Dear Friends,

On behalf of Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County’s Board of Directors, I wanted to introduce myself and express my gratitude for your incredible support and dedication to our community, particularly during a season that has been personally challenging for many of us.

No one could have predicted that when I was nominated last year to serve as Federation’s new board chair, that a global pandemic would launch my tenure. While every Jewish community in the world is grappling with the coronavirus, I could not be more proud about how our Federation and partner agencies have swiftly adapted to address the most critical needs in our community, in Israel and around the world. While this health crisis has presented many challenges, one thing I know for certain is this: our Federation was built for this moment.

With your generosity this season, we’ve been able to accomplish the following:

•  Counseling services for families and individuals impacted by the coronavirus;
•  Free mobile security patrols for 22 local Jewish organizations and synagogues to prevent and respond to potential acts of antisemitism;
•  Food and medicine deliveries to frail seniors;
•  Scholarships to enable children to attend summer day camp;
•  Launching a new career services program;
•  Expansive online Jewish education for children and families;
•  Emergency financial assistance, and much more.

I know I speak for the entire board when I say that we are committed to delivering critical programs to our local community and partner agencies.

I must express an enormous thank you to all of the previous board chairs, including Ira Gerstein who just completed his term. You’ve created a remarkable model for leadership, and have laid the significant foundation upon which we’ve built a growing, thriving, vibrant Jewish Palm Beach.

To our new Federation Board, President & CEO, Michael Hoffman and the entire team at Federation, I look forward to working with you in our shared determination to meet our community’s needs.

There can be no doubt that what’s happening in our world has changed our lives forever, but rest assured my goals and vision for the Federation remain steadfast. I am humbled and honored to be your new Federation Board Chair and consider myself to be fortunate to serve a community that values our efforts to care for the vulnerable, support and strengthen connections to Jewish values, traditions and identity. I look forward to hearing from you, working alongside you and seeing you soon.

Sincerely,

Hope Silverman