By ROCKNE ROLL
The Jewish Review
Jewish Federation of Greater Portland Board Chair Mindy Zeitzer opened her year-in-review remarks with what could be described as an understatement. 
The last year was “one that none of us expected,” she said.
Twelve months prior, the Federation and the community gathered to hear the results of the Community Study conducted by Brandeis University in collaboration with the Federation. A year of digging into its results, identifying how to use the information gained to better Jewish life in Portland, and developing a strategy to do so was on tap.
Then, as Zeitzer explained, “Oct. 7 changed our world.”
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The response of Portland’s Jewish community to the attacks on Israel was immediate. Federation President and CEO Marc Blattner said that within weeks, the Federation had raised over $2 million in emergency funds for Israel. 
One of the recipients of those funds is Dror Israel, a grassroots educational organization in Israel. Their work is centered from what they call “urban kibbutzim,” based in underserved communities, large and small, around the country. 
“Instead of waking up each morning and milking cows, we wake up morning and we go to our high schools, we go to our youth movements and educate and try to address what I think is one of the most pressing challenges in Israel, which is the internal one, the internal divisions and gaps and huge, huge polarization that we encounter,” Noam Schlanger, Dror Israel’s Engagement Director, said.
Dror Israel’s programs are diverse, tailored to the communities they serve, and broadly inclusive. From language programs to bicycle repair classes to a community garden that Schlanger helps run in his hometown, it’s not hard to find someone in one of Dror Israel’s signature blue shirts with red detailing engaged in building community. 
“We have intimate connections to all the places we work in,” Schlanger said, “and we work in a lot of places.”
These connections have meant everything in the days, weeks, and months that have followed. From establishing a preschool for evacuees from Kibbutz Be’eri just days after the community was evacuated to the Dead Sea to programs that reunite young friends from cities in northern Israel who have been evacuated to different parts of the country and more – programs made possible, in part, by contributions from Portlanders. 
Schlanger came to thank those who gave and to share a slice of what is happening in the Jewish state as the war rages on. 
“The amount of solidarity and of amazing dedication that people give  of themselves is amazing. There’s a lot of change going on. A lot of people deciding that they’re not going back to their old life,” Schlanger said. “I have some friends that have said, ‘I don’t want to work in tech. I’m pivoting my career towards public service.’ There’s a lot of this going on.”
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While Israel has faced a difficult year, American Jewish communities have experienced their own challenges – Portland being no exception.
“The past year, in particular since Oct. 7, has been one of the most challenging in terms of addressing the rise of antisemitism and anti-Israel activity in our local community,” Zeitzer said.
From the Portland Association of Teachers’ multifaceted campaign against Israel to the assault of a Jewish student at Reed College and so much more, antisemitic activity has exploded in the Portland area.
“Every day there’s another four, five, six phone calls that come to our office about these types of issues,” Blattner said, “and Bob [Horenstein] and Rachel [Nelson] have really been unbelievable on this whole issue.”
Michael Masters, the National Director and CEO of Secure Community Network, put the situation nationally in stark terms.
“For 4000 years, we have made a choice to survive,” he said of the Jewish people. “We’ve never faced that choice here before in the United States, and for most I think we never thought we’d have to, but we do.”
In 2023, SCN’s national command center saw a 112% increase in reports of antisemitic incidents nationwide. That’s why, in Portland, Community Security Director Jessica Anderson and her predecessor, Gene Moss have done more than 140 security assessments on facilities in Portland, more than 200 training programs helped secure nearly $5 million in federal grant funds to help secure Jewish Portland’s institutions and people. 
“In this reality, it’s natural for people to be afraid, to be scared, but we don’t need to be. We can, as we have done for thousands of years, harness our strength in the face of the hate we see today, and by standing strong, we can guarantee the strength and the vibrancy of Jewish life,” Masters said. “Just like Israel has an Iron Dome to protect it, we are working to build a security shield over the entirety of the Jewish community in North America, and each and every one of you is a part of that.”
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While the year very much did not go as planned, the goal to take insights from last year’s community study and make plans based on them still moved forward. 
Community leaders poured over the study’s findings for two months beginning in December and identified seven key areas to focus on: Israel, Jewish Literacy, Mental Health, Geography, Volunteerism, Community Engagement and Poverty.
Blattner announced that the Federation is seeking to bring back a community Shaliach (emissary) from Israel, trained in community development, to live in Portland for a two-to-three-year period, as well as starting dialogue groups about Israel-related issues. 
“One of the hardest parts of this war is people not talking to each other. We live in our echo chambers,” Blattner said. “We don’t want to learn, and we don’t want to listen. We want to make sure we’re able to do that across the community itself.”
The Federation is also looking at bringing in a Jewish Life Educator to consult with organizations in the area, as well as programs addressing teen mental health and loneliness. 
“I learned a long time ago that most people don’t die because of illness or hunger,” Blattner said. “They die of loneliness.”
The Federation will also hire a volunteer coordinator to work across the community, facilitating hands-on engagement opportunities, launching a market survey across different parts of the area to focus in on localized needs and setting up a micro-grant program to facilitate hyper-local opportunities for Jewish engagement. 
“If you want to bring 10 people to your house to play bingo, we’ll give you $180 to help host” Blattner said as an example. “We just want to be there to connect with them. Those kind of simple things make an enormous impact.”
On the other end of the scale, the Federation is in the initial planning stages of a “mega community event,” and working to provide more robust concierge services for newcomers to the area. Blattner also said that the Federation was working to put together financial literacy programs to provide tools to the quarter of Portland’s Jewish community that’s having trouble making ends meet. 
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“I never forget the former CEO of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland,” Blattner said. “His name is Steve Hoffman. He once stood up at a conference and he said, ‘It’s not about how much money you raise, it’s about how many donors you have because donors are your referendum on whether you’re doing good work or not. The more donors, the more people believe and support the work that you’re doing.’”
The Federation saw a 12 percent increase in the number of donors from last fiscal year, indicating an endorsement of the work being done in Portland. The dollar figures were also promising. 
Federation’s annual campaign raised $4.1 million this fiscal year, in addition to the $2.2 million contributed to the Israel Emergency Fund. Additionally, the Catalyst Fund to support Community Study implementation efforts, supported by a matching grant from the Zidell Family, has already raised $900,000 of its $1.5 million goal, while a LiveSecure matching grant-supported Security Fund raised $1.1 million of its $1.5 million goal. On top of all that, Marvin Harris, z”l, of Prineville left his entire estate of $3.4 million to the Federation for the support of Israeli orphans – the largest single gift in Federation history. All told, the Federation raised $11.7 million this fiscal year.
“This was a record-breaking year in total financial resource development for our community,” Blattner said. “It’s really remarkable, and we couldn’t do it without all of you.”
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While Blattner was eager to recognize the contributions of the community, a moment was taken early in the evening to recognize him for 30 years of service to the Jewish Federation system, including 14 years as CEO in Portland. 
“Throughout his tenure, Marc has demonstrated the love of Jewish people, his commitment to his community, his innovative approach, his ability to inspire people to follow him on one important journey after another,” Eric Fingerhut, President and CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, said in a recorded message. 
“Thank you for all of your work and dedication, both here and across the country,” Zeitzer said, presenting Blattner with a congratulatory cheesecake. “It has been a pleasure and honor to work with you.”
“I have to say a thank you to my wife, Sarah,” Blattner said. “To do this job takes a strong partnership and a great partner. We’ve moved four times for my career, which is not easy on a family. I just couldn’t do this without her support.”
A recording of the 2024 annual meeting is available online at jewishportland.org.