(delivered by President Judy Gatchell during Kol Nidrei)

This is my first Yom Kippur at TBE - this is a holiday when my family still gathers with my 90-year old mother in Bangor. Traditions are strong in our family and I know that Dan and I will be missed, but being here tonight and sharing the Bimah with those who represent the past and present TBE, I know that I am home.

I have been an active part of TBE for the past 15 years.  I came here from Brunswick when my father died in 1994 looking for a minyan to say kaddish (more on that later).  What happened I am told is called "the gift of the kaddish."  The truth is that at the end of my year, I was hooked and did not want to leave TBE but wanted to become a more active part of what I had experienced as a warm and welcoming community with wonderful davening.  TBE became part of my routine and there was no turning back.

As past presidents have shared with me, the honor of being on the Bimah tonight with those who personify the history and greatness of Temple Beth El is overwhelming.  I understand that in many ways I represent change in this community.  I am not directly a part of that history, although I do remember attending Friday night services here some time in the mid 1960's as I attended inter-center weekends - our Maine Jewish Youth group at the time.

This is a congregation with a long tradition.  I have been privileged for the past week to be included in an email discussion of seasoned Sisterhood members concerning two tablecloths embroidered with member's names.  After a lot of research, it was determined that this project began sometime in the 1960's - earlier than was thought when the email announcement was sent out on Friday.  The process of researching the history of this project has brought input from many Sisterhood members.  We can thank Shirley Rosen for beginning and facilitating this process.  The Sisterhood does much and supports much that happens behind the scenes at TBE.

My challenge as your president is to respect and maintain the history and traditions of this congregation while guiding it toward the future.  I hope to bring a balance between tradition and innovation.  The defining moments for many of us here tonight go back to the establishment of the state of Israel, to the Kennedy assassination (both of them), to the six day war and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.  There are others in this room who are not old enough to remember the Challenger disaster.  Many of you remember when our options were limited - as Jews, as women - our younger members today have not had those experiences.  They also may not have the experience of longtime loyalty to an institution such as this.  Their needs may be different.  The challenge we all have is how to build on the greatness of this institution, making it meaningful for all who come here - making it a place we all want to be because:

• we see our friends here,
• we feel welcomed and find spiritual fulfillment,
• we feel our children are learning of their great tradition in community with other children and families, and
• we feel a part of something bigger than ourselves.

I am now one of the families with three generations at TBE.  I understand the feeling of having "grown up in a shul."  My daughter understands that too - I want my grandchildren to feel the same about this place.  They can only have that in a place that has multiple generations of members who are committed to the institution and fulfilled by their participation.

I started my term as your president in June.  I had an opportunity to ponder this responsibility while learning in Israel this summer.  I have been asked to be specific about my goals.  What I can say to you is that it is my hope to build a vibrant and inclusive community at TBE.  What do I mean by that?  First and foremost, I want to support the diverse populations that make up our community - to work with them to identify how TBE can best meet their needs.  This, of course, needs to be a collaborative process.

Enter "The Spirituality of Welcoming," - a book, a concept - by Dr. Ron Wolfson.  This book was given to me by my friend Judy Wilson during her term as TBE president.  I could not put it down.   Although all congregations and communities are unique, we share so much with other communities and can learn from their successes and failures.  I will mention a couple of ways that I hope to integrate this work - that is working and revitalizing many US and Canadian congregations - into our own.

Some is easy - put up signage so that when people walk into our building they know which way to go for the sanctuary, the office, the school, the social hall and, of course, the bathrooms.  Have more greeters around for services and other occasions.  Although this is an important role for Board members, all congregants should consider themselves invited to be official or non-official greeters for Temple events or for anyone who walks through our doors.

We have started other initiatives.  One with the Board of Directors - by having facilitated internal conversations about how they can best work together for individual fulfillment and maximum efficiency.  Our Board members give valuable time to our congregation and should be appreciated and feel that the time they are giving is useful to the congregation and to themselves.  It is an important first step and like all first steps the key is to follow through with our plans.

I plan to build an enhanced membership committee.  We have a wonderful group of dedicated people (the Shalom committee) who warmly welcome new members, but we need to expand the focus of our committee to meet the needs of existing members and help to create and support the "welcoming ambience" that we all want.

We already have so much in the TBE community that works well.  We have an innovative and well respected Hebrew School for our children.  Under the able direction of Dov Goldberg, our Director of Congregational Learning and our very active Hebrew School Committee, we have made changes in our Hebrew school class structure and programming that promise to enhance learning and connect families in ways that will build community for them personally and for TBE.

I mentioned the meaning of our daily morning minyan to me personally.  As many of you know, the minyan has been meeting led by our Brotherhood, for well over 40 years.  When I had yarzheit for my father just a couple of weeks ago, a minyan was there for me.  I encourage you to make a commitment to attend the minyan - once a week or every other week, so it will continue to thrive and to be there for you when you need it.

As we speak of worship services, we have two services every Shabbat.  Although drawing different people they fulfill the spiritual needs of many congregants.  We have integrated into these services ways to meet new people, greet old friends, learn together and share opinions and experiences as well as sing loudly and pray silently, and, of course, "nosh" a little.  We have a cadre of lay service leaders and Torah and Haftarah readers - including some of our youth who have recently become Bar and Bat Mitzvah, while others, although of a more mature age, have recently acquired or enhanced their skills.

We are led by a Rabbi who cares deeply about our community.  She is our teacher, our confidante and our spiritual guide.  Her knowledge and commitment to Judaism is a cornerstone of our congregation.

We have an Adult Jewish Learning program of which we can be very proud.  Programs are scheduled throughout the year and designed to interest the wide diversity of our congregation.  We have new leadership for that committee as we mourn the loss of longtime chair Tom Froncek.

We have an active Early Childhood committee that facilitates a welcoming and innovative program and an active Tikkun Olam committee.  Thanks to Tom Berman, Liz Rose-Cohen and the Sam Cohen Foundation and our Technology committee, we have an amazing new interactive website that will enhance our communication and sharing of resources in ways we have not yet imagined.

We have an active Accessions committee that beautifies our building - most recently with amazing new Torah covers.  Our Ritual committee provides us with meaningful programming and services and provides learning opportunities for committee members.  We have a revitalized Yad l'yad committee that has shown us what caring is all about.

Our House committee is constantly challenged - and, I may add, up to the challenge, of meeting the constant needs of our building.  Much of that work goes unnoticed but takes a great deal of time, effort, and expertise.

We have a GLBTIQQA committee that is working to assure that our building and everything we offer at TBE is designed to make all participants feel included and valued.  We have an active Youth Commission and a busy and hard working Cemetery committee.

Our Governance committee has been meeting regularly to assure that our institution has the appropriate structure to function in an efficient and just manner.

You heard Adam Arens speak on RH - we plan to enhance our Fundraising committee this year - to expand opportunities to raise needed resources for TBE coordinated with exciting and community-building programming.

Our Endowment committee continues in its quiet, efficient and dedicated way to manage this important resource that continues to allow TBE to offer all that we do.

I see on the website that we need to form a Library committee - so if that is your thing - let us know!

Last spring we convened a meeting of the dedicated chairs of our committees.  The purpose of this gathering, that will continue to meet quarterly, is to enhance communication and coordinate events and programs.  Out of this initial meeting came the 1^st Annual TBE B'Bque.  We had a beautiful day at Payson Park - great food and lots of fun.  And while some felt this was an event for the younger set - I would contend that we are never too old to share a hot dog or burger with other members of our TBE family.

A very exciting new program at TBE this fall is the "Resident" program.  This year we are privileged to have a "scholar" as our resident.  Rabbi David Friedenreich will offer courses and programs throughout the year for TBE members and the greater community.  He will be offering one tomorrow afternoon before Yiskor.  In future years we may have a resident artist or musician - the possibilities are endless.  We thank Robert Levine and his uncle Arthur Wein, the TBE sisterhood, Ellie and Charlie Miller, and the Adult Jewish Learning committee for their support for this program.  We have attached fees to some of these programs to allow us to build resources for programming in the future.  This is good time emphasize that no one is ever excluded from any TBE programming because of financial need.

We have a wonderful staff that works efficiently in an environment that is increasingly productive.  I am happy to announce that Jodi Veysey, who has done a wonderful job over the summer in an interim position, has accepted the offer of the Board of Directors to be our Administrative Director - a title that best reflects her job responsibilities.  I have been so fortunate to have such a wonderful and efficient office staff with whom to work.  It will now be Jodi's task to fill her former position of Administrative Assistant.  She, of course, has a better understanding than anyone of the current responsibilities and needs for that position.  We have a very capable HR team that has been working diligently on reviewing job descriptions and developing performance evaluations for all staff.

I hope that I have not gone on too long - but as I began my writing, I kept thinking of more and more to share with you.  This is an exciting time for us.  I invite you to join me in imagining everything that we can be.  How we can balance tradition and innovation to move into the future.  How we can share the responsibility for that future.

I leave you with two questions to ponder and an invitation to provide your input to me or to any TBE Board member.

• In what kind of community do you want to be an active participant?
• What will you do to help create that community?

I see this as a collective responsibility - I invite you to work with me and to be an active participant in the future of TBE.

Shana Tova from my family to yours.  May this be a healthy, peaceful and prosperous year for our families and our community.