Letter To The Editor
Dear Editor,
As a proud member of the search committee, I found Josh Nathan-Kazis’ Dec. 19 piece about the selection of Lonnie Nasatir as President-Elect of the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago to be a missed opportunity to highlight an exciting and pivotal moment in the Chicago Jewish community.
The search process was rigorous and thorough. The 18-member search committee—ranging in age from 31 to 93—included virtually every former JUF/Federation chairman of the board, plus leaders of JUF’s Young Leadership and Women’s Divisions. The search committee was comprised of volunteers only; it included no staff. Under the leadership of an outside consultant, this committee conducted an extensive, six-month national search, considering a field of nearly 40 exceptionally qualified candidates and interviewing dozens of extraordinary professionals.
Ultimately, the search committee unanimously recommended Lonnie Nasatir as the next president, and the JUF/Federation Board of Directors approved the search committee’s recommendation.
The reality is that Lonnie Nasatir’s credentials would have made him a prime candidate for leadership at any Federation, anywhere. His professional experience, his tenure as a leader in the Jewish community, his impeccable work ethic and character made him the right choice despite, not because of, his last name.
Sincerely,
David Sherman
Search Committee Member
2008-2010 Chairman of the Board
Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask you to support the Forward’s award-winning journalism during our High Holiday Monthly Donor Drive.
If you’ve turned to the Forward in the past 12 months to better understand the world around you, we hope you will support us with a gift now. Your support has a direct impact, giving us the resources we need to report from Israel and around the U.S., across college campuses, and wherever there is news of importance to American Jews.
Make a monthly or one-time gift and support Jewish journalism throughout 5785. The first six months of your monthly gift will be matched for twice the investment in independent Jewish journalism.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO