Dear Friends,

     I am writing with an update on Temple Emunah’s security. While there have been no explicit threats against us, recent events have added to the sense of urgency on this issue. This letter explains our next steps to move forward. Please excuse its length.

     When I last wrote, we agreed to lock all but the front door when the Religious School is in session and posted an adult at the front door during the opening of school sessions. Since then, the Board asked for and endorsed a vision for increased security from our Security Committee, ably led by chairs Denise Forbes and Michael Roskind. Let me pause and thank them for their work. I use the word “vision” to distinguish from a “plan,” since we have yet to determine procedures and financing. The endorsed vision for improving our security has three major elements: 

• locking all our doors with “smart” locks
• having staff or parents at the front door at the start of weekday Religious School
• posting a professional guard at the front door on Shabbat and Sunday mornings

     The technology we have selected allows access through the doors by means of a keycard (something you put on your keychain), an app on your smartphone or being buzzed in by someone looking at a video screen in the office or on a smartphone or tablet. The guards will be the same individuals who staffed our parking lot very professionally during the High Holy Days, both of whom are retired from distinguished careers in law enforcement. Our goal is to have someone posted at the front door during those times when high traffic through the doors mitigates the protection of a locked door. In the case of Shabbat, the guards will be more welcoming and less technology-based and, hence, more in keeping with the spirit of the day.  The endorsed security vision has some other elements - like the ability to “lock down” the school and preschool  - that are important but have less communal impact.

     We do not need to take all these steps at once. For example, Religious School hours can be treated differently than minyan times when we want to be able to welcome guests coming to say kaddish. Yet, we do need to move forward, especially given the recent threats to JCCs and the fact that we are hearing increasing concern from Religious School parents. As an explicitly temporary measure while we process our security needs as a community, we will have a guard posted during Religious School hours and Shabbat morning. Please know this is intended neither to establish any precedent nor to commit ourselves to a guard over time, but rather to take immediate, reasonable action that will allow us time to take our next steps thoughtfully.

     Moving forward requires discussion, planning and education as well as time to install hardware. We will convene a community meeting to discuss this vision on Sunday, March 26 beginning with morning minyan at 9:00am and convening discussion at 9:50am. Moving forward also requires an examination of finances. The installation of the smart lock can be covered by the current Building Fund. The ongoing technology costs are not insignificant, but manageable. Employing guards is, on some level, simpler yet is a much more expensive initiative and our budget cannot currently support the above vision without making major cuts elsewhere. While security is an important value, it competes with other values and we all must acknowledge that community members will prioritize these values differently.

     As I hope you have seen in the current bulletin, we have begun a Campaign for a Stronger and Sustainable Emunah. The stated three million dollar goal of this campaign includes some attention to security needs, but not the full cost of this new security vision. To fund a security guard for the desired times on an ongoing basis without major cuts elsewhere will necessitate significant additions to  the endowment fund. This is completely attainable, yet it will require that the entire community participate and push ourselves beyond our comfort zone. This can be done. To learn how you can participate, please mark your calendars for lunchtime, Sunday, April 2 for the Campaign’s community launch.

     Before concluding, let me state two caveats: First, we must acknowledge that no step we take will completely protect us from a determined aggressor. Second, we must acknowledge that steps to increase our security (and sense of same) come at a cost, both human and financial. Our image as an open, welcoming community will be altered by any steps we take. Neither of these statements take away from the importance of moving forward with increased security, yet they illuminate that as we proceed we must balance sometimes-competing values, that manifest in our finances and behaviors.

     I look forward to your thoughtful responses, our communal discussion on March 26 and great success in our campaign - so that all our visions can become reality! Fortified by the knowledge that we will travel this road together, I am,

                                                                        Your President,

                                                                         David Landis