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WEB EXCLUSIVE:
Attracting young people, new ideas key for AMIT Cleveland’s future
By Carol M. Splaver
Special to the CJN
Fundraising organizations nationwide are facing dwindling active membership and more challenges in meeting their financial goals. B’nai B’rith, Women’s American ORT (Organization for Rehabilitation through Training) and AMIT are seeing the same situation in chapter city after chapter city.
Fewer members are active, less funds are raised, the active members get burned out, and soon the chapters dissolve. A generation ago, members met every month for programs, lectures and business meetings. These days, members send their checks in return envelopes to organization headquarters and maybe get together once a year for a major event.
Cleveland’s AMIT chapter is hoping it has found a solution to this difficult problem: “Revive it!” says Beth Gottesman, AMIT’s Midwest Regional Director. “Get younger people to make AMIT a part of their lives.”
Based in Chicago, Gottesman oversees fundraising and organizes events for 12 chapters in her native city, six of which are inactive. “Chicago has identical problems as Cleveland’s, we just have more staff,” Gottesman explains. “Everyone is fighting for the same dollars, young women are working and have no time to volunteer.”
She also oversees chapters in Indianapolis, Cleveland and Milwaukee. Cincinnati no longer has a chapter. Even Cleveland’s two chapters several years ago consolidated into one.
Gottesman sees Cleveland’s strengths in its “very committed people who really want it to work.” The chapter’s weakness is “having a hard time making changes.” Cleveland needs to come up with ideas for new ways to reach its goals, to include everyone on the membership roster.”
“The members need to know they are working for AMIT’s 20,000 kids in Israel, not just their own city,” Gottesman notes.
Originally founded as American Mizrachi Women in 1925 in Cleveland, AMIT runs schools throughout Israel for children from disadvantaged, abusive or broken homes. The children learn that AMIT schools are safe, inclusive and based on the teachings of Orthodox Judaism.
AMIT has been so successful at running and financing its own schools, that the Israeli government has asked the organization to take over the school districts in several Israeli towns, including Sderot, the target of daily rockets attacks from nearby Gaza.
But, like the other fundraising organizations, keeping up the standards of fundraising is getting more and more difficult at the chapter level because of the economy, an aging membership, and more diversions pulling on the time, talents and checkbooks of its members.
Trying new things is exactly what prompted Cleveland President Rochel Feig and her Board to invite Gottesman to Cleveland for the day to examine what they do right and what they need to change, and to chart a new course for the chapter. “By trying new things and being open to new ideas, getting more members vested in AMIT’s purpose, the end result has to be to raise more money,” Gottesman agrees.
The first group Feig and Gottesman met with in the afternoon were the newly formed New Generation Board, consisting of Tikvah Lifschutz, Nancy Soclof, Danielle Wild and Lauren Ehrenreich. Gottesman rated the group “really together and well organized.”
The New Generation Board came up with ideas such as kashering a popular non-kosher restaurant for a day for an AMIT night out.
“AMIT has a wonderful Welcome Basket project,” Gottesman enthused. “Now give it more follow-up.”
Feig and Gottesman also met with Rabbi Binyamin Blau, high school principal at Fuchs Mizrachi School. “We discussed getting the students involved in twinning with an AMIT student to share a bar or bat mitzvah or tzedakah (charity) project.” Through the Internet, the American and Israeli students can share the learning and planning of their simchas.
At the meeting of the AMIT Board in the evening, Gottesman added some successful ideas Chicago has had. “We have a scavenger hunt downtown with our husbands. We split up into groups and give everyone goodie bags and water bottles. We have casino nights and boat rides.”
“There should be one big event a year for the young adult group,” Gottesman suggested, “then invite them to all the general chapter events. Get sponsors to cover some of the expenses of the events, and get a babysitter list together. This is your base to pull from for the future.”
Gottesman suggested, “Go after Jewish women, not just frum (Orthodox) women. Get men on board – they write checks, too! And men are not as likely to say no to a request for a donation if a man calls.”
Gottesman, who lives in Skokie, is married and has three children in their twenties, and two grandchildren. She has worked full-time for AMIT for 16 years.
Infused with the Gottesman’s enthusiasm, Cleveland’s AMIT Board hopes to reverse the trend of disinterest in charitable organizations, and make their chapter energized again.
Fewer members are active, less funds are raised, the active members get burned out, and soon the chapters dissolve. A generation ago, members met every month for programs, lectures and business meetings. These days, members send their checks in return envelopes to organization headquarters and maybe get together once a year for a major event.
Cleveland’s AMIT chapter is hoping it has found a solution to this difficult problem: “Revive it!” says Beth Gottesman, AMIT’s Midwest Regional Director. “Get younger people to make AMIT a part of their lives.”
Based in Chicago, Gottesman oversees fundraising and organizes events for 12 chapters in her native city, six of which are inactive. “Chicago has identical problems as Cleveland’s, we just have more staff,” Gottesman explains. “Everyone is fighting for the same dollars, young women are working and have no time to volunteer.”
She also oversees chapters in Indianapolis, Cleveland and Milwaukee. Cincinnati no longer has a chapter. Even Cleveland’s two chapters several years ago consolidated into one.
Gottesman sees Cleveland’s strengths in its “very committed people who really want it to work.” The chapter’s weakness is “having a hard time making changes.” Cleveland needs to come up with ideas for new ways to reach its goals, to include everyone on the membership roster.”
“The members need to know they are working for AMIT’s 20,000 kids in Israel, not just their own city,” Gottesman notes.
Originally founded as American Mizrachi Women in 1925 in Cleveland, AMIT runs schools throughout Israel for children from disadvantaged, abusive or broken homes. The children learn that AMIT schools are safe, inclusive and based on the teachings of Orthodox Judaism.
AMIT has been so successful at running and financing its own schools, that the Israeli government has asked the organization to take over the school districts in several Israeli towns, including Sderot, the target of daily rockets attacks from nearby Gaza.
But, like the other fundraising organizations, keeping up the standards of fundraising is getting more and more difficult at the chapter level because of the economy, an aging membership, and more diversions pulling on the time, talents and checkbooks of its members.
Trying new things is exactly what prompted Cleveland President Rochel Feig and her Board to invite Gottesman to Cleveland for the day to examine what they do right and what they need to change, and to chart a new course for the chapter. “By trying new things and being open to new ideas, getting more members vested in AMIT’s purpose, the end result has to be to raise more money,” Gottesman agrees.
The first group Feig and Gottesman met with in the afternoon were the newly formed New Generation Board, consisting of Tikvah Lifschutz, Nancy Soclof, Danielle Wild and Lauren Ehrenreich. Gottesman rated the group “really together and well organized.”
The New Generation Board came up with ideas such as kashering a popular non-kosher restaurant for a day for an AMIT night out.
“AMIT has a wonderful Welcome Basket project,” Gottesman enthused. “Now give it more follow-up.”
Feig and Gottesman also met with Rabbi Binyamin Blau, high school principal at Fuchs Mizrachi School. “We discussed getting the students involved in twinning with an AMIT student to share a bar or bat mitzvah or tzedakah (charity) project.” Through the Internet, the American and Israeli students can share the learning and planning of their simchas.
At the meeting of the AMIT Board in the evening, Gottesman added some successful ideas Chicago has had. “We have a scavenger hunt downtown with our husbands. We split up into groups and give everyone goodie bags and water bottles. We have casino nights and boat rides.”
“There should be one big event a year for the young adult group,” Gottesman suggested, “then invite them to all the general chapter events. Get sponsors to cover some of the expenses of the events, and get a babysitter list together. This is your base to pull from for the future.”
Gottesman suggested, “Go after Jewish women, not just frum (Orthodox) women. Get men on board – they write checks, too! And men are not as likely to say no to a request for a donation if a man calls.”
Gottesman, who lives in Skokie, is married and has three children in their twenties, and two grandchildren. She has worked full-time for AMIT for 16 years.
Infused with the Gottesman’s enthusiasm, Cleveland’s AMIT Board hopes to reverse the trend of disinterest in charitable organizations, and make their chapter energized again.
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