I was originally part of leadership development at Federation CJA which is a session to aid sensitive young people in the Community, and we did a mission to Montreal during which they gave us a bus tour of different agencies. I remember going to the JVS Workshop and being so impressed by the work that the workshop did. Iris Wagner was president at the time and she helped give me a good sense of JVS and its history, and I became more and more aware of the agency’s presence within the Community. I was compelled to begin volunteering, and then I continued working, and eventually became president of JVS.

The project I worked on during my presidency that is worth emphasizing is the merger between JFS, JVS and JIAS. I spent most of my presidency in trying to better understand, develop, and adapt how JVS and its mission would be better fulfilled for its clients with a merger with the other agencies. It was a very sensitive time; JVS, an agency that was old and established, was embarking into the unknown. I had to understand why this would make sense for our clients if we merged. Would things improve? Would resources for our staff improve? Would the Community ultimately benefit? There were sensitivities regarding our history that had to be considered as well. It was a heavy mandate that brought a lot of challenge and emotion to all involved, but the interest of the client really prevailed and made it clear why we should have an integrated social service agency.

To this day, I remain active on the board of Ometz. I contribute by virtue of being on the board but where I find it most satisfying is in seeing firsthand that the reasons for the merger have come to light. It is evidenced in how we are able to service our clients in an integrated fashion. Those were all the arguments we made in discussing the merger initially, and it is satisfying to see that they have become reality.

Going forward I see Ometz playing a larger role within the Community simply because the needs of Community continue to expand, particularly as government assistance becomes harder and harder to come by. I see Ometz focusing its efforts in trying to offer high quality services where they feel they can have the most impact on those that are vulnerable. It appears that the vulnerable people in our Community are becoming more and more marginalized, which is why Ometz needs to step in to help them.

I am consistently impressed by the professionalism of the leaders and staff within Ometz. Their commitment to their discipline and to the people they help is very inspiring and rewarding to see.