West Rogers Park

West Rogers Park – Well Represented At The White House!

Posted on by Shalom Klein

Friends and Neighbors:

 

It was an honor to represent the Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park at the White House annual Chanukah reception. My wife, Elisheva, and I received a call and invitation with just days advance notice and made quick arrangements to travel to Washington DC.

 

The special guest at this year’s reception was Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin. This 15-minute video of President Obama, President Rivlin, and the candle-lighting ceremony captures some of the excitement (although the Maccabeats performance was not included).

 

I also attended the Jewish Community Policy Briefing on a variety of topics with representatives from the State Department and National Security Council earlier in the day. 

 

During my brief interaction with President and First Lady Obama, we discussed West Rogers Park and he shared fond memories of our neighborhood and encouraged our leaders to “keep up the good work”. Joined at the White House by Rabbi Leonard Matanky, our neighborhood was well represented!

 

Shalom Klein

Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park

Rahm Emanuel's Chicago Is Burning — Can He Put Out the Flames?

Posted on by Shalom Klein

Shalom Klein, an Orthodox Jew and the executive director of the Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park, said the video has occupied little, if any conversation among members of that neighborhood’s Orthodox community. Instead, he said, residents wish the mayor would pay more attention to their neighborhood. During discussions over Sabbath dinners or while walking down Touhy or Devon Avenues, he said, “I hear conversations about the library that needs to be improved and the park that needs improvement. The video does not come up.”

Read more: http://forward.com/news/327765/rahm-emanuels-chicago-is-burning-can-he-put-out-the-flames/#ixzz3vEnv0nYs

Our advocacy efforts for a new library in the Chicago Tribune!

Posted on by Shalom Klein

When Albany Park met West Rogers Park

Summers’ summit brought together a second serendipitous pairing: Rodney Walker, executive director of the Albany Park Community Center, and Shalom Klein, executive director of the Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park. Albany Park had successfully lobbied for a new library; West Rogers Park seeks to persuade the city to replace a 1960s-era library at 6435 N. California Ave.

“We are following the playbook of communities like Albany Park,” Klein tells us. “They said, if you want to talk to someone who can make this happen, we can help.”

Albany Park officials connected Klein with Chinatown officials and others who have learned the ways of clout to get a library built.

“What it boils down to is we are engaged in conversations and in learning that without Sister Neighborhoods, we would have never known,” Klein tells us. “If we want a library, we should be talking to people who have advocated successfully for a library.”

So far, a West Rogers Park petition drive has gathered more than 1,300 signatures in two months. A newly organized committee is bringing together a diverse group of business and civic organizations to push for the library.

Chicago Public Library Commissioner Brian Bannon has noticed. “The ingredient of a strong community desire (for a new library) is always important when making a decision about neighborhood improvement. Not only do we love it, but we think it is important that a community is engaged and actively interested in seeking improved services.”

And what benefits flow back to Albany Park? Walker says he is confident those will come. “We are just beginning to learn what other organizations do — which services they provide in their communities and how we could leverage those resources moving forward,” Walker tells us. Also as a result of Sister Neighborhoods, these two are planning a networking event between the business owners of their communities.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-plan-chicago-sister-neighborhoods-kurt-summers-edit-1129-jm-20151125-story.html

Know anyone for this Controller position in West Rogers Park?

Posted on by Shalom Klein

Position of Controller for Educational Non-Profit Organization

Job Description

  • Process payroll and benefits
  • Administer disability and life insurance plans for  organization and  affiliated schools
  • Create and send monthly invoices
  • Administer prepaid cards for JFE, MIE, and Summer Camp programs
  • Create and monitor budget by department/program with Committee
  • Prepare financial statements in accordance with GAAP and coordinate audit
  • Perform monthly intercompany reconciliations
  • Manage cash flow
  • Perform monthly bank, investment and loan account reconciliations
  • Create ad-hoc financial reports
  • Manage bookkeepers
  • Complete and administer regulatory data
  • Manage grants
  • Assist schools with grant submissions
  • Maintain financial and personnel documentation
  • Bachelors in Accounting/Finance or prior experience in related position
  • Knowledge of fund accounting per GAAP
  • Proficiency in QuickBooks, Customer Relationship Software and Microsoft Office, particularly Word, Excel and Outlook

Skills required:

Please send resume to nonprofitcontroller3421@gmail.com

Appearance in court for Devon storefronts

Posted on by Shalom Klein

This week was the first hearing in court regarding the vacant storefronts on Devon Avenue that were formerly home to Rosenblum’s Book Store. We have raised concerns about this property, including the tattered awnings, filthy windows, horrible upkeep and a lack of any response to inquires about renting the property. We appreciate Alderman Debra Silverstein’s role in asking the Building Department to inspect the properties and bring the owners to court. Our real estate committee played an active role in encouraging neighboring residents and business owners to attend the court case and make sure that the judge sees the community involvement on this issue. While the case has been continued, we look forward to the next hearing in early September. We will let you know the exact time and place in order that you might attend.

Raising Awareness

Posted on by Shalom Klein

Friends and Colleagues:

 

Sharing the facts is changing the perception about West Rogers Park. Our community is growing. Synagogues have an increasing membership of young families, millions of dollars are being invested in new and existing neighborhood institutions and government resources are now being directed to improve our streets. On a recent visit at a community function, I only recognized a handful of familiar faces which indicates positive growth and development!

 

One of our priorities has been raising awareness about the hidden gems of West Rogers Park. Our Alderman, Debra Silverstein, has referred to Devon Avenue as “a diamond in the rough” and we agree. The way to influence perception is to engage in a public relations campaign and we are very fortunate to have the volunteer services of Beverly Siegel who has gotten us considerable visibility.  Our work (and more importantly, our neighborhood) has been featured in news articles in:

1.       Chicago Tribune

2.       JUF News

3.       Chicago Jewish News

4.       DNAInfo

5.       News-Star

 

Most recently, we were included in a story about Devon Avenue in the AmericanWay magazine which is distributed on every American Airlines flight domestically and internationally. This exposure is a great way to showcase local businesses and raise awareness about advocacy. A number of friends traveling to Chicago have commented positively after reading the article. That article is posted here: http://www.gowrp.org/blog/2068/jccwrp-in-the-american-way/

 

I encourage you to visit our website, www.GoWRP.org, and share that link with your colleagues and neighbors. Recent news articles and blog updates on our progress are regularly posted. We also have links to our active social media pages.  There is no substitute for positive word of mouth!

Shalom Klein

 

Moving Our Agenda Forward

Posted on by Shalom Klein

Friends and Board Members,

Since re-launching in late 2013, the Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park has taken on many priorities. While we try to use these weekly emails as a platform to update our key stakeholders on our work, there is so much more that is taking place behind the scenes. Our top priorities have been and remain business development and advocacy. This week was a great example of how we move those items forward on a daily basis.

On Monday of this week, Tony Martinez of the Chicago Community Trust, a resident of our area and a member of our advocacy committee chaired a meeting attended by key leaders in the Jewish Community Council of West Rogers Park, the West Ridge Chamber of Commerce and the West Rogers Park Community Organization. The agenda was discussing a path forward regarding organizing for improvements to the NorthTown branch of the Chicago Public Library. Each attendee took on several key next steps which involve petitions, social media, and meetings with officials. If you would like to be included in this conversation, please let me know so we can keep you informed on next steps.

You have likely seen the final touches to the first phase of the streetscape on Devon Avenue. The improvements are major and the credit for that is owed to Alderman Debra Silverstein. Now we have to leverage those positive developments and attract businesses to all of our major commercial areas in West Rogers Park. To that end, Howard Rieger and I have been discussing the possibility of adding a part-time position to our organization and hiring a business outreach assistant to support my work in bringing commerce and small businesses to our thoroughfares.  Several candidates have been recommended and we are looking for additional resumes to review (draft job description is available here). Your suggestions for candidates would be very much appreciated.

As always, I look forward to your feedback and welcome the opportunity to meet to review our progress.

Thank you,

 

SK