By COLlive reporter
All eyes were up front on Sunday when Chabad Shluchim attentively listened to an individual who has stood in their shoes and spends the year helping them to expand their financial footing.
“I am here today to speak about and hopefully help you with what is considered one of the least liked topics,” said Rabbi Mendel Duchman, as he began the 3-hour fundraising workshop.
“Make Chabad Green Again” was one of the best attended sessions during the 5777 International Kinus Hashluchim, which converged this past week in Brooklyn, NY — and not by choice.
“A Shliach can’t live with it and you can’t live without it,” Duchman said about the common challenges of Chabad rabbis to raise enough funds to cover day-to-day activities and the growing needs of their respective communities and institutions.
As a CEO of a cosmetics firm and having served as a Shliach in California, Duchman has been on both sides of the solicitation table. He uses that knowledge to personally coach Shluchim with actualizing their aspirational dreams.
One such example was when Duchman flew to accompany a Shliach for a first meeting with a wealthy local Jewish man who was known for his love for firefighting memorabilia.
“The Shliach told me to expect this but I had no idea to what extent,” Duchman said. “We got there and find that his office was in an actual fire station which he purchased. The entrance was through the garage door and we had the option to go up to the second floor via a ladder or an elevator.
“Employees in the office were dressed as firefighters and they brought us to the person’s office, which was in a classic fire truck. At the meeting, we spoke about the needs of the Jewish community but all the person wanted to discuss was firefighting.”
At this point, Shluchim in the crowd that filled the second floor of the Oholei Torah school in Crown Heights were thinking back to some obstacle or other they had faced when fundraising. They were eager to hear how Duchman and the Shliach dealt with this situation.
“It suddenly hit me,” Duchman says. “I just started talking ‘firefighter’ with him. I asked him: Do you know what a Chabad Rabbi is? He’s a firefighter! He is battling ignorance, indifference and assimilation. That’s what he does all day long. You and the Rabbi here are exactly alike.”
After the meeting, Duchman and the Shliach walked out of the red-painted office with a generous check of $16,000. Duchman used this story to urge Shluchim to be authentic and unwavering. “You are the Shluchim of the Rebbe and you need to get the job done,” he stated.
The Los Angeles based businessman and activist then went on to spell out a 5 step plan that Shluchim can follow with the goal of enabling their services, classes, outreach and programming for Jews of all ages and backgrounds.
With the workshop divided into two sessions, the second one took a lighter tone by trying to visualize how a fundraising meeting goes and anticipating different scenarios that may rise during it.
Duchman, playing the Rabbi, faced Ziggy, a puppet operated by ventriloquist Chuck Fields who played the potential supporter. Fields himself runs the sales department of a box company in Arizona.
The two role-played real solicitation skits, bringing laughter to an otherwise serious topic. For his part, Duchman said it was his privilege to be able to assist in the Rebbe’s global vision of no Jew left behind.
I must say he hit the nail on its head.
His presentation and call to action was extremely impressive and hit home.
His passion for the Rebbes inyonim and Shluchim
Are contagious.
Tyvm .