Introducing New Board President Emily Jennewein

By Emily Jennewein, President

Emily Jennewein and her family have traveled to Israel twice, most recently as

participants in Rabbi/Cantor Arlene Bernstein's Youth Choir Trip in 2008.

From left, Maddy, Chris, Penny and Emily Jennewein at the Temple

Mount in Jerusalem.

As a former journalist and volunteer for Beth Israel’s website, introducing myself to the congregation in writing feels second nature. But I also know that an article is not a substitute for a personal introduction, and I hope to talk with many members of our community over the next two years.

Let me start by saying that I feel very fortunate to be serving as your president at this momentous time in our congregation’s history, as we embark on an exciting, year-long commemoration of our 150th anniversary. It’s humbling to take on this important responsibility, but I had a fantastic, wise and intelligent mentor in Ron Simon. Ron strengthened the financial foundation of our synagogue, helped lay the groundwork for the 150th anniversary endowment campaign and personally cultivated generous endowment gifts.

A temple president can’t be successful without collaborating with an experienced team. Rabbi Michael Berk, Executive Director Lesley Mills and our board are entering our fifth year of partnering together and we are already working on setting our shared priorities for the forthcoming year.

Beth Israel has been an important part of my life since our family moved to San Diego 10 years ago.

My volunteer involvement with the synagogue began when I joined the Religious School parent committee and created a small website for the Religious School. Soon, I was asked to expand the website to encompass all the temple’s offerings and that evolved into serving as the synagogue's volunteer webmaster for several years.

I’ve also been vice president for education, served on the finance and communications committees and have worked actively on the synagogue's strategic planning process. I served on and co-chaired, respectively, the search committees that selected Rabbi Michael Berk and Rabbi Michael Satz. I chaired A Musical Night in Jerusalem, which honored Cantor Arlene Bernstein for her first 10 years with the congregation. And I just began a term on the board of Hillel of San Diego.

Outside of the temple I have for 15 years operated a marketing communications business, and for three years was the marketing director and a marketing consultant for the Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego. Earlier I worked at The Coca-Cola Company and was a business news reporter at The Miami Herald and The Atlanta Constitution. I earned an M.B.A. from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and graduated from Amherst College.

My husband, Chris, and I live in Del Mar. Chris is senior regional editor for Southern California for AOL's Patch network of local news websites. Our daughters, Maddy and Penny, are entering their sophomore years at Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania. My parents, Alan and Liz Rubin, retired to Del Mar and live around the corner from us. Our family has always practiced Reform Judaism. I was born Jewish, and Chris converted to Judaism at Beth Israel. Maddy and Penny, became b'not mitzvah and celebrated their confirmations at Beth Israel.

I look forward to continuing to communicate regularly in Tidings and through the new congregational blog at www.bethisrael.blogspot.com. But more importantly, I hope to see all of you regularly at services, programs and events at Beth Israel and to hear from you any time at board@cbisd.org.