This letter is written prior to the annual meeting. Without an identifiable President for the next year, I have taken the liberty to write this column more as a concerned congregant than as a potential synagogue officer. Our group is small, is divided in many ways and is unclear as to what direction we should take next. It is hoped that Rabbi Maslan, if selected, can help us define a new direction.

I would suggest that we have to consider ourselves as a large chavurah and carefully pick and choose what activities we can support. That alone will take some work to define. I also think that we need to take on membership recruitment as our most immediate challenge. By that I mean not only putting our name out locally, but also really batting our heads together to come up with a number of new ways to get out the message that there is a Conservative Congregation in town and that you can be a member. One way we can do this is to start an email discussion among all of us on this topic. Tell all of us what you think we could be doing and in the process let’s compare and contrast many ideas.

One that has recently been proposed is to have a Friday night service at Jubilee and another at Panorama. That’s the kind of suggestion that can work and be easily done. What else is out here? Besides our current publicity list, where else can we advertise? Who else should be receiving our newsletter that is not now? Are our printed promotional materials delivering the right message? What relations can be improved within the Seattle community that will help spread our name?

Thanks for your input.

Lowell

Thank you to Danny Stusser for donating an automatic cardiac defibrillator. It is in an orange case on top of the social hall refrigerator. Please look at it and familiarize yourself with the operating card inside. There is not much to do. If someone has fallen and unconscious from a heart attack, open their shirt or blouse, apply pads where indicated and the machine will do the rest. You then need to get a call into 9-11 quickly.

There is a new Jewish oriented Literary review in the Northwest called Drash. Their second volume is now out and there will be a reading at Orca Books at 509-4th Ave East in Olympia on Monday July 28 from 7 to 8:30pm. For more information, contact Wendy Marcus, Drash Editor, at wendy@templebetham.org

Our new Representative to the Interfaith Works is Jennifer Davies who replaces Alan Corwin. Many thanks to Alan for his numerous years of fine service representing CBT there.

Jennifer has offered to work with Sherri to transition the website. She has IT background and is familiar with website development. If anyone has suggestions regarding the website, please forward them to Jennifer or the Board

We still need a few volunteers to take a turn mowing the grass.

On Monday June 16th, 15 members listened as Rabbi Maslan explained his views on Jewish survival, adult and youth education, how he sees his interaction with CBT and answered many questions. Bottom line is that he is strongly for everyone being as Jewish as they can be and was received well by those attending.

There was a unanimous vote by at the annual meeting to hire Rabbi Bob Maslan.

Beginning Hebrew classes will not be held in July. They will resume in August.

Thanks go out to:

Mike Zorn, for donating a copy of the book "A Family of Strangers; the History of the Jews of Washington State" to our library.

Jon Auster, for his six years (!) service on the Board as Treasurer.

To the Car Wash Crowd, for a successful event.

Alan Corwin, for representing CBT at Interfaith Works for many years.

Tobi and Jerry Braverman, for donating and having installed an improved faucet for the kitchen sink.

To everyone who contributed to the Torah Repair Fund. We now have sent the little Torah off for repair. We still need to raise about $1,800.00 to get the large Torah repaired.

Thank you to Pam Rosen for donating much kosher food to our kitchen.