An editor is known by many descriptive names, some nicer than others. Miriam Gabriel, my able colleague and proofreader, calls me “chief.” I like that one. Other names, clearly inappropriate for this family-focused publication, typically are invoked by those whose submissions I have adjusted for clarity, rejected for such shortcomings as relevance or timeliness, or found so hopelessly error-ridden that only a total rewrite could save them.

An editor is the boss, the last word, the arbiter. He or she could be in charge of a big city newspaper with circulation numbers in the tens of thousands, huge staffs to manage, and reputations to uphold as well-regarded newsgathering organizations. On the other hand, editors may be positioned at the helm of, say, an unpretentious 20-page (give or take) online newsletter that is delivered free and is read, at best, by a few hundred folks because they willingly provided their email addresses. In either case, a publication without an editor invites stylistic chaos.

So what does an editor do? The editor of this newsletter, for instance, is the singular voice responsible for what is published, including noteworthiness of the story, quality of the writing, applicable illustration, and the design and layout of each page. It may not seem so to casual readers, but there is joy in this work. And that’s what I want to address in this particular space that, for the last three years — 36 issues — has been occupied by a monthly contributor of uncommonly articulate wordsmithing.

Shul president Judith K. Weiner submitted her “Swan Song,” she titled it, for the May issue of The Shofar, and I, among many, will miss her monthly submissions — her themes coherent and well developed, an extensive vocabulary able to single out the precise word to convey a thought, and the concentrated focus that corrals her text; it does not wander off, trail off, or take off in all directions. When she writes about matters that require your attention — such as the High Holiday Matching Gift Campaign — you know precisely what you are asked to do.

Thank you, Judith Weiner, for bold ideas well-conceived, for an approachable, conversational style, for adding strong writing to these pages, and for the joy this editor has experienced month after month in reviewing your columns. Speaking personally and for readers of The Shofar, we wish you well, and hope we will hear from you soon again on matters that engage you.

—Sara Bloom