I wish you all a year of peace, community and growth. And I hope you can find these things through your participation in Temple Micah.

A key role of the board is to ensure the integrity of the organization of Temple Micah, but we are also charged with ensuring its growth as a community. So while we are responsible for balancing the budget, hiring staff, maintaining the building and overseeing other areas of operation, we must create a vision for our future. The building expansion plan is the most visible way in which we are providing for Temple Micah's future.

We also want to cultivate the growth of our sense of community, a more abstract but equally critical effort by the congregation. To help enrich this sense of community, members of the board will be calling every Micah member to wish you all a sweet new year. This is no solicitation for money, cookies or volunteer efforts, but just a friendly wish from the board of directors.

Our last meeting allowed the board to appreciate many of the ways Temple Micah continues to grow. Celia Shapiro and Larry Cooley reported that the capital campaign is meeting our expectations. With just a small portion of the congregation having been solicited, we are already approaching $900,000 in pledges. But we are not slowing down. Everyone's participation, no matter the size, is essential to the success of this effort.

The Treasurer reported that the congregation's finances are sound, helped in part by a growing membership that now includes more than 440 families and an increase in annual dues levels. New families will be invited to participate in a New Members group. This group will introduce our newest congregants to our culture and our hope that every member of Temple Micah experience all that we have to offer, from study to social action to the varied activities that enable us to enrich our Jewish lives. The board will continue to explore ways to further deepen our communal life.

Again, on behalf of the board of directors, I wish you all the best for the coming year.

[By Betsy Broder]