Our Jewish Federation's mission is to strengthen and enhance Jewish life. We do this through the programs and services we provide and as the voice of our local Jewish community.

Although it seems like ages ago, our Jewish Federation still uses the information we gathered from our 2021 Community Survey. In fact, many of the survey's findings and insights have informed and are guiding the work my staff and I have been doing since the survey results were shared with the community.

One of the many themes that came out revolved around the fact that many in the community have difficulty describing, explaining, or understanding what the Jewish Federation actually does.

As the organization's Executive Director, this caught me off-guard and reminded me that just because it may seem obvious to me, it does not mean that everyone can see and understand what we do and the value we add to the community. This is one of the main reasons we created our Federation FOCUS newsletter. You will receive our next edition by the beginning of August. The purpose of this newsletter is to update the community about the work we have done since the last newsletter, highlight a specific program or activity to give insight and perspective, and publicize events we have coming up.

However, since we only send Federation FOCUS out three times a year, we continue to use different vehicles to highlight and share how our Jewish Federation, through the support of community members like you, is impacting our local Jewish and non-Jewish communities. Sometimes it is harder than others because some of our work happens "behind the scenes," which is not the easiest to discuss. Thankfully, the advocacy work we have been doing on behalf of our Jewish community to combat antisemitism over the last few months is getting the kind of attention we hope it would.

This past Sunday, the Pasadena Star-News, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, and the Whittier Daily News published an article that covered the work your Jewish Federation is doing to combat antisemitism, including how Glendale's City Council will be voting on a resolution denouncing antisemitism TODAY (July 11), and that Rosemead will be doing the same on July 25. This follows the Op-ed I wrote last month, published in many of the same local papers thanking the cities who have joined our effort by passing resolutions denouncing antisemitism and all forms of hatred.

I share this not as a way for our Jewish Federation to "pat itself on the back," but rather as an example for people to better understand what the Jewish Federation DOES and illustrate what it means for us to be the Jewish voice for our community.

You can help us continue to get this message out. Not only can you support our work by donating today, but you can also tell people about our work and encourage them to spread the word. And if you ever have any questions or would like more information about what we do or how you can help, please reach out by emailing federation@jewishsgpv.org, calling the office (626.445.0810), or just stopping by to chat.