My Nonprofit Reviews
Yoni
Review for Moishe House, Encinitas, CA, USA
After being in St. Louis for a year out of college, without having found a a good way to connect with Jewish young adults, I was tipped off to Moishe House. The model is one of the most cost effective and impactful that exists. By letting young adults create the programming that they find attractive, it ensures that other young adults will show more interest. After speaking with the leadership, we were up and running in a week. What started with Shabbat dinners of 10 people quickly grew to more than 20 a week. We actually had to move out of our apartment into a house to accommodate more people. Outside of getting to meet other Jewish young adults in St. Louis and start to create community, Moishe House connected me with residents at other houses around the country and plugged me into a number of national leadership initiatives. Moishe House gets that any Jewish young adult movement needs to be peer driven at every level.
More Feedback
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
Moishe House stays away from denomenational affiliation, institutional politics, and kiruv-like agendas. It lowers the bar to entry and let's us create our own community without having to ask permission from the gate-keepers.
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
Have some way to ensure that people are doing what they have committed to in terms of programming. It is exceedingly difficult to manage a geographically distributed nextwork.
What I've enjoyed the most about my experience with this nonprofit is...
I have met so many fantastic people through my Moishe House tenure, both in terms of the individuals I met in St. Louis who came to dinners, other Moishe House-niks, as well as Jewish leaders from other organizations around the country.
The kinds of staff and volunteers that I met were...
Energetic, bright, didn't take themselves too seriously, fun, outgoing, open to new ideas, and laid back.
If this organization had 10 million bucks, it could...
Make sure that every city in with Jewish young adults wanted to form a community, they would be able to.
Ways to make it better...
Some of the policies had been clearly spelled out earlier on. As a nascent organization, however, this is not surprising, and the process for working through these issues was generally fair and transparent
In my opinion, the biggest challenges facing this organization are...
How to find the sources of capital to become totally sustainable. How to ensure that all who want to be a part of the events have the opportunity when things are potentially restricted by space or social network
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every week
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2009
Review for Synagogue 3000, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Synagogue 3000 gave us the initial grant necessary to launch our Next Dor project. Taking the form of a renovated house, Next Dor in St. Louis will be a post-denomenational, non-institutional space for Jewish young adults to build a vibrant community. By hosting Shabbat dinners, networking, mentoring, learning, meetings, movies, art, and culture, Next Dor will become the center of a new Jewish experience in St. Louis. This project could not have been pushed so far in such a short period of time without the support of Synagogue 3000.
More Feedback
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
The speed in which we were able to create an organization and start renovations due to their financial and leadership support
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
Involve more of the target demographic.
What I've enjoyed the most about my experience with this nonprofit is...
the amazing network of talent it encompasses
The kinds of staff and volunteers that I met were...
Knowledgeable, passionate, and excited to help
Ways to make it better...
the economy wasn't in the state it is.
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every six months
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2009
