Dear YLC Members-

Here is a taste of what is going on with the YLC.

OU Annual Dinner

We are happy to announce that the YLC will again be holding a private reception at this year's 109th Anniversary OU National Dinner, to be held on May 20th at the Hilton New York. Our honorees will soon be announced...so stay tuned.

We are currently forming a YLC dinner committee and seeking a dinner chairperson. The dinner is a tremendous opportunity to come together with family and friends and recognize that work that our peers have done in service of the community.

Additionally, we are seeking corporate sponsorship for tables, so please contact your employer to explore a charitable sponsorship opportunity.

For additional information please contact Ilana at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Israel

Pesach

The YLC invites you and your families, and anyone from your community who may be in Israel to an OPEN HOUSE at the OU Israel Center, over Chol Hamoed Pesach. This event will be an opportunity to get together with other members of the OU family, who are interested in learning more about the good work of the OU in Israel, and to meet and greet with OU professionals on the ground, including Rabbi Avi Berman, Director-General of the OU's operations in Israel.

The Open House will be on Wednesday evening April 4th, motzei yom tov shel galut, from 8pm-11pm. Please invite your friends and family to join us at the epicenter of our programming in Israel.

For more information, contact Allyson Gur-Aryeh at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or Ilana Prager at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Don't forget, the OU's guide to Passover is now listed on the OU website at http://www.oukosher.org/index.php/passover . Please feel free to share this information with friends and family.

Activism

NCSY Alum, Avi Abelow has produced a movie called “Home Game.” After experiencing the "disengagement" together with the families of Netzer Hazani, Gush Katif, Avi decided to make a movie about what happened. The movie documents the story of graduating 12th graders, from the Israeli village of Netzer Hazani, during their last vacation before adulthood.

The YLC would like to arrange screenings of this moving film in both Long Island and in New York City, and to meet with Avi after the film for a question and answer session.

Neima Chasky is also interested in working with the YLC members to arrange a screening of the film “Unsettled” also about the families evacuated from the Gaza Strip. Unsettled is a unique film about the roles of religion and democracy, soldiers and civilians, and the passionate divisions in a nation that has never known peace.

For more information on either film, contact Ilana at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or Neima at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). We will be organizing screenings in the near future.

Volunteerism

We wanted to make you aware of a unique volunteer opportunity website:

In an effort to streamline and strengthen the process of connecting non-profits with volunteers, SmartVolunteer has announced the launch of the first website to offer tailored searches for skills-based volunteer projects. The website's unique focus on skilled giving is designed to enable more individuals to volunteer in projects that maximize their personal satisfaction while at the same time maximizing in-kind contributions to non-profits.

The SmartVolunteer website (located at http://www.smartvolunteer.org) enables qualified non-profits to post volunteer projects that require specific professional skills and then allows the volunteers (affectionately known as “SVs”) to search and apply for the projects that are suited to their skills, time and personal interests. Getting started for both volunteers and non-profits is as easy as filling out a few simple questions and registering a username and password. Once registered, a volunteer can search directly on the database of volunteer projects or can choose to have SmartVolunteer send them a weekly email with pro bono projects meeting their desired criteria. Volunteers can browse or search the directory for other members from their colleges, companies or industries and anonymously contact them through the site.

Politics

David Gerstley and Ari Fuchs, of the YLC Politics subcommittee are soliciting suggestions for our upcoming Election Speaker Series. Is there a speaker you would like to hear from? We aim to address any political issue and would like to know what you are interested in hearing about. Please contact Howie Beigelman, Deputy Director of the OU's IPA at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or Ilana at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to discuss possible speakers.

Mazel Tov

The YLC would like to extend a Mazel Tov to YLC members Shani and Gavri Butler on the birth of a son on March 6th!

Other Areas of Involvement

As always, the YLC has a plethora of opportunities for involvement. To get more involved, please contact us .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Until Next Time,

Charles Harary, YLC Chairman

Ilana Prager, YLC Director