For the past five years, when JEWISHcolorado’s PJ Library Manager Bethany Friedlander attended the PJ Library International Conference, she usually found herself sitting in the audience listening to presentations from panelists representing big cities.
This year was different.
This year, it was Friedlander who was in the spotlight. She presented on a panel that showcased the work that JEWISHcolorado and PJ Library have been doing to create the Family Connector program and build partnerships with other Colorado Jewish organizations.
“The Colorado community can be proud of what we are doing with the PJ Library program,” Friedlander says. “JEWISHcolorado was on the national stage being featured as a model to emulate for making PJ Library more than a subscription service.”
Sam Niemann, Cindy Coons, Kyla Pfeif, and Bethany Friedlander
At the conference, Cindy Coons, Director of Family Engagement & Jewish Explorers, also was honored to join representatives from four communities at dinner with Harold Grinspoon, founder of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation (HGF). HGF partners with local Jewish organizations to fund PJ Library and make it available to all communities.
In the past three years, JEWISHcolorado’s PJ Library has grown from 3,900 subscribers to more than 4,400 subscribers, remarkable considering that every year, children age out of the program. In the past 12 months, JEWISHcolorado’s PJ Library program mailed approximately 60,000 books and more than 5,000 people attended more than 150 PJ Library events.
PJ Library has focused on forging partnerships with established Jewish organizations in the community to create inclusive events and programming, welcoming everyone from the community and not just members of the partner organization.
Perhaps most significant is the growth of the PJ Library Family Connector program. Family Connectors are parents with PJ Library children who step up to become a connecting force for other parents in their area. The program started modestly two-and-a-half years ago and has grown to 18 Family Connectors representing communities around the state, including Steamboat Springs, Colorado Springs, Broomfield, Fort Collins, and Littleton.
Sam Niemann and Kyla Pfeif
“JEWISHcolorado has the vision that we are not a one-city community,” Friedlander says. “We need to find ways to engage all of Colorado. PJ Library subscriptions are a natural entryway, but the willingness of parents to step up and be leaders across the state has meant this program has grown and grown.”
Two Family Connectors joined Friedlander and Coons at the Conference. Each represents a very different community, and each has found unique ways of creating a more robust Jewish life in their community.
Kyla Pfeif in Fort Collins
When Kyla Pfeif’s daughter was two years old, her grandmother chose a PJ Library book on display at the Boulder Public Library and gave it to Kyla. It was love at first sight. Within a couple of years, Pfeif’s daughter was receiving the monthly PJ Library book and, seven years ago, her second daughter “started getting them from the minute she was born.”
“We have lots and lots of books,” Pfeif says with a laugh. “I already have a library for my grandchildren.”
Pfeif slipped into becoming a Family Connector naturally. Because she wanted programming for her own children, she started organizing programs for everyone, working through Har Shalom, her synagogue in Fort Collins.
With Pfeif’s hard work and support from PJ Library, Har Shalom went from having special events every other month to having them twice a month. Families came to an event, they made friends, and they came back again. Over the past seven years, Har Shalom’s school has expanded from 60 children to 140 children.
“I think PJ Library is a big part of that growth,” Pfeif says. “If a young family reaches out to Har Shalom, I get them enrolled in PJ Library and invite them to events. If we get a new PJ Library subscriber in our area, I reach out to them to make a connection to Har Shalom.”
Going to the PJ Library International Conference was eye-opening for Pfeif.
“It really helped me understand to what degree the Family Connector program is the heart of what we do,” she says. “The books are an entry, but when people make relationships and friendships, they keep coming back.”
Pfeif returned from the Conference with new ideas of ways to connect with grandparents and PJ Our Way children who are between the ages of nine and thirteen.
“Some of those kids might come to a PJ Our Way event like laser tag, decide to join the religious school, and become a Bar Mitzvah,” she says. “They experience a real Jewish journey because they came to laser tag.”
For Pfeif, attending the conference was inspiring because she met people from all over the world who are “bringing Jewish families together to continue their Judaism for generations.”
“Ten years ago, you would say PJ Library and people would say, ‘What?’” she says. In the past six months, I have not met one person who did not know what PJ Library is because it is so recognizable now.”
Sam Niemann in Harvey Park
Sam Niemann’s son was three years old when COVID lockdowns hit and, as many parents will likely remember, children’s programming disappeared almost overnight.
Searching online for some activities to do with her child, Niemann stumbled onto the PJ Library website.
“My first reaction was, ‘I have missed three years of this!’” she says with a laugh. “Looking at the website, I was amazed by the wealth of information meeting people where they are at. You could have books sent to the house, find out about programs, become a Family Connector. It’s instant community.”
Subscribing to PJ Library only served to reinforce Niemann’s enthusiasm.
“When you read the flaps on the books, you know so much more about the theme or the holiday,” she says. “If your child starts asking questions, you are an instant expert. The books are such an incredible resource for children and parents.”
By the time Niemann’s daughter was born four years ago, she “was a PJ baby from day one.”
Niemann’s impression of Harvey Park in far Southwest Denver had always been that it wasn’t the “Jewish area of town.” But encouraged by Friedlander, Niemann took her natural talent and interest in creating events and put them to good use as a Family Connector. She broadened her reach beyond Harvey Park to Littleton and Lakewood and created “Free Family Field Trips” to places like Golda Meir House Museum and Ekar Farm.
Niemann partnered with B’nai Chaim in Morrison to find space for parties, and she created “Shabbatnukkah,” a combination of Tot Shabbat and Hanukkah. At one gathering, families made 40 pounds of challah, at another they made candles, and at another they decorated Kiddush cups.
“I love seeing people’s eyes light up at these events,” she says. “Having 40 kids running around is amazing to me. It fills my cup.”
For Niemann, the opportunity to attend the conference and share ideas with like-minded people where she made “instant connections” recharged her energy. Though it wasn’t the official theme of the conference, she brought home a renewed commitment to “open the tent.”
“With everything happening in the world, your power is in finding your people,” she says. “Our stability is in reaching out to people who want connections and make a community.”
She will keep another message from the conference close to her heart: “Your Judaism is your brand of Torah.”
“We all have an obligation to teach our Torah, to innovate, create, organize, and share,” she says. “This is what makes PJ Library so special to me. It meets people where they are. It invites, but it doesn’t instruct.”