Communications is critical, not only within an organization, but most most importantly to its membership. To improve our communication with the congregation, and to ensure that our members know what is happening at the synagogue, we are exploring and adopting a variety of new and improved approaches.

Our president, Neil Duboff has asked that I set up a Communications Committee to improve communication with the membership. This is only one amongst many other committees that have been established.

There are many ways to communicate using the technology that is available today. One-on-one communication is always the best but with over 700 membership units that's not always possible.

The Shaarey Zedek was a very early adopter of electronic media, and from 2019 to the present, we have had the good fortune of being able to leverage this technology to connect with the membership through online services, programs, simchas, and funerals using a variety of platforms ranging from email to social media tools such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, alongside streaming technology including Zoom, among others. In fact, our online communication was very successful both locally and abroad to the point that we were pleasantly surprised at how many people locally and from around the world would tune in to our services on a Saturday morning.

While these tools and approaches continue to serve our congregation, there is a need to bring people back to synagogue to re-establish our Shaarey Zedek community. People can always come to our services, whether they are at Temple Shalom or the Berney Theatre, until we are back in our home on Wellington Crescent in 2024. After all, being together on a Shabbat morning is more than just attending a service, it's also about meeting friends and family and re-establishing connections. It’s all about communicating.

As always, the shul is trying many new ways to continue improving and evolving. As part of the synagogue’s renovations, important audiovisual investments are being made in a variety of areas ranging from improved streaming capacity to enhanced audio and acoustic technology so that people can better enjoy our programs and services both in-person and online, and I am confident that our congregation will appreciate the changes that are being made.

On this and other matters, we welcome your input, and encourage all to reach out to us.

Sincerely,

Dr Ted Lyons OC
Chair, Communications Committee