Hi, I’m Debby, and I live in a suburb of Nashville, Tennessee, with my husband, four kids, and two hairless dogs. My daily roles include being a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, and now a business owner.
If you asked me in 2021 what my job was, I would have given you the same answer I gave for the better part of the last 20+ years, Jewish professional. Living in Tennessee, many people would ask me what does professional Jew mean? Seriously, what do you do? I think it’s one of the most critical jobs in the Jewish community, and it’s also one of the most difficult. It’s not a career path I expected to follow, but it’s the one in which I found my passion and my purpose. I went off to college hoping to become a lawyer planning to specialize in International Relations. During my freshman year, I started teaching in an afternoon religious school to help pay for college, and I was hooked. The following year I taught in two different schools, and the year after that, I was up to teaching in two schools on three separate afternoons and all morning on Sundays. By my junior year, I was pretty sure I would end up doing something in the Jewish world after college, and by my senior year, I was accepted to Rabbinical school. I deferred my admission to take a job as a Youth Director in Atlanta, met my husband, and never went back to school.
Over the last two decades, I worked for synagogues, JCCs, summer camps, and day schools in positions that ranged from Education Director to Development Director and finally as the Director of Operations at Vanderbilt Hillel. I learned a lot about how to teach, raise money, and make things happen. I wouldn’t say any of the jobs were easy, but I loved working in the Jewish community.
Being a Jewish Professional
Being a Jewish professional can be a difficult, but no one who does it is looking for an easy job. Most who do it, love seeing how Jewish lives are shaped and transformed through their interactions with Jewish organizations.
Watching kids grow from kindergarteners learning the Aleph Bet to graduating as confident leaders and taking on responsibility is priceless.
Seeing college students walk into a Hillel and find a home away home is invaluable. They know that they can always count on a Shabbat dinner, a comfortable, familiar place to hang out, or a much-needed support system should they ever need one.
Experiencing the Ruach (spirit) when an entire camp starts singing in Hebrew and dancing passionately to popular Israeli songs is irreplaceable. You can feel the ground shake and the air tremble with their enthusiasm. These are just a few of the fantastic moments that I have been privy to as a Jewish professional over the years and why I wouldn’t trade a single minute.
So why did I leave? As a mom of four kids who are growing faster than I ever imagined, I needed to find a way to have more time to be present while they were still living at home, but I still wanted to work. Working in a nonprofit and in the Jewish community means you are never off duty, and the hours can be endless. I don’t mind working a lot of hours, but I needed those hours to be more flexible. I am lucky. My cousin Dan is a successful businessman who owns several companies, including a specialty promotional products company.
When he found out I was leaving Hillel, he approached me and asked what I thought of marketing swag to the Jewish community. It was Beshert (meant to be). What could be better than a Jewish swag company for a retired Jewish professional? I know how hard it can be to find the perfect, trendy item to adequately represent an organization and serve as a tangible reminder that will be treasured for years. The t-shirt you get at the convention isn’t just a piece of clothing; it’s a keepsake that will last a lifetime.
How many camp t-shirts, college formal souvenir glasses, or youth group memorabilia do you still have in your closet or tucked away in a box somewhere? You can’t go to the JCC on a Sunday without seeing folks playing basketball in their old BBYO shirts. I know I kept all my swag. Every time I look at one of those shirts, I am instantly transported back to those treasured weekends that shaped me more than I can express. I love seeing my daughter wear my old shirts to her conventions. It’s not just a shirt; it’s a legacy.
SWAG
SWAG stands for the Stuff We All Get, and everyone knows that it’s the swag that makes the difference at a conference or event. There aren’t any specialty products companies out there primarily marketing to the Jewish community, or at least there weren’t until now. Together, Dan and I started J-swag, a white-glove specialty product agency supporting the Jewish community. We work individually with clients to provide the highest level of customer service. We want to make the process easier and more personal. We understand the specific needs of Jewish organizations and the intricacies of working around the Jewish calendar. By partnering with other Jewish professionals, we do the work for them by hand-selecting a small group of fresh, fun items that will be perfect, cost-effective swag to promote their event, program, or organization. We know we can provide top-notch service because we have worked with Fortune 100 companies for years through our sister companies. We provide concierge-level service, managing the process from start to finish, from selecting the items to ensuring they arrive on time and within budget.
I can’t say I have ever been happier. I love being a business owner, and I love that we are a family-oriented company. The best part is the satisfaction of helping multiple Jewish agencies reach hundreds and thousands through our products. I love the challenge of finding something new and fresh to represent a group and the satisfaction of seeing the smiling faces as they put on their new swag. Sometimes the items are a little surprising, but that’s part of the fun. Stay tuned for J-swag stories about some of the unusual Swag and the impact one little item can make on a whole community.