2012

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Website: bemitzvahd.com
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Venture Description

Your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah is an exciting adventure for your family — exciting, yes, but there is so much to get done in order to prepare! Let us make it simple: BeMitzvah’d is your start to finish, no stress, one stop shop for your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah service. We do it all – from teaching the fundamentals like Torah reading and prayer leading to unique touches like musical accompaniment and inspiring your child to create a personal prayer book. Founder Naomi Bright is a Cantor, musician and a passionate Jewish educator dedicated to making your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah a perfect thirteen!

About the Founder

I hail from a rural area of West Virginia where the only Jewish family was mine. My parents drove me and my three sisters once a week to the closest synagogue, which was 70 miles away. This lack of an obvious Jewish community always inspired me to find unconventional ways to connect to my Jewish roots, and it was this search for Jewish connection that I decided to become a cantor and moved to Philadelphia to attend Gratz College. Today, I have my Bachelors in Jewish Studies, my Masters in Cantorial Studies, and a Graduate Certificate in Jewish Education. I am proud of my journey, and proud of my discovery of Jewish music as an outlet for my Jewish connection. I am also involved in many Jewish young professional organizations and love hosting Shabbats for my friends.

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Venture Description

The Jewish Mentorship Network (The Network) provides mentorship opportunities for young Jewish professionals in the Philadelphia area by pairing them with an accomplished Jewish professional. Through these meaningful relationships, participants will benefit from networking opportunities, professional development, skill renewal, idea exchange, and strengthening of their connection to the Jewish community.

About the Founder

Over the past ten years, I have served the community through several professional leadership roles in the public sector, including serving as a major gifts officer for Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, as a Development Director for two child welfare organizations, and most recently as the Borough Manager and Chief Executive Officer of a local municipality. I have a B.A. from the University of Maryland, College Park, as well as a Master in Public Administration (M.P.A) degree and Graduate Certificate in City Management from Villanova University.

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Website: chanarothman.com/news/ecotroubadour 
Social Media: Twitter
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Venture Description

Let’s face it, folks: Green is the new black. And with good reason: the way we’ve been living is not sustainable; we need new solutions. Jewish tradition has a lot to say about our role as partners in taking care of the earth. The Jewish community knows it, too – more and more; Jewish summer camps, synagogues, and JCC’s all around the world are singing the praises of eco-Judaism. …But what song are they singing? That’s the problem, and that’s where EcoTroubadour comes in. Pop stars like Bono and Sheryl Crow have already been spearheading environmentally-savvy music tours for years. In order to stay current, Jewish environmentalism is in need of a cohesive musical response to the eco-Jewish movement. Through concerts, eco-songwriting workshops, and a soundtrack children and adults alike can take home with them, EcoTroubadour transforms Jewish spaces into verdant celebrations of earth, cutting-edge green energy technology, and of course, song. It’s making its way to you via biodiesel bus, and powering its music to you via bicycle generator. Join the EcoTroubadour revolution!

About the Founder

Tinges of reggae, worldbeat, folk, and hip-hop infuse Chana Rothman’s Hebrew-English tunes with rhythm and positive vibes. Popsyndicate.com calls her music “Bob Marley meets Edie Brickell.” Chana works with Storahtelling and independently in camps, synagogues, churches across the country bringing relevant social commentary & empowerment through a musical lense. She recently returned from several community-based tours: in South Africa, combining justice work in townships with live performances, and in Berlin, presenting and performing for progressive European Jews from across the continent. Chana’s most recent accomplishment is the birth of her son, Izzy, and her entry into momhood. Her latest recording, produced by C Lanzbom (Soulfarm), “Beautiful Land,” is a mix of African worldbeat, acoustic folk, and groove. It’s currently available on iTunes, last.fm, Spotify, and more – and was officially released in a community concert in Chana’s neighborhood of Mount Airy, Philadelphia.

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Website: shulsolutions.org
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Venture Description

Shul Solutions is a full service consulting company focused on supporting synagogue professionals and lay leaders who work towards creating vibrant Jewish communities. The following affordable, informative and engaging workshops are in development and will soon be available in your area:

• Marketing Judaism – Learn how to make Judaism relevant in people’s lives; take advantage of every interaction you have with potential and current members; and get them to join or become more engaged in your community.
• The Chosen Programs – Tired of randomly creating programs and hoping people will attend? Find out how to plan for and develop programs in new ways that will meet the needs of your congregants and enhance your community.
• Shul Speak – How do your members find out what is happening at the synagogue? Are they reading your newsletter or visiting your website? Or both! Discover best practices and effective ways to communicate with your members through both traditional and on-line platforms.
  In addition, I am available to come to your shul, meet with clergy, staff and lay leaders to provide training and offer expert advice in a variety of member engagement areas that specifically addresses the needs of your community.

 

About the Founder

Elisa Heisman has worked as the Program Director at Congregation Beth Or in Maple Glen, PA since 2003. She serves the members of this congregation by coordinating quality programs and managing effective print and on-line communications for over 1100 families. Her priority and passion is to make the Jewish community more accessible to all. For the last four years, she has taught the Mother’s Circle program which educates and supports mothers of a different faith who are raising their children Jewish. In addition to this, she served as President of the Program Directors for Reform Judaism (PDRJ), an affiliate of the Union for Reform Judaism from 2009-2011. She has also taught many workshops to synagogue professionals, program directors, graduate students and community lay leaders in areas relating to synagogue management. She also is a mentor to many program directors around the country.

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Venture Description

The original plan for JToday was an Internet-based talk show, blog, and online forum for young Jewish professionals in Philadelphia.

About the Founder

A Philadelphia native, I was raised in the Philly suburbs — Bucks County — and currently reside in Richboro, but will be relocating to Montgomery County. I received a Bachelor of Arts in Print Communications, with a minor in Business Administration/Marketing, from Arcadia University, and a Master of Education in Secondary English Education from Temple University. I have also been active within the Jewish young professional community, with involvement in organizations such as The Collaborative, Renaissance Group/Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, and the National Museum of American Jewish History. Some of my favorite things include art and design, writing, reading, traveling, social media, The Bachelor/Bachelorette, HGTV, movies and award season, fashion, wine, Italian food, and spending time with those closest to me.

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Venture Description

Currently at the end of the lengthy process of becoming a certified yoga teacher, Michael Alan has devoted his life to developing his unique form of meditation designed to strengthen spirituality and well-being through physical expression. In June, he leaves the US, to study and teach in Jerusalem at Yeshiva. Upon his return, Michael Alan will begin teaching “Tree of Life Yoga” throughout the States. His yoga classes, which are based on the Kabbalah, Jewish Ethics, Mishna, as well as Torah, will be tailored to suit any age group. By reinforcing his students understanding of their personal relationship with G-D and Judaism, Michael Alan seeks to aid in bringing excitement to his student in a religious setting, creating joy and happiness along the way.

About the Founder

I’ve had many great experiences that shaped how I see myself over the years. Six years in the United States Coast Guard, a summer in Jerusalem studying Kabbalah in Yeshiva, and graduating from Temple University stand atop those experiences. I’ve learned throughout these milestones that my path is not to be shaped by doing that which is easy and comfortable. This realization has brought me to where I am today studying to be a Yoga Teacher under the tutelage of a Guru in Philadelphia, and developing a form of Yoga which combines that which I love most passionately; G-D, the Jewish Community, and Yoga. I see this as my destiny, that which i was created to achieve.