The phrase “Don’t count your chickens before they hatch” jumps to mind as I venture here that nominated routinely means elected. Might not happen. A dark horse candidate could emerge, wresting the presidency from my hands and leaving me with egg all over my face for daring to write presumptively. Not until Congregation Tifereth Israel’s Annual Meeting in June will the election of officers for the coming year take place. Although past experience indicates no record of risk-taking on my part, I’m going to chance it. Here goes…

Reflecting on this past year as president, I have found that elevation to this experience can change a person, at least it certainly has been so for me. This risk-taking aside — I can say with certainty that never will I be included regularly as one of the gambler sorts — yet I am different today than I was one year ago and, in fact, different even from maybe 20-some years ago, when as a wide-eyed and unsuspecting new member, I was hornswoggled into becoming president. It was a tumultuous year, and I and my board got us through it — with blood everywhere. But I digress…

One of my daughters once proclaimed, “Mom, you’re just not an early adopter.” As evidence of this flaw, consider my reluctance to purchase a Cuisinart when the rest of the civilized world was ga-ga over the speed and ease of meal preparation; meanwhile, I wondered why anyone would want processed food. Of course, I found the thing so useful that over the years, I burned through several of them. Similarly, when personal computers entered the mainstream, and the newspaper group for which I worked welcomed the technology, I announced at the dinner table one evening that if I have to give up my office standard typewriter, my career as a reporter and editor is over. And, of course, multiple computers later, plus a couple of iPads, smart phones, and now an Apple watch, I am device-central.

Yet, one year ago, I still harbored some of that no-early-adopter sentiment, a hesitancy to jump on board with the idea of the moment: “Sara, we should…” “Sara, why don’t we…” “Sara, Let’s…”

True, some of those big ideas weren’t worth the words to suggest them, but now and again, there’s an idea for, say, the Yellow Candle Project, which has grown exponentially since it was initiated several years ago by Chuck Simon; First Friday Oneg Shabbats that have encouraged our members to come to shul rather than choosing to attend Shabbat services on Zoom; and our first-ever Tu B’Av lunch party last year that was truly successful in getting our members to open up about warm and fuzzy topics like love and romance and the people they care about. Moments of introspection and revealingly good fun.

In most instances, the decision to say yay or nay lands at the desk where the buck stops. And where in the past, this president might have intoned a wishy-washy “Maybe,” she was more open than ever to consider, assess, and judge the value of the suggestion to CTI and its members, and frequently conclude with a “Yay.” Noteworthy among those decisions, the Israel program post Oct. 7, with guest speakers, some directly from Jerusalem, initiated by Judith Weiner. Yay or nay is more than a simple word adjustment; it’s a new mindset, yes, a change, brought about by the magnitude of the position.

And in that vein, should the June election conclude as expected, I will carry that mindset into my next term and, with the help of HaShem and the strength of my board, we will move our shul forward with vigor and embrace the best of whatever may come.

I salute Ellen Buchbinder and Suri Lan-Brown, who last year served our shul with distinction. For the coming year, I am proud to accept the nomination to serve our shul with my fellow nominees:

Vice President: Joanna Paulsen

Treasurer: Caren Demel

Financial Secretary: Nancy Torchio

Recording Secretary: Elizabeth Adams

Corresponding Secretary:Elaine Goldman

At-Large: Gordon Henry, Madelyn Rothman, Lewis Teperman, and Rena Wiseman

Sisterhood President: Adrianne Greenberg

Immediate Past President: Judith K. Weiner

I invite you to attend the Annual Meeting on Sunday, June 9, at 10 a.m., on Zoom, to show your support.

—Sara Bloom