With Thanksgiving and Chanukah just behind us and year-end quickly approaching, I am reminded of the expression “an attitude of gratitude.” This is the notion of making it a habit to express thankfulness and appreciation in all parts of your life, on a regular basis. For both the big things and small things alike. On a regular basis, my young grandchildren delight in the activity of identifying their “thorns” and “roses,” giving them a moment to reflect on the days’ events and to share their challenges and express the things for which they are grateful.
Whether giving thanks to God or just feeling grateful in our own reflections, the expression an “attitude of gratitude” resonates with me on so many levels. First, I am thankful for family and friends who provide support and encouragement through good times and, sometimes, tough times, and for the many things that make day-to-day life so wonderful. I am also most appreciative of a community that demonstrates caring and compassion and a desire to welcome and engage its members.
In this edition of HAKOL, we take a moment to recognize the generous and valued support of sponsors and advertisers and all that they do to support our mission and community efforts. I hope you will join me in recognizing their ongoing support by patronizing their businesses. Together, we are HERE FOR GOOD, and we appreciate their generosity and community minded care.
I am also grateful to each one of you for your time, talent and financial support working to make our community a rich and vibrant one. It is our Jewish Community Center, our Jewish Day School, our Jewish Family Service, all of our synagogues and other organizations that enrich our Jewish life here in the valley. Despite COVID restrictions, all of our agencies have found interesting and creative ways of bringing programs to you. In addition to the HAKOL agency updates, I also call your attention to a new section in HAKOL bringing us the Good News from Israel – a reminder that we are blessed to be part of a global community.
Along with our organizations, our Jewish Federation, Foundation and affinity groups all work to provide opportunities to engage you in helping to make our community and the world a better place. A new project called Dignity Grows, the return of missions to Israel, initiatives like Life and Legacy Each One Reach One, Women Empowering Women, programs for New in the Valley, Men’s Night Out, Mitzvot in the Making and our Maimonides Society’s 35th anniversary are just a few examples of the upcoming diverse and exciting opportunities to celebrate in our community. I hope you will participate in any and/or all of these initiatives, and please feel free to call me for more information.
How wonderful it is to be surrounded by you, as together, we address important and meaningful work each day. Please accept my sincere appreciation and thanks to each of you for inspiring me.