ncsy

Why don’t you contact NCSY directly?

Sparkly

Please read my very long post on the other NCSY thread. I have been involved with NCSY for 50 years, as a member, advisor, adult board member, parent, grandparent. As a shul president I have hired many advisors over the years, and as a regional adult board member I have hired and raised the salary for regional directors.

Sparkly…………

Back in the early 1970s I was on the preferred staff list for New England Region, as well as the approved kitchen staff list maintained at National NCSY HQ which was then at 84 5th Avenue. Having working in summer camp kitchens during high school and college I had both the ability to direct kitchen volunteers while serving hundreds of meals hot and on time, as well as respected kosher knowledge and and trust by the shul rabbis whose kitchens we used. I often was hired by these host rabbis to come back to their communities and cater synagogue events.

Once Mrs. CTL and I had our second child we dropped out of advising at events unless they were in our home community. It was too hard for locals to arrange housing for ‘married with children staff’ at shul hosted events, and too costly for NCSY to house families at Hotel based events. Once our children became NCSY members we stopped completely (while continuing in adult boards and fundraising) as it is embarrassing for an adolescent to have his/her oarents as staff at an event.

Sparkly, even though I’m still not sure what you are asking me, I’ll tell you what I think the answer is to any of the possible questions you have been raising (being an NCSYer or an NCSY advisor or starting your own kiruv organization).

The question you should be asking yourself before making any of these decisions is: Will it be good for my own Yiddishkeit or not? I remember when I was in Seminary and I was trying to decide whether or not to get involved in a particular kiruv organization. I asked one of my teachers who responded “Everyone is busy trying to be m’karev the world and they forget to be m’karev themselves, and that must come first.”

It is really special that you want to be m’karev others, but it can’t be at the expense of your own “kiruv”. You will help the world the most through doing your own growth. If NCSY or another kiruv effort will pull you down, you have lost more than you have gained.

On the other hand, it is possible that being involved in kiruv will be GOOD for your own spiritual growth. It can also work that way. I had a friend when I was young whose parents sent her to NCSY so that she would become Frum (since they were becoming Frum). Once she was Frum, they no longer wanted her to be involved in NCSY since they thought (very correctly) that she was there for the wrong reasons (to hang out with boys).

She ended up going to a secular College and she was no longer involved with NCSY at that point, and she ended up marrying a goy. Boruch Hashem, they eventually got divorced and she is now married to someone Frum. It is POSSIBLE that this wouldn’t have happened if she had been involved in NCSY and had Frum boys to hang out with instead of goyim. I have no idea, and I have no idea if that would have been a better alternative. I am just saying it is a possibility.

My point is that it might be good for you or it might be bad for you to be part of NCSY whether as an advisor or as an NCSYer. I have no way of knowing (especially since I don’t know much about NCSY). But that is THE question you should be asking yourself. You must ask yourself this question both before you make the decision, and if you decide yes, you must constantly be reevaluating, since this is something that can change.

NCSY = Negiah Can Save Yiddishkeit

Sparkly – in any event, my advice still stands.