Tag: change

Hope

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

As we come to the end of 2025, I have found myself spending a lot of time in contemplation about the year we are finishing. It’s been a very difficult year. The rise of Jew hatred around the world is overwhelming. The violence against Jews is frightening. The continued lies of Israeli genocide boil my blood. I watch as the extremes on the left and the right in the United States continue to blame Israel and the Jews for everything. There are too many on both sides to begin naming them, as I’m sure I would forget somebody.

The job market is tough. The number of friends that I have who are looking for work and getting discouraged is yet another frightening reality. Talented, qualified professionals. I speak to at least one of them almost every day, being a friend, being supportive, and helping any way that I can. One of them asked me today, “Was I bothering you asking about a job?” That upset me more than I expected it would, as I asked myself, “why would it bother me to help a friend?”. The I realized that for them, it must feel like an imposition. For them, it’s a critical need. For them, they don’t want to be a bother but also want and need all the help they can get. I replied, “No. It’s rough out there so helping when I can is meaningful.”

Years ago, I stopped making New Year’s resolutions. The last New Year’s resolution I ever made is the one that I have been able to keep the longest. It was to stop making New Year’s resolutions. I felt it was time to focus on action, not wishes. Change, not empty promises. As we approach 2026, I found myself getting depressed as things seem to be sinking deeper and deeper with no way out. No light ahead, just different paths of darkness. Change seems so unlikely to happen and there are so many roadblocks to it.

And then, as I was looking through LinkedIn today, I saw something that made me stop and pause. It was from an organization who stated that their mission was “helping to build the spiritual foundation of a loving world.” It grabbed my attention and made me look at them even more. In their vision, they state that, “We believe that social transformation must fundamentally include spiritual ways of understanding the world in addition to scientific ways of knowing. Our goal is to prove that viewing the world as inherently sacred…” It felt like jolt as I read it. What would our world look like if our leaders viewed the world as inherently sacred? We live in a time where building a spiritual foundation and desiring a loving world seems impossible. Yet if we can find a way to understand both the spiritual and the scientific, perhaps we can then view the world as inherently sacred and begin to act that way. In their FAQ section, when answering what spiritual solutions are, they write, “we believe that many of the challenges facing our world — division, disconnect, injustice — are not only political or economic, but deeply spiritual. Spiritual solutions begin by shifting how we see: from separation to connection, from fear to love, from transactional to relational, from tactical to transformational.” I began thinking of what our world might look like if we focused on spiritual solutions and began to live as connected, loving, relational and transformational people.

Figuring out where to take that awareness left me struggling a bit. As I walked my dog, listening to country music, talking to her as we walked, I realized that I needed inspiration. I needed to find something that could restore my hope, that would inspire me to continue fighting for what I believe in – a better, kinder, and more just world. I also realized I can’t do it alone. After getting home from our walk, I went to one thing that has always inspired me. I returned to watching The West Wing. It is one of my favorite all time television shows. It makes me think. It brings up important topics. It has deeply flawed characters that all want the common good. It shows struggles, decisions by the characters in the show that they regret, honor, and are passionate about. It shows patriotism, caring for others, civilized debate and discussion, and has characters that truly lead. I don’t always agree with the characters but I respect them. The last time I began watching it, I had stopped at the end of season 3, so I began watching again at the start of season 4.

There was so much that applies to today. An election that matters. Conflict in the Middle East with Israel being wrongly cast as a villian. Not enough teachers in the schools. The high cost of college and the challenges of affordable college education. Credit card debt. High college loans. A government out of touch with what is happening on the ground to regular people. A divided country. A need to come together with a challenge of how to do it and who will lead it. Rising antisemitism.

Yes, in late 2002 The West Wing was addressing the rise of antisemistism. If only we’d listen. This dialogue between Josh and Toby was brilliant and could be something we hear amongs Jews today.

Josh: “You have an inadvertent habit of putting down my Judaism by implying that you have a sharper anti-Semitism meter than I do.”

Toby: “You know the ancient Hebrews had a word for Jews from Westport; they pronounced it ‘Presbyterian.’”

As I watched show after show, my downcast spirit began to rise. How could a show about fictional leaders from 23 years ago improve my outlook from this dismal time? It reminded me that there is a better option. There are people who care more about the country than power, influence and money. For every Senator Bernie Sanders who stops children with cancer from having a chance at lifesaving treatment because he didn’t get everything he wanted in the deal, there is a Senator Howard Stackhouse on the West Wing who only runs for President only to make sure the imporant issues are discussed. For every Representative Thomas Massie or Marjorie Taylor Green, there is an Ainsley Hayes from the West Wing who puts country and the people before party.

As I listened to President Bartlett give his speech during the Red Mass service, after terrorists killed 44 people on a college campus, I thought about October 7, 2023 and what happened in Israel. I thought about what leadership could have looked like at that moment. The message that could have been sent by American leaders and leaders around the world and the message that was actually sent. The civilians and people in reserves who ran into the fight with Hamas terrorists. Imagine if world leaders had said something like what President Bartlett said, “The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels tonight. They’re our students and our teachers and our parents and our friends. The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels, but every time we think we have measured our capacity to meet a challenge, we look up and we’re reminded that that capacity may well be limitless. this is a time for American heroes. We will do what is hard We will achieve what is great. This is a time for American heroes and we reach for the stars.”

The West Wing is a reminder of what leadership CAN be. It’s a reminder that we bear responsibilty to elect the leaders that will inspire us, that will work for the betterment of all, that won’t be stuck on ego, power, and money. That’s on us. We, the people, have allowed our Congress not to work for decades. We, the people, have continued to nominate and elect those in power. It’s time we stop trying to blame others and take personal responsibility.

In the beginning of season 4 of the West Wing, Toby and Josh meet a man bringing his daughter to visit colleges. She is excited. He is excited. Yet he left her in the hotel room to go to the hotel bar because he’s worried about how he will be able to pay for it. The interaction had a profound impact on Toby and Josh. When back in Washington, they work to find a solution. Their excitement as they think they have found a way is infectious. They convince others that this is something they can accomplish. That it’s not just something we should do but find a way to fund it. When President Bartlett gives his speech about education after the shooting on campus, he starts with a line from scripture. “Joy cometh in the morning.” It’s an exceptional speech that reminds us how we find the spiritual solutions to economic and social problems. The West Wing, 23 years ago, was teaching us the lesson we need to learn today. There are things we can’t do anything about and we can’t worry about them. There are things we can do something about and it is our obligation to take action and do something. To make a difference. To change the world.

Taking the inspiration from the West Wing and the different way to look at things through a spiritual solution focus highlighted by this organization, they outline a few important things as to how effective spiritual solutions often follow a simple but powerful pattern. Their model is:

  1. Diagnose the Problem Differently: Instead of only seeking and exploring what’s broken, we ask “What’s sacred?” This reframes the issue from one of scarcity and division to connection and potential.
  2. Center the Sacred: Whether through relationship-building, contemplative practices, ritual, or cultivating shared meaning, spiritual solutions reconnect people to what matters most — Spirit and the full community of life.
  3. Shift the Culture: When hearts and imaginations are engaged, systems can begin to evolve. Policy, practice, and even data become tools for deeper, more compassionate outcomes.
  4. Nurture Ongoing Transformation: Spiritual solutions are not one-time interventions. They are ongoing commitments that require sustained reflection, humility, courage, and love over time.

It’s time we stop hating the political party that isn’t ours. It’s time we stop hating those on the opposite political spectrum. It’s time to focus on love and communication, on kindness and faith. It’s time to roll up our sleeves and do the work required together with those who have different opinions.

As we move into 2026, my goal is to use their model, continue my Jewish learning to understand more of how Judaism encourages us to look at the world, and further build relationships so that I can do my part. I did my part today, following the lead of Hillel Fuld who ‘meets with the CEO’ every morning. I made sure to start today by meeting with the CEO just like Hillel does.

Little things matter. Having a spiritual connection matters. Building relationships with others matter. If we want to live in a world filled with hope, have leaders who work towards building a better world, and care about others, there is a path.

The West Wing reminded me of that path. We don’t all have to be Jed Bartlett. We can be Toby or Josh. We can be Sam, CJ or Donna. There are many different roles that bring us hope and watching The West Wing brought me back to hope. Hope alone is just the beginning. Now it requires action. 2026 is going to be an action packed year for me. How about you?

It is Friday in America

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

On my recent trip to Israel, we were in the Lower Galilee on a jeep ride. It was beautiful to ride through the lush area, climbing the mountain in the jeeps, until we reached an amazing view.

In the background, you see the Golan Heights. The Golan is a strategic area as whoever holds it has complete control of the valley below. Prior to 1967, Syria would sit there and shoot at the people living in the villages in the valley. In the 1973 war, the Golan was almost lost. The story of the tank unit in the 188th armored battallion is legendary. I first heard it a few years ago when we visited the unit as they proudly told the story of their unit. Totally outmanned, they managed to hold off the Syrians as the cost of their lives until support could arrive to fight and eventually win.

What I didn’t know is that my friend David’s cousin, Benny Katzin, was one of the leaders of that unit in 1973. While looking at that view, David told us his story. As he was preparing to leave for the weekend to spend both Shabbat and Yom Kippur with his family, Benny sensed that something was going on and there was something wrong. His overall commander told him not to worry and to go home and enjoy Shabbat and celebrate Yom Kippur with his family. He told him he had earned it.

Benny Katzin

The uneasy feeling wouldn’t leave him. As much as he wanted to see his family and spend the holiday with them, Benny couldn’t leave. His responsibility was too great. Instead of leaving that Friday afternoon to go home, he stayed on base just in case something happened. Something happened all right.

On Saturday October 6, 1973, the armies of Syria and Egypt attacked. Not only was it Shabbat, it was Yom Kippur. Israel was not prepared. On the Syrian-Israeli border, the Syrian army made incredible progress. They were so successful, so quickly, that they thought it was a plot to trick them into going to far so they stopped. This gave Bennie and his immediate commander, Yitzchak Ben Shosham the time to move any tanks that still worked to try to delay the Syrian army. They managed to hold off for another day while reinforcements were sent north, ultimately defeating Syria on the border. Bennie and his commander were fighting in the last 2 operating tanks against a Syrian force of 177. When only one tank worked, they both jumped into it to continue to fight. The were found dead together in that last tank. It had stopped being able to move so they used whatever ammunition they had until they ran out and were then killed.

Yitzchak Ben Shosham

What makes this story any different from hundreds of other acts of heroism at that time? Why bother with this specific story? Benny was a hero, not for what he did when the war began on October 6 or for what he did to defend Israel on October 7, 1973 when he died. It isn’t for taking on 177 Syrian tanks with just two Israeli tanks. If itsn’t because they were successful in delaying the Syrian army until reinforcements could arrive. Benny is a hero for what he did on October 5th. For choosing to stay. For listening to his gut and deciding it was more important to be there in case he was right rather than go home and hope he was wrong.

How many times have we been faced with that type of situation? We have a feeling something is going to happen. We know deep down that we should stay but we want to go home. We want to see our spouse, our children, our parents. We want to relax, eat a good meal, and not deal with the ongoing stress. How many of us do that instead of listening to our gut and doing the hard thing, staying.

Here in America, many of us have that feeling in our gut. Something is wrong. Something bad is going to happen. Whether it is something with women’s rights, individual rights, assassination attempts of leaders, school shootings, the rise of antisemitism, or many other things, we feel it deep within ourselves. The question is what are WE going to do? Are we going to ignore the signs that we see, the feeling in our gut, go home and hope it doesn’t happen? Are we going to sit at home and ignore the feeling, hoping if it happens, it is not to us or those we love? Are we going to leave the responsibility to somebody else because we can? Or are we going to be like Benny? Are we going to act? Are we going to say, “Not on my watch! I refuse to allow this to happen without doing what I can to stop it.”

We have the choice. Nobody would have faulted Benny for going home that Friday to spend Shabbat and Yom Kippur with his family. He would have been recalled on Saturday and been fighting against Syria on Sunday. He would have known. He would have to live with the fact that he knew in his bones that something was going to happen and left. He would have known that he could have made a difference on Saturday and didn’t.

The truth about Hamas, UNRWA, and Gaza is slowly coming out. The UN has already cut in half the number of women and children that have been killed in the war. If you take the numbers reported by Hamas/Gaza Health Ministry/UNRWA (they are all the same terrorists), in the UNRWA report from Tuesday July 9, 2024, they reported that 38,193 people have been killed. They don’t discern between terrorists and civilians. They don’t include anybody dying of natural causes. The same report estimated that 50,000 babies have been born in the past 9 months. This means that in this so called ‘genocide’, the population of Gaza has actually INCREASED even including the terrorists who have been killed and those who died of natural causes! While Israel is amazing in so many ways, they sure are terrible at genocide.

Yet the cries of genocide and apartheid remain. We’ve already seen how this ‘genocide’ is the only one in history where the victims have seen their population increase. If you go to Israel, you will soon realize so are the claims of apartheid. On my most recent trip, one of the participants got sick. I took her to the medical clinic that morning where she was treated by an Arab-Israeli doctor and nurse. When I got her prescription filled, it was by an Arab-Israeli pharmacist. The wonderful man who cleaned my hotel room every day, who I talked to multiple times a day and built a friendship with (and tipped him well for an awesome job done) is an Arab-Israel. Our medic and security guard one day was an Ethiopian-Israeli. One of our speakers shared with us that the number of Arab-Israelis choosing to serve in the IDF continues to grow significantly as are those who are choosing national service as an option.

Yet here in America and around the world, we are faced with these lies. We are faced with growing anti-semitism – I choose to call it Jew hatred because that’s what it really is. What are we going to do about it? How are we going to respond? Are we going to respond? Should we just sit back and hope it goes away? I have heard the arguments about Jews staying on the campuses where they are facing daily hatred both in and out of the classroom because we can’t abandon them. I disagree. Abandon them we must. Protecting ourselves is more important. Imagine a Jew-free Ivy league. How much would their prestige fall? How many Nobel Prize winners would now come from other Universities? How many innovators and business creators would now come from other Universities? The brain drain will affect them tremendously and our students stay safe. Imagine the amazing Jewish professors leaving the Ivy League hatred and improving the quality of education elsewhere. Rabbi David Wolpe writes about his year at Harvard and why he left. Imagine the talent leaving these hate filled institutions and going elsewhere.

It’s Friday in America now. The question is who are you going to be? Are you going to be Benny Katzin who chose to stay because he knew something was coming? Are you going to be like Benny and instead of going home to see family and celebrate the holiday, make the sacrifice to stay and fight? To be there because you know it is coming? It’s Friday in America. Are you going to look back with pride that you took action and didn’t let others face it without you or are you going to look back with regret because you could have made difference and didn’t. When your grandchildren ask what you did and where you were when it was Friday in America, how are you going to answer them? I know how I am going to answer them. My children already know the answer to tell their grandchildren about what I have done and what I am doing when it is Friday in America. What about yours?

Change and the power of people

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Change isn’t easy.  It’s new, it’s different, and often comes with pain, either because it’s something we don’t want or because it’s something that hurts that forces us to see things differently and behave differently.  As we approach the new year, 2024, it’s a time many people make resolutions for the new year.  Things they will change.  A number of years ago I made the last one, and one I have kept ever since.  I vowed to stop making New Year’s Resolutions?

Why did I do that? Most of these are aspirational with no intent to actually make the changes.  The impetus is a date on the calendar, not a desire for real change, and as a result, they simply don’t work.  By not making any more new year’s resolutions, I empowered myself to make the changes in my life when they are needed rather than because it’s now January 1st of a new year.

As I look back at the past year, it gives me a chance to look at the changes I have made and the impact they have had and what I hope they will have as I move forward.

On September 6, 2022, my father died.  I have been lucky in my life to have wonderful relationships with my parents, and this was a transformative moment in my life.  My dad was who I went to for advice and guidance.  He was a role model.  With him no longer physically here, change was needed in my life.  I had to find others who could help provide the guidance that my dad offered for nearly 55 years.  My Uncle Marty, my close friends Todd and Ron.  People who I had long standing, trusted relationships went to a deeper level. 

I began to question what was really important in my life.  What mattered to me.  I made a commitment to increase the amount of time I spent with my family as time had become the most important thing in my life.  I wanted to improve my health, lose weight, and get better reports from my doctors.  None of this happened overnight, but it all happened because of the combination of the pain from the loss of my dad and the strong desire for something different.  I lost 55 pounds, my health improved, and my doctors were beyond thrilled, and I chose to invest more time with my family, taking advantage of what I could.  As my oldest son left the house this morning to return to Tennessee because they needed him back a week early, I was filled with gratitude for the time we did get to spend and look forward to the next opportunity.  Pain, something we all do our best to avoid, forced change, something we also tend to avoid, to improve my life, which all want but often aren’t willing to do the work to make happen.

I changed my career.  As somebody who spent 25 years working in the Jewish non-profit sector, it was something I enjoyed and something that was core to my identity.  I had thought of doing something else many times but never actually made it happen.  Fear?  Insecurity?  Uncertainty?  Change is often forced upon us and then we have the choice to rise to the challenge or not.  I’m excited about the new future and what it means.  I have more time with my family, more time to address improving my health and fitness.  Less stress.  When my mom said to me, “I was waiting to get the call that you had a heart attack.” it was a wake-up call.  It’s a new future ahead with things I cannot foresee and yet, I am more excited about it than I have been in a long while.  Change can be scary and exhilarating, uncertain and exciting.  How we choose to approach it, what our attitude is and what we are willing to often determine our success. 

October 7 was a sea change for me and many others.  As I watched the news unfold, as I communicated with friends and family in Israel via WhatsApp during the day, I was horrified, scared, angry, and stunned.  I’ll never forget the video of people murdered in their cars and they zoomed in on a minivan with the father, dead and slumped forward on the steering wheel while his young daughter, clinging to his back, was slumped dead against him.  It’s a horrifying image that is burned into my brain.  I saw the 47-minute Hamas video and those images are forever in my memory.  I have connections through friends to at least four hostages who thankfully have been returned to Israel.  October 7 was deeply personal in a way I never expected or wanted.

As somebody who was already a very public Jew due to my career, being more public wasn’t a real change.  But choosing to invest in being Jewish in my actions was something I could do.  I had begun learning with a Rabbi and have continued to do that weekly with a bigger zest and interest.  Sometimes I’ll even learn with 2 Rabbis in a week because it’s interesting to hear different perspectives.  My tefillin is out and gets used (not daily as some change comes slowly).  I don’t identify with any particular denomination any longer – I am a Jew and that’s enough.    I am not a jewelry person, yet I bought a new Mogen David (Star of David) from Israel that has the State of Israel as the center of the star and wear it proudly and visible when many others are feeling the need to keep theirs hidden due to safety concerns.  I have ordered some additional pieces from Israel, both for my own identity and to support Israeli artists.  The guy who hates jewelry is now wearing Jewish jewelry. 

I have always been somebody who felt that people were the most important thing in the world.  Throughout my life and my career, I have always invested in people.   I have some long term friends that I have known literally all my life to those who I’ve been friends with for 20 and 30 years.  My kids often joke about their ‘relatives’ that aren’t really related to them.  Alice and Jerry (z’l), Amy, Gabi, Karen, and their kids.   Uncle Aric and Aunt Carol.  My best friend Todd.  Ron and Sandy z’l (z’l).  It’s very common for them to not ask ‘how are we related?’ but ‘are we really related?’ when these names come up. 

I have people that I have worked with from 25 years ago that I still keep in touch with and are still friends.  These relationships are ones that I treasure (and those who worked with me or were students at UF when I was at Hillel or at Federation in Seattle or the JCC or Federation in Orlando know exactly what I mean and who you are.)  We still talk on a regular basis, sometimes out of the blue and sometimes every few weeks.  While not a change, my commitment to people has increased in the last year.  Investing in them.  Helping them.  Being their friend regardless of anything else.  October 7th reminded me just how precious those friendships are.  The messages on my birthday reminded me how precious those friendships are.  People reaching out after my dad died made me realize how incredibly luck and wealthy I am, not because of money or things, but because of people.  My career shift highlighted the people who reached out to talk and ask questions.  Here are just four examples from the past 5 days that highlight this (I could give many more):

  1. Thursday I spent an hour on a zoom with my friend Harriet. For the past 3 years or so we meet on zoom every week to talk about life, work, stress, family, and the just be friends. It started as part of a cohort and we just never stopped. It’s often the highlight of my week just for the personal connection.
  2. Friday I spent an hour on a zoom with my friend Shelley, catching up on life, talking about our families, our other friends, our careers, things we have considered doing, things we are doing, and just being together for the hour enjoying each others company.
  3. Monday I reached out to a number of friends to wish them a Merry Christmas.  One of them, Jamal, let me know that he is writing a book that will be published in 2024 and that he references me in the book and will share it with me before it’s published.  I was beyond humbled and overwhelmed by this.
  4. About a week ago, I messaged my friend Yaron, who is a leader in the IDF reserves that I know is on the front line in Gaza.  I didn’t expect a prompt reply, or maybe any reply, because of what he is tasked with doing.  Monday he replied, apologizing for the delay, which also humbled me.  He is currently the operations officer for the Gaza Division so you can imagine what he is living.  While he will never talk about it, I heard from other friends that on October 7th, he grabbed his gun and raced into the fight against the Hamas terrorists, helping defend Israelis by taking on the terrorists.  He thanked me for reaching out, for keeping him in my thoughts and that he mattered that much to me.  We messaged and began making plans to get together after the war, both when I am in Israel and when he is in the United States.  His heroism awes me. The fact that my message to him, asking about him and hoping he is ok and safe and that the war ends both successfully and soon, meant so much to him is proof of the power of people.

At the end of the day, change isn’t easy or fun, but is rewarding.  People are the key to change.  The relationships we build today can last a lifetime.  They help us get through change.  They help us get through the pain of things like losing a parent, a massacre on October 7th, dealing with a war where friends are on the front lines, and the challenges of daily life.  As we come to the close of 2023, I find myself most proud of three things.

  1. The relationship with my parents and my siblings.
  2. The relationship with my wife and children.
  3. The relationship with my friends, colleagues, and former students.

No amount of money can enter the top 3.  No amount of success can enter the top 3.  Nothing material truly matters until after those 3.  I’m humbled and grateful and look forward to a better 2024.