A wide range of opportunities are available to get involved
in temple life - from helping out occasionally at temple to
being a Mentor to a new family to serving on a committee,
our Center for Learning, Caring Community or the Board.
In addition, see Social Action
to learn about other ways you can lend a hand either by volunteering
or making a financial contribution.
Volunteer Connections Committee
As a congregation of over 800 families, Temple Jeremiah's
growth over the years shows the strength of our community
connections and the ongoing tradition of opening our doors
to all who want to be part of our community. Most importantly,
this growth enhances our diversity. We are blessed with hundreds
of congregants with a multitude of talents, occupations and
interests. This diversity enables us to fulfill our goals
- from providing bagels on Sunday to supplying backpacks and
books for Waukegan schools, feeding the homeless, making Shiva
calls, assisting in the temple office, sponsoring activities
to support Israel and even studying Torah together.
Temple Jeremiah's growth, however, also means we must make
connections with each other to identify and utilize all the
talents and interests of our membership. To that end, the
Board has established a Volunteer
Connections Committee. The Committee's goals include encouraging
as many congregants as possible to volunteer for activities
at the temple. To that end, the committee will be contacting
you in the near future to help in a variety of ways. You may
receive an email, a postcard or a phone call. When you do,
we urge you to volunteer your time and talents to strengthen
our Jeremiah community, our local and regional community and
the entire Jewish community. Please respond when we reach
out for your assistance.
The Volunteer Connections Committee needs its own volunteers,
too. If you are interested in developing volunteerism at Temple
Jeremiah, please contact Susan
Brody.
Every action, small or large, has a reaction. With your assistance,
Temple Jeremiah will continue to be a thriving community supporting
its members in celebration and time of need, as well as serving
the community, our country and the State of Israel.
Get
Involved in a Committee, the Center for Learning or on our
Board of Directors
The Nominating/Leadership Development Committee invites congregants
to volunteer in the life of Temple Jeremiah. You will find
it rewarding and a great way to make friends and become part
of our temple family.
We are looking for interested people to:
Join one of our many committees - i.e. Membership,
Caring Community, Social Action, Outreach or Library
Committee
Get involved in our Center for Learning, either
through Religious Education, Tot Shabbat or Adult
Education
Serve on the Board of Directors
Participation can be as limited or extensive as you desire.
If you want to get involved or would like to recommend someone,
contact Executive Director Fern
Kamen.
Join
the Temple Volunteer Pool
Want to make a difference? • Want to meet people?
• Want to volunteer in some small way?
Then join the temple's volunteer pool. The pool not only
provides assistance for numerous temple events, it is also
an outstanding way for members to connect with one another
and to do mitzvah projects.
Volunteering is easy and can be tailored to your skills,
interests and schedule. Areas where we need assistance include:
• Bagel Bar (Sunday mornings) • Baking/Cooking
• Board or Committee Member • Communication/PR
(help with brochures, marketing) • Computer/IT •
Design/Art Work (invitations, flyers) • Driver/Delivery
• Events/Programs (planning, set up, meet and greet)
• Fundraising • Gift Shop • Holiday Programs
• Library • Office Work • Phone Calls
to Members • Photography • School Volunteer
• Shiva/Sick Calls • Social Action • Ushering
• Volunteer Coordinating • Waukegan Project
(read to children, help with donations of school supplies,
etc.) • Youth Group
Several congregants have told us about the invaluable assistance
they received from the Volunteer Pool. Here are some of their
testimonials:
“The Volunteer Pool helped facilitate our set-up
for the Milestone Member Brunch. We couldn’t have
done it without them.” - Susan Ardell
“Their help with the Milestone Member Brunch
and other events was invaluable. Kudos to Susan Brody and
her dynamic team!” - Emmy Rothschild
The Volunteer Pool needs more members. If you can lend a
hand, download and fill out the form (see above) or contact
Susan Brody
and let her know where your specific interests lie. Don’t
worry if you cannot help when called. Your name will go back
into the pool for a later date. The larger the list, the more
we can accomplish together.
Please volunteer. Every mitzvah makes our congregational
family stronger and allows Temple Jeremiah to continue hosting
our many wonderful events and renowned programs.
Mentor-A-Family
Sign up soon to be a Mentor Family. If you
haven't figured out how to get involved at temple yet, this
may be just the program for you. It's a great mitzvah
project for the entire family. PLUS you can fit Mentoring
around your own schedule. If you are not assigned a family
right away, we will connect you up with a family as needed
during the year.
Responsibilities will include calling and welcoming the new
family to Jeremiah, inviting them to temple functions and
being there to answer questions and talk about the temple's
resources.
Worried about how to mentor? Relax! You already have experience
as a Temple Jeremiah member yourself. In addition, we will
provide an orientation packet so you have the most up-to-date
information. And there are numerous resources within the temple
to help you answer any questions that arise.
Over the past four years, our Mentor Program has been very
successful. Here's what some new members had to say recently
about being welcomed to Temple Jeremiah:
"Our welcome to the temple exceed our expectations.
People went out of their way with cards and phone calls.
We had many positive early experiences."
"The Mentor Program encourages new members to
come to events. Without our Mentor Family, we may not have
attended our first event or made a strong connection to
the temple right away. Then as mentors, we invited our new
member family to join us."
We have found the best way to help new families acclimate
to the temple is to mentor them. You can be our Temple Jeremiah
olive branch, that initial, meaningful connection for a new
family. Please contact Amy
Torf now to be a Mentor.
Be an Ambassador Family
The job of an Ambassador includes welcoming a new family,
helping them feel comfortable and inviting them to participate
in temple events. Knowledge of temple is not a prerequisite.
Being an Ambassador is simple. You will receive the name
of a new family matched with your family’s demographics,
location or interests. You will call them a few times during
the year and invite them to attend temple events with you.
Ideally, you will join them at the New Member Dinner in the
fall. If the family has questions about temple you can't answer,
you will refer them to someone from the Membership Committee
who can field the questions. We will provide you with names
and numbers.
This is a very simple way to volunteer and get connected,
and one of the most important parts of a new member’s
welcome to our community.
If you are ready to sign-up as an Ambassador, please
click and complete the Form
(it will take less than 2 minutes).
The Caring Community supports our members in times of challenge
and helps them to celebrate in times of joy. For volunteer
opportunities with the Caring Community, please download this
form. Please
RSVP and/or direct questions to Rabbi
Greenberg.
Wanted: Children's Librarian
Do you get pleasure working with children? Do you enjoy reading
children's books? Then volunteer to be a librarian during
Religious School on Sunday mornings. The position will involve
promoting and marketing our children's book collection to
parents and children and storytelling to children. Contact
Anne Lidsky to
volunteer.
Second Sunday of the month during the school year
10:00 - 11:15 am
Join our dedicated corps of volunteers as they make and deliver
lunches to a homeless shelter in Chicago the second Sunday
of the month during the school year. Contact the Social
Action Committee to learn more.
The Social Action Committee, Brotherhood and Sisterhood,
in collaboration with The ARK, buy groceries and visit a needy
Jewish family. Volunteers are urgently needed.
Temple Jeremiah is engaged in an ongoing effort to help the
Waukegan School District. Click above to learn more about
this exciting new temple-wide social action initiative. The
Social Action Committee is looking for volunteers to work
at the Waukegan Learning
Kitchen during the EPIC Pre-School's carnival on May 16.
A new group has formed for congregrants who want to bring
social action projects to the school. Click above to learn
more about social action projects in which our school children
have been involved.
