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going to do that ,’” says Gottesman . Putting the purpose ofthe Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah ( celebrated Sept . 15-17 this year ) in auniversal context is one example .“ Forthousands of years , it ’ sbeen atime to go to friends and family and wipe the slate clean ,” says Gottesman . “ You can apologize to friends and say ‘ Ivalue our friendship and didn ’ t mean to hurt you .’ That ’ s aRosh Hashanah tradition , but I ’ m a practicing Jewand Ididn ’ t know that until 10 years ago . What do we not want to repeat from last year ? JewBelong is a way ofspreading that education .”
Gottesman and Stuart ’ sunique mind meld continues toguide their messaging .“ Archie and Ihave ashared language where weboth get it ,” says Stuart . “ We can look at 100 lines and pick the same three as the best .” Their engaged social media following of more
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than 53,000 followers guides them , too .“ We ’ ll post on social and see the responses we get ,” she says .“ It ’ sagreat barometer for us .” Eye-catching hot pink JewBelong billboards say things like “ So you eat bacon . God has other things to worry about ,”“ Tired ofmissing references in The Marvelous Mrs . Maisel ?” and “ Imagine your cell phone battery was on 6 % and lasted 8days . That ’ sHanukkah .”
JewBelong brought isolated celebrants together during the COVID pandemic , when it was impossible to get together to observe Jewish holidays . Its September 2020 Sins , Stars and Shofars streaming broadcast was billed as “ a JewBelong virtual Rosh Hashanah experience ,” and featured high-profile participants such as John Schreiber , CEO of NJPAC , and actors Richard Kind and StevenWeber ; Weber became
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amember of JewBelong ’ sboard of advisors .
Alison Lebovitz , aboard member and PBS television host , recalls why the group ’ smission resonates with her . “ JewBelong lives , works , and plays at the intersection of everything Ifind most sacred – inclusivity , accessibility , community , and faith . And let ’ snot forget joy !” she says .“ So , when given the chance tobe part of an organization that is actively engaged in this important work and be proximate totheir efforts , Isaid yes without hesitation .”
In May 2021 , when fighting between Israeli forces and the militant group Hamas escalated and anti-Jewish assaults , harassment and vandalism escalated , JewBelong dedicated itself to raising awareness about antisemitism . “ Here , we ’ re trying to reach adifferent audience , because we ’ re talking mostly
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COURTESY OF JEWBELONG |
20 BACK TOSCHOOL 2023 MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE |