After 10 years as chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest, the largest Jewish organization and philanthropy in New Jersey, Dov Ben-Shimon announced his departure. In an exclusive article for The Jewish Link, he writes about what he’s learned in his role and his thoughts about the community.
It has been a great honor to have served these past 10 years as chief executive officer of our Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest. During that time, together with Jewish Community Foundation, we’ve raised and granted over a billion dollars to care for those in need, build community and save the world. We’ve not only been blessed with the amazing generosity of philanthropists and community members, we’ve also raised community and a shared sense of belonging.
I look at all the programs we’ve helped build or develop or deepen these past ten years: security consultations, expertise and guidance for our synagogues and agencies; human resources support, training programs and scholarships for summer camps; funding for day schools; Israeli educators for religious and day schools, and much more. Could these things be done without federations? Maybe some of them. But Federation has been the community hub that makes all these tasks our daily work, fueled by unmatched experience and expertise. I’ve said it many times, but it’s true: You don’t build the firehouse the day the fire breaks out. You invest over time for the moments of need.
When new philanthropic initiatives are presented, it’s all too easy to forget the ongoing needs of elderly Holocaust survivors, our social services agencies or our neglected cemeteries. Bold, radical visions should be questioned, held up in the marketplace of Jewish philanthropic ideas, not just for the innovative nature of their proposals, but also for their appropriateness and their rootedness in Jewish values. I’ve seen Federation do this vetting every day. We debate. We argue. If you believe that your program deserves to be listened to, then in our Federation you have to persuade and negotiate. This approach has worked well for the Jewish community and will continue to do so. It’s made us excellent stewards of the community’s money and mission.
Every few years (or months), since long before I became the executive of our Jewish Federation, some passionate writer has predicted the death of the Federation system. But no one else can do what an effective Jewish Federation is able to do. No one else cares for those in need, builds Jewish community,and initiates rescue programs with just hours’ notice. All the amazing things that make you proud—pulling Jews out of evil and dangerous places, sending emergency funds to Israelis at risk under missile attack and after 10/7, supplying immediate support, while lobbying and securing funds for Holocaust survivors—none of these happen without a Federation infrastructure behind them. I’m grateful to have gone to the Ukrainian border twice to meet with Jewish refugees, to have gone to Ethiopia to bring olim to Israel safely and to Israel many times to make sure that our partnerships and families are safe and thriving. It’s been a powerful reminder, each time, that you can’t build community by yourself. You –—we — have to do it together.
Looking back, I’m grateful for the opportunities that I received as executive to work with our rabbis and our amazing community leaders and professionals, to create innovative programs and departments and to personally hire many of the talented and inspiring professionals who make this community better every day. But let me tell you what also makes me really proud: We help build leaders for the entire community. Studies have continually shown that community and philanthropy are cumulative, not exclusive. If you participate in four things in our Jewish community, chances are you’ll engage in five or six. Jewish communal participation is an existential good for everyone, including, most importantly, the participants themselves. But if you do only one thing—if you only sit on your synagogue board, or serve on one agency committee or support one philanthropic cause — it will probably not last for you. And it won’t be great for that one group you support either. You won’t learn how to compare and contrast, to argue, to look at 990s and audits and budgets. You won’t learn how to ask tough questions, to check the CEO’s or rabbi’s activities or to debate. And you won’t understand what a community can aspire to do or to be: How to get thousands of people from our community onto hundreds of buses in November to the biggest rally in our history; how to send millions of dollars
in just hours to evacuate Israelis from harm’s way; how to fund cemeteries, security trainings, synagogue budget classes and more. Today’s Federation engages
individuals in the work of the entire community and creates connections among synagogues and agencies.
This last year, since the October 7 massacres and the war that ensued, has been the most difficult of my professional career, but also the most meaningful and important. It has also helped me clarify my own sense of priorities and purpose.
It’s now time for me to step away and move on.
These last few months I’ve reached the peak of what I can do in this position in our community. It has been an honor to serve, especially in the wake of October 7. However, I don’t want this to be my last position, and I believe that there are more things that I need to do.
I am deeply grateful for these past 10 years. It’s been a zechut, a deep privilege, to have led our Jewish Federation. Thank you for your trust in me.
Dov Ben-Shimon is the outgoing CEO of Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest.
