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Dear Maharat Rori,
As we near the end of 2023, it is impossible not to think about how much our world and our community have changed this year. With the trauma of the October 7 attack, ongoing Hamas-Israel war, and increase in antisemitism, the work of bringing people together, keeping one another informed, building community, strengthening relationships, and creating understanding is more essential than ever. That is the work that JCRC has prided itself on throughout the past eighty-five years.
Together, we have built space for discussion and insight with our recurring series HaKol Koreh: Everything Happening in Israel. We have learned from expert speakers like Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer, Gil Hoffman, and David Makofsky who were able to bring their brilliance and experience to St. Louis, in addition to experts on Israel and the Middle East from around the world who spoke to us via Zoom over the past three months. And we have gathered together with community throughout St. Louis to support our siblings in Israel, advocate for the return of the hostages captured by Hamas, and speak out against antisemitism.
All of this is possible because we have done the work together. Together is where we are able to make the greatest impact in securing the future that we desperately want for this community, one in which we are free to live our Jewish lives according to our values, connect to our world safely, and express our needs and viewpoints without fear of reprisal or hatred. Whatever the year to come holds, I know that we will face it by extending the care we each would want for ourselves.
Together, we are St. Louis. May the year ahead be a year of peace and blessings, of learning and growth, of care and community building,
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