Problem Solved!

As we all know, the world is not perfect and despite all of our hard work, great intentions, excellent communication, etc etc.. issues may arise when we least expect it or even as we expected... either way.. it is important to realize that in order to stay as a functional and positive Moishe House , these issues must be resolved immediately in whatever way is most appropriate.. An issue we were recently faced with revolved around communication and scheduling. We all have lives outside of Moishe House- some more demanding than others..and often times forget about the fact that MH is a job as well and should not be shrugged aside.. With both of our schedules being so dramatically different, we found it hard to be able to schedule a time that was good for the both of us to actually sit down and dedicate 100% of our time and attention to MH. In result, we had a misunderstanding in regards to a few of the scheduled events for that month. We knew that this problem could not be a repetitive one so we decided that regardless of how busy, hectic, chaotic, etc. our schedules may be, we would schedule a time to sit down and plan the upcoming MH events. The following month, we did just as we had planned and scheduled a definite time to meet. We found that this helped eliminate the problem had the month prior and were both on the same page in regards to the upcoming events and what was expected from the both of us for every event.

Ari from MHSF

I just read that Joe and the rest of the Chicago crew are passing the torch to a new bunch of folks. For those of you that haven't had the pleasure of meeting them, they're awesome. I got to hang out with them at the retreat last year in Santa Barbara, and we had a great time. After the retreat Joe and his housemates sent us at MHSF a large box with all the requirements for making an authentic Chicago-style hot dog. Literally everything necessary was in the box. Buns, hot dogs, mustard, and all sorts of stuff that absolutely exploded inside the box and made the postman probably think it was a biological attack. I'm still using the mustard!

During the summer we've had about 15 visitors from all over the world stay in our extra bedroom, and all of them heard about us through some Moishe House connection. I love visitors, especially foreign ones, and they all think Moishe House is amazing. Hearing their positive feedback on Moishe House makes me realize how successful of an organization Moishe House can become internationally. As well all know, that'll take money. I'd encourage all of you to please donate on the Moishe House site. If you can think about the opportunities afforded by the privilege of being a Moishe House resident, a donation of 25 dollars is well worth it. And of course vote for David. http://www.jewishcommunityheroes.org/nominees/profile/david-cygielman/

Programming for Sustainability at MHDC (house blog)

There came a time last spring where those of us who had been in the house for a while were feeling a bit fed up with our big Shabbats. Sure, they’re always entertaining – 50+ people, wine, great food and good company. But hosting these Shabbats was beginning to feel like somewhat of an ordeal – rather than enjoying the food, good company, etc., we spent much of the Shabbat running around and making sure that other people were enjoying themselves, floating from conversation to conversation, not getting to talk to any one person for very long. As our Shabbats grew bigger, the task of managing them became more all-consuming. Given that Shabbats are really the cornerstone of the MHDC community, it was important for us to figure out a way to bring the joy and excitement back into these dinners. Before living in MHDC, I myself was a regular Shabbat attendee, and I so valued the laid-back atmosphere, the interesting people, the openly but not aggressively Jewish environment – we all understood that these events were of value to our whole community, and it was important for us to figure out a way to make them less of a chore and more of a community building endeavor.

So we decided to schedule one small, invite-only Shabbat each month in addition to our large, open Shabbat. This allows us to get to know new members of our community, to reconnect with people who perhaps haven’t been by in a while, to spend time with our good friends as well as new and potential friends. For our house, I feel that this has made our system of Shabbats sustainable – more rejuvenating than stressful. We can really take time to appreciate each other, the community we’ve built and the religious directive within Judaism to really and truly take a break from the everyday work of living. It makes us feel more connected to our community and more connected to Shabbat.

Joe in Chicago

Hi Everyone,

Looks like this will by my last post on this fine blog, as MHCHI gets ready to pass on the torch to a new Chicago house starting in September 1st (in our old house!). I'll hide some manischewitz in the ceiling tiles for you, new chicago moishe house.

It's been a pretty great two years. Crazy to think it's been that long. Also by far the best documented two years of my life. Thinking back on who I considered part of my community when we started this thing two years ago helps me realize just how far this thing has gone. Thanks to everyone here in Chicago who has helped make these last two years great.

Once we all move out, we're all actually going to continue to live close to each other and a good amount of our current community. Besides coming to the new house's activities, we also have been planning on continuing to have shabbats at each others' houses, a different house each month. I'm really looking forward to this. This is the type of thing that we probably would not have organically come to if it wasn't for seeing the value of these events these past years. I really hope we can keep that going and keep this community present.

The new house is going to be great, so if anyone comes to Chicago, look them up!

Bye everyone, and thanks for doing what you do.

- Joe

MHSS - A struggle, its resolution, & what we've learned

Lesson Learned - Please describe an instant where your house has had an issue (e.g. trouble with events, house dynamics, logisitics etc.) and discuss how the house resolved the issue, and what was learned.

Event, situation: Food Justice BBQ - planning, implementing, execution, wrap-up
Struggle, lesson: planning, communication clarity, strong / clear structure for execution

On Sunday, August 9th, MHSS -- with the support of several other local Jewish / environmental / social justice organizations -- hosted a Food Justice Barbeque featuring local, organic, hechshered-kosher foods from several area farms and production facilities. Foods and drinks were purchased directly from the farmers themselves, local farmers' markets, local food co-ops and the Silver Spring Whole Foods, prepared by residents and a cadre of invaluable volunteers. We used reusable or otherwise eco-friendly utensils, etc., and composted and recycled what we could, producing very little waste. Speakers and representatives from Shomrei Adamah, Kayam Farm, AVODAH/AJWS, KOL Foods, and Within Reach Movie spoke with attendees about various moral, ethical, environmental, and religous issues related to our eating choices, about creating sustainable communities through the choices we make, and about their own personal journeys and experiences in pursuit of a happier, healthier, more just world. The event was featured in the August 12th issue of Washington Jewish Week (article here) and may be featured as well in Within Reach Movie (http://www.withinreachmovie.com/), a film documenting 100 sustainable communities in the continental United States. The event was responsible for feeding and educating the approximately 80 people who packed our back patio and house -- from ages severl months to several decades -- about the possibilities, local opportunities, and philosophies regarding kosher, organic, sustainable eating choices.

All in all, not bad.
Actually, I'm pretty proud of ourselves.

But we could still use some work.


Areas of [Future] Improvement
Planning
Issue: Cluelessness
I (Rachael) was away during the crux of planning; so, I walked into a show already in motion, treading gingerly so as not to trample reigning decisions, hinder plans already underway, disrupt ongoing dialogue, or impose upon busy schedules. Our house meeting initially scheduled for the week prior to the event was canceled due to last-minute developments. In retrospect, we concluded we could sure have used a house meeting dedicated solely to the food justice BBQ at some point during that week; but at the time, busy schedules and collective blissful ignorance usurped any such plans.

It wasn't until I fell into a chance conversation with Lindsay on Shabbat afternoon -- less than 24 hours until the masses would descend, less even still until the time by which food and space prep should be well underway -- that I realized just how little had been decided upon or was in place for the next day. Where would we get enough meat serving bowls, platters, and utensils; knives, cutting boards, cooking dishes, pitchers, etc.? (Apparently, we had secured none of these things; we couldn't use what we currently owned, for our kitchen is primarily dairy.) Who was volunteering for what and when? At what time were the representatives from the co-sponsoring organizations arriving? Were they coming early to help out? Were we going to collect money for tzedaka -- a food-justice-related organization, perhaps? How would we designate what was to be trash, what was to be composted, and what was to be washed for future use -- and how would we collect each? And so on. And when Lindsay left for the five thousandth or so time to pick up more food for the event from yet another local market or co-op, I wondered (feeling a bit helpless and out of the loop): why is Lindsay doing all this work?

Communication; Clear structure in place; Distribution of duties
Issue: unbalanced workloads, ambiguous / vague roles / duties, and unfulfilled expectations

New & Improved -- Next Time
We had a house meeting a few days later at which we recounted both the virtues and the detriments of the event. We took turns, allowing each person their full opportunity to speak. Each person highlighted successes as well as areas ripe for fixing. Each person used positive, all-encompassing language, not singling out in hostility or, as folks love to say, finger-pointing. (No name-calling, either, for that matter.) Our sharings covered a lot of ground, including the following: (I'll try to represent everyone's various misgivings / lessons equally and accurately)

- Communication: point person seeks out others involved in the day's execution; informs all of updates: what's secured, what remains to be accomplished, who will do what, etc.; requests assistance as needed. This to happen in the weeks and days before the event; by day of event, all should know what is where, who is doing what, etc.
- Communication: all involved in day's execution ask proactively the status of things & how they can be helpful.
(Seems more efficient for main person to assume the active role and disseminate information to all simultaneously, so that all are on same page, get info. at same time, and can learn from one another's questions and answers, and also so that point person does not have to remember and repeat info. several times over as s/he updates each "executioner." However, proactivity is good and useful.)
- Planning: All needed materials are determined and secured in the weeks preceding the event; label purpose of each and store in location others know.

- Breakout sessions: "wish had gone better"
Clearer intention: who is reviewing what topic? Where will breakout session be located? Better spaces created for breakouts. Also: is this a "requirement", or do we not mind if people choose to socialize instead? If "requirement", must more clearly build into structure of event.
- Make lists / figure out details much more in advance
- Delegation & delegators: who is point person for which pieces of the event? Who knows or will figure out what is needed and will have "authority" to assign responsibilities? Then: do it! & check in with people periodically, at pre-determined intervals and also casually.
- Checklist of what needs to be done to be posted in days preceding event and also checklist to post day of event to be referred to by all involved in event execution -- so all can track what needs to be done still, what is accomplished, who may need help, etc.
- Designate and physically separate food & materials into piles w/ signs for clarity (so everything is collected into one place for each purpose for which its needed and no need to hunt it out)
- Schedule more time for prep when event follows a Shabbat that ends late
- Volunteer structure arranged in advance & available to all head point people and housemates
- Assign captains in charge of each category of what needs to be accomplished; make clear who is captain of which category: introduce them to helpers & executors, provide nametags if necessary, & add to posted checklist for easy reference. This person responsible for successful execution of said category, incl. problem solving / troubleshooting. Helpers responsible for checking in with their assigned captain, and with other caps once first cap. says all's clear for their category of work to be done.
- Volunteer expectations clear -- duties, timeframes / timeliness (cap. can cover details)
- Outdoor space prepped as much as possible in the week preceding event so that only touch-ups are left for day of & energies can be focused on the prep that could not be taken care of prior
- Clearly assigned roles, timeframes, & deadlines of duties to be taken care of, pre- & post-event
- Clear communication between housemates of personal needs & group expectations
- With an event this large, hold at least one meeting just about this event, probably best during week preceding event; all housemates who will be at event are present at meeting; perhaps volunteers in attendance, too
- Raising money @ event: determine whether will collect & decide upon recipient much ahead of time; make clear the intended acceptance of tzedaka: announce verbally & with signs the intention to collect, recipient organization, & location of tzedaka box

And there you have it!

For a complete list of and supplemental information about participating co-sponsors, organizations, suppliers, and speakers, feel free to visit our Food Justice entries at www.moishehousesilverspring.blogspot.com.

Moishe Nola attacks each month's activities by creating a financial pro forma and executive workflow matrix. Actually, no. We'd like to be so exacting but the actual monthly responsibilities have a more flexible nature. In terms of Moishe House events, we tend have 3 established events (jewish learning, movie night, broadmoor activity) which we each select to lead its implementation. Shabbat Potluck is always a joint effort amongst all the house members. We also seek partnerships from jewish or volunteer groups that may want to join us for Shabbat.

We definitely leverage our respective strengts and assets. Jeff Prussack for example is a whiz with flyer design, facebook event creation and general design intiatives. Jon Graboyes utilizes his connection to the Broadmoor neighborhood group to expand community participation. Gill Benedek will often extend partnership invitations to existing organizations or leaders such as with the Jewish Learning series and Sukkot Build. Our combined communication networks are quite deep in the New Orleans community.

Lastly, while we wish that we did house meetings on the same day every week, our schedules are so busy that it often becomes difficult. Usually a house meeting twice a month helps us discuss our goals, which we then continue to implement through the Moishe Nola patented PunchList that outlines the specific tasks to complete.

But somehow, we make it all work

Ilana Schuman-Stoler MH Chicago; FINAL POST!!

Well, it's that time and I'm sad to say that after two wonderful years, I must bid Moishe House farewell. I am excited about the future to come, but I also feel a bit sentimental when I think back upon the past couple years and all the things we've been able to do with Moishe House.

We started with a great spark and really have been able to carry that spark throughout our time here and I am so happy to have been able to participate in this program and to see it grow. The MH staff has worked hard since the inception of this program to master this realm of fundraising and non-profiteering and have made some amazing connections with extraordinary funds and donors that greatly helped MH succeed and become what it is today.

The coolest thing about leaving the Moishe House here in Chicago is that I already know that it doesn't end here. I have so many exciting opportunities in the future to look forward to, including being an accepted member in this year's PLP midwest hub and applying to graduate school in Non-Profit Management and possibly moving to another city but I will do all these things with Moishe House as a real now deep and influential part of my journey.

I will leave you all with that. For those of you who are new to the program good luck and remember to have fun! To the people I've met in the past who I may not see again, it's been nice knowing you and keep on keeping on. To the staff, thank you so much for your support and you are all great people who are truly capable of taking this thing far.

GO GET EM

Peace,
Ilana