platinum profile

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A free Web site helps Jewish singles 1.
find their own Romeo or Juliet.

BY ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM I PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANGIE BAAN

Matthew Schw 1.,'

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helps Jewish sin
meet their matc

1 2 •

FEBRUARY 2007 • platillUin

he man of yOiir drearnS ts. sensitiVe:but
doesn't live with his mother. He's smart, bite -
doesn't talk about logarithms. He's romantic, -.
but doesn't like "long walks on the beach.'
He also lives in California, and you live in --
....
Michigan.
So how will you two ever meet? - i-,..-.._. ........ ---.,-
Matthew Schwartz of Birmingham is founder
of Jewish American Singles (jewisha.mericansingles.
corn), a Web site that brings together Jewish men an
women looking for their own true loves, wherever they
may he.
"Yes, Schwartz says, that old method of "You're : .•
Jewish? I know somebody else Jewish you should get
to know" can still get the job done, so to speak. "But
people work more now and have less free time, so a lot
of the more traditional ways of meeting are utilized
less," he says. "Also, people don't socialize as much
as they used to, and the Jewish community is more
spread out."
So now the same computer that lets you find that
discontinued lipstick for sale on eBay and lets you do
your banking from home can also bring you love.
But don't look for the melodramatic strains of a
romantic Celine Dion song to play when Schwartz
enters the room. He's too cynical for that. "Well, of
course this Web site is the best," he says, smiling. "I
mean, it's mine. Oh, I'm just kidding. It's the best
because it allows people to actually communicate."
Schwartz, 36, began Jewish American Singles in
July 2004. After graduating from Albion College with
a degree in computer science and economics, he cre-
ated his own software-development and consulting
company. Ten years later, he decided to branch out to
Internet romance. Schwartz spoke with friends about
their experiences on dating sites, took a look at many
of them himself and then developed and tested the
software.
He started out with a handfid of men and women.
Today, he has more than 15,000 members and aver-
ages 30 new names a day. Jewish American Singles,
which offers free membership, allows you to post a
profile, upload photos, search profiles, read and reply
to e-mail, send winks and chat with others on the
site; most members come from throughout the United
States and Canada — Israel is set to be included in
the near future.
Two upgrade options also exist. The first, which
costs $9.95, allows you to initiate e-mail contact with
anyone. The second, for $16.95, includes not only
the ability to contact others but allows everyone, even
t
ee membership, to initiate e-mail contact
wi you. New members fill out a profile form and
provide a user name. (Schwartz is polite, but cringes
when he considers some of the user names — which
bring new meaning to the word "dreadful" — that
try to make a pun on the word "Jew.") Profiles also
give the person's birthday, height, hair and eye color,
favorite activities, level of kashrut, interests and other
details. Members have the option of writing two
essays about themselves, the first describing who they
are, the second focusing on the kind of person they're
interested in meeting. Once the profile is complete,
members are encouraged to upload up to five photo-
graphs.
"The site emphasizes easy communication; every-
thing is focused on making that happen," Schwartz
says.
Schwartz says his oldest member is 80 and the
youngest is 18, with the average user age ranging
between 30 and 60. Though he started out with more
women than men, the ratio is about 50-50 now.
As far as successes, Schwartz can report plenty of
romances, and one marriage, so far.
Not his own, though.
He may be experienced at managing a matchmak-
ing Web site, but he has yet to meet his own match.
He's looking for someone smart, with a good sense of
humor and preferably a woman who skis.
The sense of humor is critical. "But if she doesn't
ski, it's all right," he says. "She can still come along
and have a cup of hot chocolate." El