The Young Men’s Division was founded in 1994 in an effort to bring younger community members to support The Guardians and prepare for future leadership. The YMD holds activities geared to their interests as well as providing leadership opportunities and social activities for members in their 20s and 30s.
It is with great excitement that we have both the privilege and opportunity to co-chair the Guardians’ Young Men’s Division (“YMD”) for the 2019-2021 term. The most exciting part of taking on this role is getting to see our organization grow as a group, both in size and in comradery, and more importantly as a community. Ultimately our primary goal is to raise money for the Jewish Home, while our secondary goal is to foster lifelong friendships amongst our membership. It was with great confidence that we were able to announce our incoming YMD board at the October meeting and this confidence was rooted in the impact each board member has had on the YMD to date. We recognize that The Guardians success has been largely due to its’ history of strong leadership and active involvement of the YMD Board.
We are honored to be able to serve the YMD and Jewish Home, and work alongside such a great group of professionals, who will allow the YMD to reach new heights and achieve unbound success. We believe that our members are the heart of The Guardians organization and that it is important to empower our board and provide them with the support and direction they need to execute their responsibilities. With the help of the YMD Board, we can accomplish our mission and create an environment for members to get involved, develop leadership experience, and make a positive impact on their community, while both building and enriching meaningful relationships with one another in the process. The Guardians has remained one of the premier philanthropic Jewish organizations for the past 80 years due to its’ captivating events, programming and involved membership. The monthly YMD meetings, quarterly mixers, professional development breakfasts and events, and time spent at the Jewish Home are the organizational underpinnings. These keystones provide an exciting and enriching environment that drives increased philanthropy and friendship, while offering numerous networking opportunities to the membership. These events cannot happen without The Guardians professional staff, Jessi Cazary and Brittany Friedman. Both Jessi and Brittany continue to provide invaluable guidance, support, and leadership and are crucial to the continued growth and success of the organization.
We were incredibly fortunate to have the stewardship of our Immediate Past YMD Co-Chairs, Gideon Orion and Jeremy Madick. Gideon and Jeremy set the bar high for us by advancing the organization and creating an environment where YMD membership reached record numbers. Additionally, under their leadership, YMD members were consistently involved, with standing room only in the YMD meetings and multiple sold-out events. New membership and membership retention allow the organization to grow and expand its reach into the community. With the expectations set very high, we are excited to carry the torch for the next two years.
Furthermore, we’d like to acknowledge Immediate Past Presidents, Jeff Schlesinger and Larry Schnaid, who showed their support to the YMD through regular attendance and by providing their knowledgeable guidance. We are equally as excited to share our term alongside current Presidents Zane Koss and Peter Steigleder and Women’s Division chairs Vicki Goldman and Susanne Katz. The support and involvement of our fellow leadership within The Guardians allows us to achieve the success we continue to attain.
We have kicked off the term strong with our annual Halloween Party, which was another huge success this year thanks to our Vice Chairs of Parties and Mixers. In addition to our annual events on the horizon, our Vice Chairs of Activities are in the midst of planning some great opportunities to further foster our memberships’ relationships and create memories that will last a lifetime. On that note….we hope to see you all at the Home on December 15th for our annual Hanukkah Party with the residents!
We are so blessed to be a part of such an amazing organization and we are honored to have been chosen to serve and grow The Guardians YMD. Sincerely,
Jesse McKenzie and Daniel Frankel
2019 - 2021 YMD Co-Chairs
