 |
|
|
|
|
EXecutive director's messages
Quick
Links:
Sacred Partnerships and Sacred Priorities
December 2007 Message
Long Range Plan: Creating a Roadmap for the Future
December 2007 Message
As the secular year draws to a close, we are making a special appeal to our members for the timely payment of dues, school fees and building maintenance fund pledges.
Dues are our single largest income source. Timely payments help assure that we have sufficient revenue to meet our obligations. Dues not only help us maintain this facility, they help us to retain excellent staff, provide meaningful worship and clergy services, offer award winning adult education, and sustain a youth program that helps build a strong Jewish identity for our children. These are but a few examples of the work of our synagogue and how it plays a role in nurturing the Jewish community.
If your calendar-year-end tax planning and charitable giving allow you to do so, we also welcome a contribution from you. Dues alone do not cover our expenses. Here are some options:
- Give to our 2007 Light the Way Annual Appeal. Each year we subsidize dues for our seniors on fixed incomes, young families and individuals who have limited means to pay full dues. For CBI to keep our doors open for all who wish to enter, we need your help.
- Join the Dor L’Dor Society. Make a provision to leave a gift to CBI in your will. Whatever the value of your bequest, it helps us ensure a future for generations to come.
Please accept my best wishes that the new secular year be one of joy, health and peace for each of you.
go to top
Long Range Plan: Creating a Roadmap for the Future
Early in the fall of 2005, the leadership of CBI embarked on a Long Range Planning process to help move our congregation through a period of disruption and uncertainty to a time of managed growth, financial stability and prosperity, based on purposeful decision-making and managed change. The plan was intended to help us chart our course for the next five years.
We were committed to involving as many individuals as possible and sought widespread participation. Our Board of Directors, clergy and professional staff, present and former lay leaders, countless volunteers, and more than 100 additional congregants gave invaluable input. We asked what we've done right, where improvements could be made and what our priority issues and needs should be. We formed subcommittees to look at education, programs and services, worship, membership and financial stability and we developed recommendations. Without a doubt, this was a major and inclusive organizational planning endeavor.
Phase II: Writing the Plan
We are now in Phase II of the process: writing the final Long Range Plan document. Our intent is to refine the numerous recommendations and group them into cohesive strategic areas while eliminating redundancies. We will also take into account recommendations already implemented, such as the improvements made to our Oneg Shabbat celebrations.
Recommendations with obvious merit, little or no cost impact and which can be easily implemented, will be addressed immediately, such as increasing the number of greeters at Erev Shabbat services to promote a more welcoming culture. Already, new recommendations have arisen as we refine the plan document and solicit supplementary input. Truly, a roadmap is developing before our eyes. We are excited and encouraged by the possibilities.
Phase II includes developing a budget and an implementation timeline. The document will need careful review by the Finance and Development Committees to address funding issues resulting from the proposed initiatives, since these will feed into the congregation's budget process and further define our fundraising objectives.
go to top
Phase III: Implementation
Once the Long Range Plan has been approved, Phase III, implementation, will begin. We will review our progress on an ongoing basis. The central theme emerging from the Long Range Planning process is the need for our congregation to focus its resources on building community and connectedness to each other and to Judaism through programming and worship, increasing our focus on member engagement and satisfaction and by providing greater opportunities for interaction with the clergy team. As our work in this critical planning process continues, we believe the vision of a vibrant and engaged community will play a major role in steering our efforts over the upcoming years. We hope you will join us in making the vision a reality.
For further information on CBI's Long Range Plan, contact Lesley Mills Executive Director.
may be reached at 858-535-1111.
Her assistant is
.
go to top
|
|
|
|
