News from Kol Ami

on Monday, 29 December 2014. 

January is often a time of resolutions. We take stock, looking at who we were last year, comparing it with who and what we want to be. Then we make resolutions that get us closer to this ideal. Your Kol Ami leadership is doing the same thing. We’re not doing it because it’s the turn of the secular year. We’re doing it so we can continue to get closer to the ideal community. The first step is articulating what this ideal community is. These conversations took place frequently over the fall (even when we weren’t specifically aware that we were having them). We talked about what kind of school we want to have. We talked about how we want to welcome people when they enter our building, whether they are new to our community or have been attending services for years. We talked about how we want to strengthen our community, largely by building on all the amazing things we do – engaged learning at all age levels; ritual practice that is accessible to people of many different backgrounds and levels of education; music that gets us moving and stirs our souls. 

The elephant that is often in the background of all of these discussions is financial stability. How do we make sure we are financially sustainable? How do we make sure that our finances are transparent and accessible? While all the work that I’ve discussed above is critical to answering those questions in broader ways, the first quarter of 2015 is devoted in many ways to answering these questions more specifically. In February, our Finance Committee will lead a Town Hall that will be devoted to providing the financial update that was promised at last June’s Annual General Meeting. Of equal importance, is the work that is being conducted by our Dues Task Force, led by David Katz and overseen by the Finance Committee. This Task Force is looking at dues models across North America, learning best practices and helping to determine whether our current model is serving us best. They will report to the Board in late Spring. 

There’s a lot going on! If you have questions or want to get more involved in any of these activities please don’t hesitate to contact me at gabnick2004@yahoo.ca. We have so much to be proud of. We received positive feedback all through High Holidays and the fall about what a warm, welcoming place we are. I’m so delighted to be a part of this community. 
L’shalom,
Nicole Arnold