The Congregation Ohev Shalom (COS) Men’s Club of Maitland, Florida was recently singled out to be honored with a Silver ‘Torch Award’ from the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs (FJMC) for outstanding Club programming under the category of fundraising. The Torch Award was presented to the club in front of nearly 400 delegates at the 2023 FJMC Biennial Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Elliott Davis, Immediate Past President of the COS Men’s Club, also explained details of the club’s highly successful “Help For Ukraine” fundraising campaign at the FJMC Convention Program Fair:
“Congregation Ohev Shalom Men’s Club, Maitland, Florida (COS Men’s Club), raises money from fundraisers to support the synagogue and offer scholarships to the youth of the Congregation Ohev Shalom Hebrew School. The attack by Russia on Ukraine and the thousands of Ukrainian families forced to leave their homes and flee to Poland gave the Men’s Club an immediate reason to raise funds to support the efforts to help these families. A “Help for Ukraine” event was planned.
A committee was formed, and specific responsibilities were defined and delegated. These included: registration, publicity, security, logistics, refreshments, synagogue involvement and the details of the program. Weekly meetings were held on Zoom, with updates given by the committee members tasked with specific responsibilities .
The JCC of Krakow was selected as the recipient of the funds collected. One hundred percent of the proceeds from ticket sales and donations were sent to the JCC of Krakow.
COS Men’s Club agreed to cover all the expenses. COS Men’s Club hosted an afternoon event on Sunday, May 22, 2022, in Congregation Ohev Shalom’s ball room. 120 people attended this important event, paying $36-$72 per ticket to attend.
Mark Stone, a long-standing member of the congregation and a mentalist extraordinaire, donated his time to present his comedy and ESP show “MENTALMANIA”. Mark astounded the audience with his uncanny ability to read minds, make predictions and “see” with his fingertips while blindfolded. He engaged with the audience and performed his classic 53 card trick. telephone book listing determination and combining multiple numbers in columns and rows to add up to a predetermined number.
The committee presented 3 videos highlighting interviews with JCC of Krakow Executive Director Jonathan Ornstein on CNN, Congregation of Reform Judaism Rabbi Steven Engel on WESH-2, a local TV station, and a young girl named Claire singing Adele’s “Make You Feel My Love”, which brought tears to many in attendance. Rabbi Murray Ezring, Congregation Ohev Shalom Interim Rabbi, spoke about the injustice going on in the Ukraine in his opening remarks.
The generosity of those who made donations was heartwarming. But I believe that one donation made stood out above the rest. The COS afternoon school donated $302 from their Tzedakah Fund, mostly in one-dollar bills. In all, the event raised over $11,500. Everyone left the event with feelings of sadness for the Ukrainian families and were pleased that the COS Men’s Club organized the event to raise both awareness and much needed funds.”
Yasher Koach to the Congregation Ohev Shalom Men’s Club on this well deserved honor.
Incoming 2023/2024 Men’s Club President Neal Blaher invites you to learn more about the Congregation Ohev Shalom Men’s Club on their website www.ohevshalom.org/organizations/mens-club/ or on their Facebook Group www.facebook.com/COSMensClub/. For more information about the COS Men’s Club, please email ElliottDavisFJMC@aol.com.
The Congregation Ohev Shalom Men’s Club of Maitland, Florida is a proud member of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs (FJMC), a global confederation of over 200 Men’s Clubs and Brotherhoods representing over 20,000 members across the United States, Canada, Latin America and beyond. Learn more about how your Men’s Club or Brotherhood can affiliate at: https://www.fjmc.org/content/affiliating-fjmc.
The Florida Region of the FJMC serves the needs of affiliated Jewish Men’s Clubs and Brotherhoods throughout the State of Florida. Learn more about the Florida Region of FJMC and our growing network of dynamic Jewish Men’s Clubs on our website www.floridaregionfjmc.org and please visit and LIKE our Facebook Group at www.facebook.com/FloridaRegionFJMC.
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