One of my favorite parts of being the chair of the Development Committee is getting to celebrate our ARJE members and help them feel appreciated in their work. Our work as Jewish educators can be lonely and often behind-the-scenes, so it can be difficult to recognize the impact we’re making on our students, families, constituents, and institutions on a day-to-day basis. If no one has told you lately, you deserve to be celebrated for the incredible contributions you make in the field of Jewish education! That’s where our Virtual Ad Journal comes in – a place for your organization to honor you for your hard work, creativity, and dedication; a place for us to celebrate our colleagues as they inspire us and support us in our work; and a place for your supervisor or family to celebrate an accomplishment in your career.
Our Virtual Ad Journal allows the ARJE to lift up the work of educators and elevate the field of Jewish education while helping our members realize how much they are valued and appreciated for their work. In addition to celebrating milestones in your career (like 5, 10, 18, 25, 30, 36, 40, or 50+ years as a Jewish educator), the Ad Journal is a special way to honor your retirement, earning the title of Reform Jewish Educator (RJE), attaining a new degree, completing a certificate program, reaching a milestone anniversary at your organization, hiring new team members, or taking on a leadership role within the ARJE. This year, we’re especially excited to celebrate those educators who are in the first year of a new job at a new place! Any significant accomplishment in your career deserves to be celebrated, so help us appreciate you! We encourage you to fill out our Celebration Form to share your career milestones with us so we can help you receive the recognition you so richly deserve. We will reach out to the contacts you provide, which allows our fundraising efforts on behalf of the ARJE to be tied to appreciating and honoring our members in a significant and special way.
Additionally, you can celebrate a fellow ARJE member and support the work of our organization by placing an ad in our Ad Journal and sharing this information with your colleagues. The Ad Journal will be displayed at ARJE27, our annual conference, and shared with our membership, so it’s a wonderful way to recognize an individual or share information about an organization that serves Jewish educators. By spreading the word about our Ad Journal and our Sponsorship opportunities at ARJE27, you can help multiply our fundraising and appreciation efforts and connect our members with organizational partners that support us in our work.
I’m so proud of the work of the Development Committee because it’s more than just fundraising for the sake of dollars and cents. The money we raise does support all facets of the ARJE to help create spaces where we can learn together, connect with colleagues who become “our people,” and find the support we need, no matter where we are in our career. Beyond simply fundraising though, we help show our members they matter by connecting their work to their impact and finding ways to celebrate their successes and achievements. I’m honored to bring honor to all of our amazing ARJE members in this way, and I hope you’ll help me in this effort!
Melissa Pescatore, ARJE Development Chair
Submit Your Milestones to the AREJ Ad Journal