My Pathway to Super Sunday

This past weekend I participated in a decades-old Jewish community tradition – Super Sunday. Not Super Bowl Sunday (which I abstained from this year due to a lousy cable connection and disinterest in the two teams) but Super Sunday, when scores of volunteers descend on the Jewish Community Center to schmooze and kibitz and eat bagels while making phone calls to donors all over the Bay Area.

It goes like this: first, you watch an inspirational video about all the amazing projects and initiatives funded by the Jewish Community Federation, like our Pathways to Leadership program! Then a quick training to review the call sheets and go over common questions and concerns, such as "Should I leave a voice mail?" or "This person asked me to take her off the mailing list." Then it's go time.

The script is simple. Tell the person who you are and how you have been impacted by the Federation's generosity. Thank them profusely for their past donation. Ask if they would be willing to renew their pledge for 2014. No hard sell, no hurt feelings.

The first few were a little clumsy – it's awkward to call a stranger and ask for money. But once I realized how many ways my family and I had been touched by the Federation's programs – like the PJ Library, Camp Tawonga, Israel in the Gardens, Keshet, the LGBT Alliance, the Contemporary Jewish Museum, the Jewish Film Festival and so many more – it got much, much easier. It felt natural to talk about why I truly appreciated these people's donations. I could speak with confidence about how their money would be put to good use.

As if all that wasn't enough, I got to spend the morning chatting with Paul Cohen, Katherine Tick, David Katznelson, and Dara Papo. I saw on the name tag table that several other Pathways participants were slated to arrive later in the day.

I left feeling spiritually sated and even more excited to be part of this cohort of emerging leaders. And the unlimited free candy was pretty nice too!

Angie Dalfen is a member of the Federation’s first cohort of LGBT Jewish leaders in its Pathways to Jewish Leadership program.

For more information on the LGBTQ Pathways to Jewish Leadership program, contact Katherine Tick at KatherineT@sfjcf.org or 415.512.6265.