Jewish Federation of Cincinnati

Jaynie Levinson — Connecting Jewish Young Adults

I am so excited to share all that is happening in the Cincinnati Jewish young adult world. My colleague, Missy Goldstein, and I make up the Young Adult Division (YAD) team and have been hard at work all summer launching a new website, preparing to welcome a new LEAD class, and implementing new programs to ensure that young adults are engaged and connecting with one another.

I joined the Jewish Federation in August of 2017, and Missy joined the team at the end of June. We spent much of the summer planning and strategizing how to implement the ideas from Beyond 2020, find the best ways to reach young adults, and decide where we want to focus our energies for the year.

In July, we held a LEAD Open House, during which prospective new participants met with alumni to learn about the program. The 11^th LEAD class, which includes 16 young adults, kicked off its first session of the year at Camp Livingston. If you haven’t heard of LEAD, check it out here. We have more than 130 LEAD alumni that still live in Cincinnati. Shout out to our amazing Co-Chairs, Elida Kamine Yamson and Robyn Lamont, and the rest of the LEAD committee!

This summer we launched Cincinnati Vine, a central interactive hub connecting young adults to each other and the Cincinnati Jewish community, with a party at the Summit Hotel in August. About 250 young adults joined us. We had a DJ, photo booth, great sponsors, and, of course, the opportunity to see old friends and meet new ones.

Missy kicked off the Jewish New Year with a happy hour, which will happen quarterly. This was a great opportunity for about 50 young adults to come together and meet new people, interact, and explore a cool bar in OTR. YAD is also strengthening its partnership with JVS Career Services by co-hosting networking happy hours, Connections & Cocktails, which are bringing young professionals together to mix and mingle!

Our next event, YAD Friendsgiving, was an opportunity to join in smaller communities for Shabbat dinner. Community members signed up to be hosted by young adults across the city, and then place by neighborhood, age, and interests. These smaller dinners provided the opportunity for meaningful conversations and connections.

It has been exciting! But we are onto so much more.

My role is not only to help young adults find meaningful connections, but also to provide leadership opportunities.

There are many ways to get involved in Jewish life here in Cincinnati. Join a board, serve on a short-term or long-term committee, or even participate in a leadership development program.

I am excited to develop a culture of philanthropy among Millennials and younger generations and oversee events aimed at creating an even more vibrant Jewish community for young adults in Cincinnati.

But all of this cannot happen with the support of young adults—the engaged, the not-so-engaged, the new-to-town friends, and those who are lifetime Cincinnatians.

I hope to see you in the community soon!