You can be our hero. Through the “Power of Hello,” you could single-handedly prevent or defuse a security threat. Allow me to elaborate:
There’s an old joke about the Jewish pessimist who says, “It can’t get much worse than this”, to which the Jewish optimist responds, “Oh yes, it surely can!”
I have tremendous faith in America – its laws and people – to have our back. The blessings of being Jewish in America remain unprecedented for any Jewish Diasporic community in our history. Still, there is no denying that we are living through a challenging period. These last few weeks have been especially trying, with the violent attacks in D.C. and Boulder, not to mention the thwarted attack in Michigan (if you haven’t heard, I’ll spare you the details but suffice it to say Thank God). It is regrettable that the security committee has become the most critical of committees in synagogues and that our vigilance must be elevated to levels that leave us feeling bereft.
There are some obvious ways to confront this. Spiritual stamina is one of them. Let us not be deterred from feeling immense pride in our identity, rituals, and values, as a people connected to the land and State of Israel. There is another, perhaps less obvious, way we can each have a powerful impact. We can receive training in situational awareness. This critical training helps us identify potential threats before they become dangerous incidents. This critical training allows each of us to feel empowered in doing our part to protect our community.
It turns out that the safest Jewish community centers are not the ones with the greatest number of hired security guards on site (though having a guard is a very important layer). The safest centers are those wherein the membership has been trained in situational awareness, in identifying signs of threat, and in buying into the process. The “Power of Hello” training does just that and is meant for you – the members of our synagogue community. If we can put the “Power of Hello” into full implementation at CBI, we will preserve our warm welcoming culture while making it a safe environment as well.
Please mark your calendars for Monday, June 16, from 7:00 – 8:30pm, at CBI, for the “Power of Hello” security training, facilitated by Greg Drucks from Federation’s security team. Greg is a terrific teacher (he has trained our staff on multiple occasions), and I have full confidence that you will benefit from taking his class. My thanks to Kenny Kavowras for organizing this critical training for our community.
To reserve your spot, contact Kenny at hennyman@aol.com or the main office at mainoffice@cbi-nj.org
You just might end up being our hero.
Rabbi Ari Isenberg
