Posted on September 1, 2016 by Rachel Frish
Shalom y’all!
My name is Rachel Frish and I am thrilled to be the new Director of Youth Engagement here at Temple Beth-El. I’m a recent graduate from the University of Kansas (go Jayhawks!) with a degree in communications. I have lived in Dallas, Texas for most of my life, but was born in Bergen County, New Jersey, so I’m happy to be returning to my Jersey roots. Growing up, I was heavily involved in my Jewish community. I was a JCC camper, a URJ Greene Family Camp camper, a JCC camp counselor, and attended Hebrew school at my congregation up through my senior year of high school. One huge part of my Dallas Jewish experience was being an active member of NFTY at the congregational and regional levels. I was the congregational youth group’s communications vice president (CVP) for two years and the regional CVP for one year. Having had a plethora of great experiences with NFTY, with Jewish summer camps, and youth movements, I am thrilled to be in a position where I have the opportunity to “pay it forward” and give other teens the same great experiences that I had (or even better ones).
In the coming year I will be co-teaching eighth grade in Confirmation Academy, leading meetings and programs with LTS (Leadership Training Seminar) and serving as the advisor for our senior youth group, SMOOCHY (Somerset Members Of Our Committed Hebrew Youth).
What is LTS?
The Leadership Training Seminar is a program for all kids in grades 9 to 12 who want to further develop their leadership skills and experience being a leader within their Jewish community. During this twice-a-month commitment, teen leaders will meet regularly to plan and run programs for other students.
What is SMOOCHY?
Somerset Members Of Our Committed Hebrew Youth is Temple Beth-El’s youth group for all 9th through 12th graders and is associated with the larger NFTY movement (North American Federation of Temple Youth). We do programs a couple times per month on our own, but also send members to regional and national events five to six times per year.
Please be in touch with me if you’d like more information about any of the programs or simply to say hello and introduce yourself! My email is RachelFrish@TempleBethElNJ.org, my phone number is 908-722-0674, ext. 119 and my office is upstairs next to the music room.
L’shalom,
Rachel Frish
Originally published in the September-October 2016 Shofar
