On Tuesday, I celebrated my 16th year as President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland. Sixteen years! I am truly humbled and honored to serve this community! And what made this particular anniversary so sweet is that we just held the largest Jewish festival in our community's history. Close to 4,000 people packed into Zidell Yards for a day of music, food, art, dance, and an all-around sense of community and joy.

We thank everyone who attended! Some 75 Jewish organizations were able to showcase their work. Five different styles of music. We were honored to have Cong. Suzanne Bonamici and Portland City Councilors Olivia Clark, Sameer Kanal, and Eric Zimmerman join us. And, I cannot thank our security team enough for keeping everyone safe.

Amy Katz, Director of Jewish Life and Learning at Portland Jewish Academy, shared a moment with me that I cannot stop smiling about. In the first middle school tefilah (prayer service) of the year, she asked students to turn to their neighbor and share something that made them say “Wow!” One student did not hesitate, “Yesterday, when I was at the Jewish festival, and there were so many Jewish people in one place.”

There is an old saying – “Do something once, it is new; do it a second time, and it is tradition.” It looks like we want to build an annual tradition! Doing a festival each year would be a genuine blessing for this community, and we are already planning a larger one for next year (date to be announced in early 2027). Feel free to share any suggestions.

People keep asking me why did we did it? Let me give credit where it is due. When I first arrived in Portland, longtime community members would reminisce fondly about an event in the 1990s at Reed College called “The Ingathering.” Some of you may remember it — more of an organizational fair than a festival, but still a day when thousands of Jews came together in one place. That memory stuck with me. Then, following the release of the 2023 Portland Jewish Community Study, one of our key recommendations was to create a large-scale community event. A festival seemed like a fun idea and Zidell Yards turned out to be the perfect location -- right in the middle between the eastside and westside.

It truly was a beautiful day for our community. What we heard repeatedly as people headed home was some version of “We needed this!” We sure did. And next year I hope we double the attendance!

A special thank you goes to my colleagues at the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland for making this happen.

We are now just one week away from the start of the High Holy Days. Here is a webpage with holiday resources happening throughout our community. I hope you and your family find a meaningful place to welcome the New Year.

Now, since we are heading into Labor Day weekend, I want to acknowledge the deep Jewish involvement in the American labor movement. Labor Day itself was not founded by Jews -- it was first celebrated in 1882 and became a federal holiday in 1894, with credit usually going to Peter McGuire or Matthew Maguire -- but the movement it honors was shaped enormously by Jewish immigrants and leaders.

In the 1880s to 1920s, the Lower East Side of Manhattan welcomed Eastern European Jews arriving with little more than what they could carry. Many were funneled straight into the garment trade, where the sweatshops were often dangerous and exhausting. But out of that hardship came the unions in America. The International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union, founded in 1900, was built and led largely by Jewish immigrants and grew into one of the most powerful unions in the country. So did the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, led by the legendary Sidney Hillman. Both unions carried the imprint of Jewish socialist and Bundist politics that immigrants brought with them straight from the Russian Empire.

Some of the labor movement's defining moments were led by Jews. In 1909, the “Uprising of the 20,000” saw mostly young Jewish and Italian women clothing workers walk off the job in a massive strike. A young woman, Clara Lemlich, stood up at a union meeting and, in Yiddish, called for a general strike that changed everything. And then there's the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911, a tragedy that killed 146 workers, most of them young Jewish and Italian immigrant women. That tragic event became a turning point, sparking the workplace safety laws we still rely on today and further galvanizing the union movement.

So, as you enjoy the "unofficial end to summer," take a moment to appreciate that the fight for fair wages, safer workplaces, and dignity on the job carries a proud Jewish legacy -- one built by people who, like so many in our own community, came to this country with almost nothing and helped build something lasting for everyone.

Speaking of great organizers, Gloria Steinem (z”l) passed away yesterday at the age of 92. I was too young to know her in her “heyday,” but she was a writer and activist who became the public face of America’s modern women’s movement. It is amazing the impact she and the movement had on women and changing attitudes, practices, and behaviors in our country.

One thing about Steinem is that her father was Jewish and her mother Protestant. She would describe herself as secular, but she was unequivocal about where she stood when Jews were targeted. She once said, “Never in my life have I identified as a Christian, but wherever there is antisemitism, I identify as a Jew.” May her memory be for a blessing and the fruits of her labor carry on.

Two quick fun facts -- Google turns 28 today (what did we do before?) and the Price is Right made its television debut 54 years ago. Did you know our Jewish community had a double showcase winner (some people may recognize her) on the show on October 30, 1984 -- you must watch the video here -- and look how close she was to the actual total.

Shabbat shalom and have a safe and well-earned Labor Day holiday weekend.