Comments on: It’s Time to Get Off the Dance Floor http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/it%e2%80%99s-time-to-get-off-the-dance-floor/ Connect. Educate. Innovate. Wed, 17 Mar 2010 10:17:30 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Naava Frank http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/it%e2%80%99s-time-to-get-off-the-dance-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-43294 Naava Frank Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:43:01 +0000 http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/?p=2976#comment-43294 I applaud Maya's comments. I think as a community we have broken ourselves up in to silos and factions. We need to take a step back and look at the potential we have to achieve more by building the system as a whole and working together. I believe deeply in the power of 'conversation' and the important role of facilitation (note: the Schusterman Facilitation Intensive http://www.leadingup.org/facilitation_intensive). Numerous Federations and Central Agencies for Jewish Education around the country are building their capacity for facilitating conversation. Next we need to work on ourselves, to do tzimtzum - (contraction) of our individual egos to develop some space for diverse collective egos. Naava I applaud Maya’s comments. I think as a community we have broken ourselves up in to silos and factions.

We need to take a step back and look at the potential we have to achieve more by building the system as a whole and working together.

I believe deeply in the power of ‘conversation’ and the important role of facilitation (note: the Schusterman Facilitation Intensive http://www.leadingup.org/facilitation_intensive). Numerous Federations and Central Agencies for Jewish Education around the country are building their capacity for facilitating conversation.

Next we need to work on ourselves, to do tzimtzum – (contraction) of our individual egos to develop some space for diverse collective egos.

Naava

]]> By: Bob Hyfler http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/it%e2%80%99s-time-to-get-off-the-dance-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-43251 Bob Hyfler Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:04:17 +0000 http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/?p=2976#comment-43251 Either because it is too painful or too precise I tend not to be comfortable with the "family" metaphor. However Maya Bernstein's thoughtful piece points me to think that the "organized comunity" and "foundations" are analogous to a semi estranged couple competing for their "innovative" child. One offers seed funding, operational freedom and unconditional love, the other offers a history of successes and failures to build upon and future sustainable platforms, collaborations and mechanisms for business infrastructure and funding. The irony of course is that down the road today's young innovator is more likely to inherit in her middle age the assets and challenges of the organized community while foundations, liberated as they are from keeping the trains and buses of organized Jewish life running, move on to kvell over a new generation of grandchildren. Either because it is too painful or too precise I tend not to be comfortable with the “family” metaphor. However Maya Bernstein’s thoughtful piece points me to think that the “organized comunity” and “foundations” are analogous to a semi estranged couple competing for their “innovative” child. One offers seed funding, operational freedom and unconditional love, the other offers a history of successes and failures to build upon and future sustainable platforms, collaborations and mechanisms for business infrastructure and funding. The irony of course is that down the road today’s young innovator is more likely to inherit in her middle age the assets and challenges of the organized community while foundations, liberated as they are from keeping the trains and buses of organized Jewish life running, move on to kvell over a new generation of grandchildren.

]]> By: William Rapfogel http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/it%e2%80%99s-time-to-get-off-the-dance-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-43246 William Rapfogel Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:20:52 +0000 http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/?p=2976#comment-43246 The article is intriguing and the "dance" goes on. But keep in mind that effective and efficient organizations like Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, a UJA-Federation of New York affiliate, can serve the tens of thousands who receive food every month, the thousands of crisis intervention clients, thousands living in its affordable housing, and hundreds getting career counseling or job training and so much more...only because of the ongoing commitment made by UJA Federation. Innovative programs such as Met Council's Handyman repair service and new kosher soup kitchens make profound differences in the quality of life of needy families but don't seem to generate the same "buzz" at boutique foundations. Yet, young volunteers "get it" and dedicate time and in some cases contribute too. Met Council's Growth Fund has helped nearly 100 smaller non-profits build capacity and set a road map for the future and our Project Amood develops young leasers in the Russian Jewish community. Buzz-oriented "boutique" foundations need to better understand how important UJA-Federation is to making a difference and need to recognize that much can be done within existing organizations if they look more closely and don't stereotype the groups. The article is intriguing and the “dance” goes on. But keep in mind that effective and efficient organizations like Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, a UJA-Federation of New York affiliate, can serve the tens of thousands who receive food every month, the thousands of crisis intervention clients, thousands living in its affordable housing, and hundreds getting career counseling or job training and so much more…only because of the ongoing commitment made by UJA Federation. Innovative programs such as Met Council’s Handyman repair service and new kosher soup kitchens make profound differences in the quality of life of needy families but don’t seem to generate the same “buzz” at boutique foundations. Yet, young volunteers “get it” and dedicate time and in some cases contribute too. Met Council’s Growth Fund has helped nearly 100 smaller non-profits build capacity and set a road map for the future and our Project Amood develops young leasers in the Russian Jewish community. Buzz-oriented “boutique” foundations need to better understand how important UJA-Federation is to making a difference and need to recognize that much can be done within existing organizations if they look more closely and don’t stereotype the groups.

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