The Charlotte
An Affiliate of the Jewish Federation
of Greater Charlotte
JEWISH
Vol. 36, No. 4
Nissan 5774
April 2014
Jewish Federation: The STRENGTH of a People.
The POWER of Community.
Together our impact stretches from Charlotte to Israel to 70
countries around the world
riiDE:W;io,N j
TOGETHER,
By Sue Littauer, Development
Director, Jewish Federation of
Greater Charlotte
I’ve had the privilege of getting
to know hundreds of volunteers
and donors during my years as the
Development Direetor for Feder
ation. I’ve listened to their stories,
laughed with them, eried with
them, and have always been inter
ested to learn how they eonneet to
our eommunity, to the Jewish Fed
eration, to Judaism.
Reading about the erisis in the
Ukraine, seeing the images on the
internet, in the newspaper and on
television has made a huge impaet
on me beeause I’ve had the oppor
tunity to travel to the Ukraine a
few times during the past several
years to visit at-risk populations
and to witness the rebirth of Jew
ish life, all made possible through
the Jewish Federation and its
overseas partners.
The Federation system re
sponded immediately to the erisis
in the Ukraine by doing what it
does best - providing emergeney
relief and assistanee to those in
need. In a part of the world where
many of us have roots, the most
vulnerable members of our Jewish
family - ehildren and the frail eld
erly - beeame innoeent vietims in
a rapidly deteriorating situation.
Our fellow Jews, eaught in the
Sue Littauer
eross-fire, needed our help and
our Federation system responded
by eommitting eore funding and
by opening the Ukraine Assis
tanee Fund to raise the additional
dollars needed. Through the work
of our overseas partners, the
Ameriean Jewish Joint Distribu
tion Committee (JDC), the Jewish
Ageney for Israel (JAFI) and
World ORT, our Federation was
able to provide on the ground as
sistanee.
I’ve seen the Federation re
spond to erisis after erisis, in Israel
and around the world. Just this
fall, the Jewish Federation of
North Ameriea eommitted the
funds to “eomplete the journey” -
to bring the remaining Ethiopian
Jews to Israel. Our own Federa
tion made a eommitment to join in
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the worldwide effort to resettle
this vulnerable population by rais
ing additional funds.
In July 12, 2006, Sue Worrel
and I landed in Israel on the very
day the Seeond Lebanon War
started. We saw firsthand how the
Federation system responded.
Children were immediately
brought to safety, erisis eounsel-
ing was put into plaee, food and
supplies were distributed to bomb
shelters. Finaneial assistanee was
provided immediately without
im
DO
EXTHAORDIHAIIY
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hesitation to those in
need, before Emer
geney Funds were set
up throughout the
Federation system.
I know, that
through the my An
nual Campaign
pledge, I am able to support all of
the wonderful programs offered
by our amazing loeal benefieiary
ageneies whieh provide a Jewish
edueation for our ehildren and
grandehildren, build a strong Jew
2014 Campaign at a Glance
Campaign Total to Date
$2,375,000
Number of Contributions Received
1177
Percentage of Campaign Complete
69%
as of March 18
ish life here in Charlotte, and eon
neet our teens and the members of
our eommunity with Israel.
I am thankful that through my
finaneial support of the
Jewish Federation, I am
able to provide for Jews
in Israel and around the
world - for Jewish
eamps, seeure and safe
environments, for soeial
experienees for thou
sands of seniors who are
alone and need finaneial
assistanee.
And I know that be
eause of my own pledge to the
Annual Campaign, the organiza
tion that means so mueh to me -
the Jewish Federation - will re
spond immediately to erises
around the world.
One gift really makes a
difference.
If you have not had your oppor
tunity to make your pledge to the
2014 Annual Campaign, please
join me by pledging online at
www.jewisheharlotte.org or by
eontaeting me at sue.littauer@
jewisheharlotte.org ^
April 6 Seminar Helps Teens Find Their
Passion and Turn it Into a Business
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Who is Vanessa Van Petten?
* Author of one of Amazon’s
“Top 5 Hottest Books”
* Youthologist
* Teen whisperer
* International speaker
* Guest of Dr. Drew and The
Real Housewives of Orange
County
*CEO
* Website developer
* Behavioral investigator
* Huffington Post, Forbes, and
CNN eolumnist
* Mom’s Choiee Award winner
* Emory University Magna
Cum Laude graduate
* Certified in Subtle Expres
sion Training Tool (SETT), Subtle
Expression Reeognition Training
(SubX) and Statement Analysis
* All of the above
If you answered, “All of the
above” then you would be right.
As a young entrepreneur, Vanessa
will be the keynote speaker at
Jewish Family Serviees Family
Reunion on April 6. The keynote
address for parents of teens,
pre-teens, and young adults, titled
“Deeode Your Teen,” will foeus
on bridging the differenees be
tween young people and parents
so eaeh understands what the
other is thinking. This free event
will teaeh ways to eommunieate
and build trust, as well as
deal with lying, drama, and sulk-
Vanessa Van Petten
ing. Tapping into her experienee
as a “behavioral investigator,”
Vanessa will share stories, adviee,
and researeh with parents and
their ehildren wanting to build
better relationshis.
Following the 10 AM program,
teens are invited to join Vanessa
for an informal diseussion on
finding their passion projeets and
aehieving sueeess. “Many stu
dents are eonstantly told that they
are too young to know what they
want to do or start their eareers,”
says Vanessa. In this talk, she will
share her journey of starting her
business at 16-years-old and then
eontinuing to grow it from the
eramped desk of her eollege dorm
room. She will address ways to fa-
eilitate and inspire young people
to find their passions and aet on
them. She gives praetieal, humor
ous, and inspiring adviee on how
to deal with naysayers, where to
find funding and how to get over
mental bloeks when you feel like
you are stuek.
Vanessa tells true stories that
give insight into the minds and at
titudes of both parents and teens
on issues ranging from friendships
and bullying to sehool, sex, aleo-
hol, and drugs. Her adviee is real-
istie; some of it is ehallenging.
But, she gets her insight from
being able to break through the
barriers that exist between teens
and parents. Many parents will be
shoeked to find out that for the
most part, their teens not only
need them, but truly want them in
volved in their lives.
“When I was 16,” says
Vanessa, “I thought it was my
Dad’s goal in life to make me mis
erable. I was eonvineed that he
had a running list of all the ways
he eould embarrass me in front of
my friends, triek me into doing
more ehores, or make my eurfew
earlier. I realized my dad was
reading books that were all writ
ten by adults, and I wondered why
nothing was written by
teenagers.”
This inspired her to write
“You’re Grounded!” from a teen
point of view at age 17. It was a
eritieal sueeess and launehed her
(Continued on page 14)