY-NE has a nominations process as opposed to a direct election. Basically, during the nominations process, the regional board and the advisor create a team of ten individuals to be next year’s officers. The process is lengthy and goes through many stages: examining characteristics desirable for a leader; considering each and every junior, since all officers are seniors; and making sure there is a geographical and gender balance among those chosen. Once that year’s officers compile a slate of ten individuals, the candidates are notified and asked if they would like the position. If one of those people decide they would not like the position, the board considers the team in choosing a replacement. When the slate is released to the region, any junior can challenge the slate and run for a position. Then, the region considers all candidates – slated and those that challenge – and elect NE’s regional board at Spring Conclavette, and installed at their Senior Kallah where the torch is then passed from the seniors to the juniors—quite a #generationalleadership moment!

• NFTY-NE was happy to welcome Beth Avner, NFTY’s Director of Education and Special Projects, as a visitor at December Institute. Part of Beth’s visit consisted of starting conversations about the nominations process, in seeing how it affects candidates, the region, and all of NFTY. As a result of starting the conversation, for the first time in Northeast’s history, the juniors who attended Insty compiled a list of characteristics of leaders in a meeting ran by NE regional board alumni. Yet another moment of #generationalleadership! Having the juniors help to compile the list of traits the board will look at in deciding next year’s leaders ensured their participation in having their peers assume those leadership roles.

• Understanding the nominations process helps me realize how important it is to recognize and respect that each region has its own traditions and traits that, together, make all nineteen into the NFTY we know and love.

T’FILAH—ONE JEWISH COMMUNITY

• At Institute, each of the 10 PCs write and lead a service, meaning we pray twice each day. This aspect of a NFTY was new to me personally; in doing so, I could sense how much more meaningful the programming and even being together as one Jewish community seemed. Throughout Institute, we sang our favorite prayer melodies and listened to significant readings. I will never forget how we were asked to take off our watches in order to live in the moment. Nor will I forget how we were blindfolded and felt lost, accentuating what it means to be transient, be lost, to lose, be found, or to find. I will always remember how incredible it was to visually see our glowsticks, symbolizing our own sparks, in addition to the candles we lit in memory of various demographics in need, gradually fill the space with a light that I know will never go out, as the words of “Firework” echoed in our ears.

• Each night of Institute, the region gathered for siyuum, where we sang the bedtime shema, along with songs like “Song for the Divine Mother of the Universe” and “Lord Prepare Me.” Intermittently, we had the chance to reflect on the day through reading aloud mitzvah notes, recounting all the mitzvot our friends performed. The energy flowing throughout the room every night reminded me of how powerful it is to be a part of any NFTY community. Knowing that regions all over North America sing the same songs and feel the same emotions by experiencing them in a brand new region with people whom I had only known for five days—that was remarkable.

CONNECTIONS

• Part of the magic of NFTY is coming to an event knowing about 15 people, and leaving the event with 150 new friends, as I did during this experience. Getting to know people on a personal level was definitely one of my favorite parts of this event, from living with three junior girls to leading conversations in programs that led to pertinent applications of Judaism to our every day lives. I really felt like I rediscovered that magic, as the awkward introductions of name, TYG, and a silly fact, turned into hugs of see you later over the course of just those five days.

• The new friendships created are just as meaningful to me as reuniting with old friends, like seeing the NE regional board all together for the first time since Mechina. Roey Schiff, NFTY’s shaliach, also visited NE and gave a shpiel about URJ Israel programs. There were several URJ Kutz Camp alumni I got to see. There were a few NE board alumni with whom it was great to catch up, especially someone I went on the SAVP trip with two years ago. I even ran into a former URJ Camp Coleman counselor who is now a NE TYG advisor!

The reflections I shared above are only some of the fantastic memories created at URJ Eisner Camp with NFTY-NE. I would like to sincerely thank everyone at NE that welcomed me; I look forward to our friendships blossoming. Thank you especially to Rachel Mersky Woda, Brett Lubarsky, and the board—keep working to foster NE as an extraordinary community. As we move in to this new year, and head back to work and school after the holidays, let us keep in mind the importance of the event’s theme: mistakes. Living with them, taking responsibility, and learning from them. But make no mistake…it was hardly a mistake that I attended Insty and remembered: “This is what it’s all about.”

To see pictures from the event, Click Here!

Avra Bossov is the NFTY North American Social Action Vice President  and a freshman at George Washington University.  You can follow her  on Facebook and Twitter.

By Ivy Cohen, Youth Director at Scarsdale Synagogue Temples Tremont & Emanu-El

The last Biennial I attended was in 2007 in San Diego. I did not know what to expect of Biennial and could not imagine just what thousands of Reform Jews looked like. I didn’t know how many of my former camp counselors I would reunite with or what Jewish musical legends would share their talent with the community. I didn’t know what Shabbat would resemble or if it would be as powerful as Shabbat at NFTY convention. I didn’t know if Debbie Friedman z”l would remember meeting me while I was on NFTY in Israel. I had countless uncertainties.  On the bright side, I had a long flight from New York to daydream and imagine what Biennial would be like. Even so, upon arrival in San Diego, I was a scared out of my pants college freshman.  I was also the Religious and Cultural Vice President of NFTY. That Biennial changed my life. I witnessed the magnificence of Reform Jews in large numbers. I schmoozed and shook hands with the key leaders of our movement. I rode the elevator with Rabbi Yoffie. I led Havdallah along with my board for the whole Biennial, knees shaking and off-key, but it didn’t matter. I was on cloud nine. In that moment, I decided to pursue a career within the Reform Movement.

Yesterday, walking through the doors of the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center was somewhat of a daunting moment. I became filled with the same nervousness and excitement I used to feel before each NFTY event or opening day of camp.  For the first time my nervousness outweighed my excitement. I have been to my fair share of URJ events, some large some small, ranging from biennials and NFTY conventions to small committee meetings at the New York headquarters.  For the first time I am experiencing a URJ event simply as a participant. I am not in charge of creating impact, change or a meaningful experience for anyone but myself, as I select what workshops and sessions I want to attend.

As I approached the registration table I looked down at the vast quantity of ribbons available to tack on to credentials, a small token to show off varying degrees of involvement within the Reform Movement. I started sifting through the mess of ribbons And came across those that applied to me. I couldn’t decide whether to pick and choose, or take all that were applicable. I decided on the latter.  URJ Kutz Camp Alum, HUC-JIR Student, NFTY Alum, URJ Camp Alum- Eisner, and NFTY In Israel Alum all explain monumental milestones in my Jewish journey; however, there is one that I know explains a transformational and substantial experience in very few words: NFTY Board Alumni. I know at this biennial, this ribbon is worn by few, and the few who wear it are proud to do so.

I am moved by the Campaign for Youth Engagement more than I could do justice in words. I want more than anything for all Reform Jews to instill the values in their children that my parents found worthwhile. I believe if every child whose parents identified as Reform Jews got to experience even a week at a Reform Jewish summer camp, the world would be an entirely more beautiful place.  I cannot put a value in what my Day School education did to shape me as a Jew; however, I know that if my experience at Solomon Schechter was so incredible, a Reform Jewish High School would have been so beyond words. The University of Delaware provided me with a rich environment to become involved in many student organizations, some Jewish others  not.  Similar to every other phase of my life, most of my friends were Jewish, but they were different. My college friends were so far separated from their Judaism. Rosh Hashanah was nothing more than an excused absence from class and Yom Kippur was a day to go home and eat bagels.   The Jewish friends I made who are so utterly disconnected from their Judaism along with my already strong foundation solidified my plan to pursue not only my career but to further my learning. HUC-JIR’s Certificate in Education Specializing in Adolescents and Emerging Adults program has provided me with a forum and incredible network of people who are just as compassionate about the holy work of being a Jewish professional as I am.   As a Jewish youth worker, I believe firmly that every congregation should see the value and potential in having a full–time youth professional. Above all else, I am moved by the campaign because I fear the day is all too close where there will be no high-school senior interested in running for NFTY RCVP.

My days of “fame” as a teenage youth leader in the Reform Movement are now years in the past; however, I am more motivated than ever to provide the foundation for the youth of our movement to pursue their Jewish future. There will always be one too many extra curricular activities, and I am forever grateful that fifteen year old me decided I could cut out one of my varsity sports to fulfill the responsibility of youth group President. I only wish more teens would make the same decision. As a NFTY Board alumnus I am privileged to be a member of a distinguished group of individuals, each of whom during their monumental teenage years made the decision to choose youth group over something else. Our youth groups, camps, day and religious schools are worth the battle that our leaders have embarked us on. The road will not be short and free of bumps, but the day when we are touching the lives of all Reform Jewish youth is just on the other side. I am here today as a full- time youth professional, a proud senior staff member of a URJ summer camp and a NFTY board alumnus and I am determined to empower and shape the lives and identities of Jewish teens for many years to come. By 2020 I hope and know it is a real possibility that many teens will aspire to be Jewish leaders. By 2020 I know that instead of our movement continuing on this path of becoming obsolete, we will be able to reach our youth through creative programming and a wealth of opportunities. I know we are capable, and I know we will succeed.  This is my campaign.

Earlier today, the Biennial held the Campaign for Youth Engagement forum and a few early-arrival NFTYites learned about the incredible commitment the Reform Movement is making to young people everywhere. We learned about the challenges and the dreams of the visionary leaders of our movement. NFTY’s very own Evan Traylor, NFTY-TOR President, had the opportunity to address the large crowd about his personal experience with Judaism.

Moving forward, NFTY will be playing an integral part in the formation and implementation of the Campaign for Youth Engagement. This is our chance to be a part of one of the greatest initiatives our movement has ever undertaken.

——-

Here are three examples of how the campaign is already affecting NFTYites:

My part in the Campaign for Youth Engagement was definitely a new learning experience! I came into the campaign as part of the work that the Avodah (counselor-in-training) group participated in at Greene Family Camp this summer. After leading focus groups for teens at GFC about their thoughts on what successful Jewish life should be, the importance of meaningful relationships in their congregation life seemed to thrive through all of their stories. These campers revealed the importance of meaningful engagement lies in the strong sense of community brought to them at Greene Family Camp. These reflections gave the Campaign for Youth Engagement a great perspective on where the importance of future of Reform Judaism should be focused.

By Evan Traylor, NFTY-TOR President

I also participated in the Campaign for Youth Engagement by learning the importance behind the campaign and listening to some of the stories that my peers gave. After gaining this firsthand knowledge about the movement and having given some of my own stories and thoughts about the subject I can see the importance that Youth Engagement has on Reform Judaism.

By Jeffrey Lewis, NFTY-TOR MVP

I did not have the opportunity to be part in the Campaign for Youth Engagement with my fellow TOR-board members. However, I got to attend a meeting at Temple B’nai Israel in Oklahoma City and listen and give my input into what I think is important to help our youth get more involved. I am not like all Jewish teens, though. Most teens do not attend conformation, and keep up with their temple after they have a bar or bat mitzvah. After hearing the stories and comparing how involved I am, I now see the importance for this campaign.

By Sammi Donchin, NFTY-TOR SAVP