Havurah's Transparency and Inclusivity Committee has invited Havurah members to submit questions to them about Havurah. Below is an answer to one of the questions. (Updated on April 24, 2023 to reflect current staffing.)

Question:

• What is the process when you have a great idea for a project to become a reality?

Answer:

• Determine which committee or cluster your idea is best connected to. You can do this by either looking at the organization chart on the website or asking the Gesher Team for their suggestions. The committee organization chart can be found on the Governance page of our website, and information about the Gesher Team can be found on the Planning an Activity page.
• Contact the appropriate person(s) and discuss your idea with them.
• Utilize the Principles and Practices: A Checklist for our Participatory Governance as a guide for the discussion as you develop the project or activity.
• Your idea might be found consistent with priorities and move forward, determined to be consistent but shelved for a later time if scheduling, space, staff, and/or volunteer resources are not available at that time, or found not to currently match congregational priorities.

Further questions about this process? Let Fran Weick or Judy Steinberger know, and they will try to answer them. You can find their email addresses in our membership directory on our website.

Question:

• I’m confused about who does what in the office so I know who to contact.

Answer:

When you visit or call the Havurah office, you will meet two staff members: Tara Anderson, the Participation & Publications Coordinator, and Rachel Pollak, the Office & Facilities Manager. Both can help you with general inquiries, but you may want to contact one or the other for the following things.

Tara's roles at Havurah include the following:

• Welcoming new and prospective members and providing information about Havurah in print and online
• Helping all members engage in the Havurah community by connecting them with groups, committees, and activities of interest to them
• Managing production of printed brochures, including annual community brochure
• Producing the monthly printed newsletter Hakol
• Sending weekly news emails to Havurah members about upcoming activities and opportunities and monthly emails to non-members interested in Havurah
• Managing Havurah’s website and social media
• Providing staff support to the Kehillah (community) cluster
• Providing planning guidelines so members know how to plan Havurah activities
• Managing Havurah’s branding, including logo, fonts, and color palette
• Managing external publicity and advertising, in print and online

Here are some of Rachel’s main roles:

• Assisting members with account questions, billing, and payments
• Helping b'nei mitzvah families and others to rent the building
• Reimbursing people for program expenses
• Managing contractors such as janitors, child care providers, IT support, and building maintenance providers
• With Makom cluster, being responsible for building upkeep, repairs, improvements, and security
• With Tara, adding events to the calendar and keeping it up to date
• Arranging set-up for Havurah events and other logistics
• Managing High Holiday logistics
• Supporting Havurah cemetery management
• Being a liaison to the Safety Committee

Both Tara and Rachel are always happy to help. Don’t be afraid to reach out to either of us if you’re not sure whom to call!

Is there something about Havurah you have wondered about or would like to better understand? Send your question/concern to transparency@havurahshalom.org and we will make sure to forward it to the appropriate person.