In ten years...

Since my youngest recently turned 8 years old, I have considered where my family will be in ten years, the year he hopefully goes off to college. Ten years is a nice round even number, a decade.

I have considered my age, my financial position, my family's position relative to the youngest, etc. and I have tried to predict certain things based upon a ten year analysis.

So where will you be in ten years? Where will FHC be in ten years? Where will World and American Jewry be in ten years? Certainly I do not have the answers, but I would suggest that it is never too early to plan for the future.

I am going to suggest that FHC develop a think-tank or Decade Comm. to see where we are now and where we want to be in the next ten years. What milestones do we want to hit. What do we want to do as a Jewish Community in Northern Westchester. What are the current demographics, and what can we anticipate for the future. What are the needs of the Jewish community and how do we meet them. Even more importantly, in my opinion, how do we keep FHC and Conservative Judaism relevant to the community to create and forge relationships with Jews and Jewish Families and thereafter continue the relationship past the time of the last Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Similarly, how do we give Jews a viable reason to become and remain affiliated with FHC? A free cemetary plot or the type of bagels at a kiddush is not going to make the difference.

If anyone is interested in the concept of a Decade Committee which would be a forward thinking group to plan FHC's future, let me know. Such a Committee, if approved by the President or the Board of Trustees, can become a major catalyst in the direction of FHC, since it could provide both short term and long term proposed goals on essentially all issues.


Shalom. Jeremy