TribeFest Via Social Media
Experiencing TribeFest from a couple thousand miles away.
I
f you are under 40, in North America,
active in the Jewish community and
affiliated with any Federation agencies,
then you were probably either at
TribeFest or know someone who went. I fall
into the second category. For the last two
years that TribeFest has been happening
in Vegas, I have been watching from the
sidelines. Work, family and life have kept
me away. But thanks to social media, I have
been able to watch, learn and get inspired
in snippets without having to be there. I will
leave the "Detroit Represents" rah-rah and
a description of the actual events to the
bloggers who were there.
My amazement is with the real-time
ability to see and experience what
happened. Of the 85 Detroiters at
TribeFest, I only knew a quarter or so.
Most of those are pretty heavy Facebook
users, so I was immediately seeing
pictures and posts leading up to the event.
Many of them are Twitter users, and so I
quickly created streams on HootSuite for
#TribeFest and #TribeFest detroit. There
is no reasonable way to say that it was
like experiencing TribeFest live because it
wasn't. But one post at a time, I was able
to follow along and stay in the loop.
One great example was seeing the
tweets about Jonny 'merman and (merman
Angels. People were raving about his
speech. Like any good web surfer, I
Googled it. What an amazing story!
Cancer survivors raising money
to help support other cancer
survivors. I was moved and
wasn't even there.
Another very cool thing to
watch unfold was the PJ Library
story. TribeFest members went
out and brought books to local
kids. There was a news story
done about it on the local
Vegas news. As a parent who
receives monthly Jewish books
from PJL, I was thrilled to see
them getting local and national
attention.
Some great videos recapping the daily
events were recorded and produced by
Federation's Bryan Fenster. Again, not
the same as being there, but a great
way to document and show what was
happening. Also, a fantastic tribute to the
hard work and dedication that Rachel
Wright put into being the co-chair of the
event was the hashtag that was created
#ThousandRachelMarch. Man, do I wish I
was "in on the joke."
One very interesting topic I am looking
forward to discussing with my friends who
were there is the LGBT and
interfaith conversations that
happened. From the tweets,
I was able to see there were
conversations surrounding
the issue and the question is:
Is there a place in the room
for the LGBT and interfaith
communities at TribeFest? I
would hope so, but I need to
talk to the people who were
there to get the real scoop.
Here are some of the
Detroiters who posted from
TribeFest:
• Jason Miller @rabbiJason (local
conservative Rabbi, president at Access
Technologies)
• Rachel Lachover @RachelLachover
(associate director at CommunityNEXT)
• Sarah Bloomberg @sdbloomberg (PR
agent at PublicCityPR)
Bear
Hug!
Night raises
money for
children's
charity.
T
Read Benji's Wog at www.BenjiUnSpun.com .
Maze! Tay!
Founder of
ComePlayDetroit receives award
from nonprofit.
Blair Schwartz, Lisa Rasansky, Sid Friedman and Adam
Milgrom
he Bear Hug Foundation, a nonprofit children's charity that provides an outdoor
camping experience for underprivileged, special needs and at-risk youth, held its annual
Hibernation Celebration March 24 in Pontiac. Jennifer Kellman Fritz is the executive
director of the charity.
Attendees enjoyed a night that included a silent auction, strolling dinner and casino games
with all proceeds going to the charity. ❑
Amanda Wolf and Erica Yaker
• Lea Bold @lboldnbeau (leasing agent
at Taubman)
• Bryan Fenster @BryanFenster (online
content and media strategist at JFMD)
• Miryam Rosenzweig @Miryamr
(director NEXTGen of JFMD)
... among others. This is not even close to
a complete list, just some that I am connected
with. I also got to see other fantastic people
in the larger Jewish community, some of
which I knew, others I was introduced to
through the twitter stream:
• William Daroff @Daroff (VP for public
policy and director of the Washington
Office of JFNA)
• Chaviva G. @Kvetching (editor
blogger from Colorado)
• Erez Sarfar @Diwon (music producer)
• David Levy @itsDLevy (editor of
JewishBoston.com )
... And many other people who I'm
connecting(ed) with all over the country.
I'll have to wait and see if I can get
to TribeFest next year. But I was looking
forward to having my sister Miryam fill me
in on all the events and inside jokes! ❑
Jon Dwoskin, Jeff Katkowsky and Joanna Dwoskin
ustin Jacobs, founder
and president of
ComePlayDetroit, was
awarded the Playworks
Game Changer Award March 21 in
a ceremony in the Hall of Legends
at Ford Field in Detroit.
Playworks is a national
nonprofit that uses recess and
play to support learning and
helps schoolchildren stay active
and healthy.
The Playworks Detroit 2012
Justin Jacobs
"Get in the Game" luncheon and
"As an organization concerned
Game Changer Awards, sponsored
about
the wellbeing of children in
in part by MGM Grand Detroit,
our community, we really wanted
recognized individuals, companies
to recognize those companies,
and organizations that are making
organizations or initiatives that
a positive impact on the well-
are making a positive impact in
being of Detroit.
Detroit," said Jeannine Gant,
Other award winners included
executive director, Playworks
Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Detroit. "Everyone can play a role
Michigan, Excellent Schools
ensuring
Detroit is a great place to
Detroit, Motor City Chapter,
live for all children."
Jack and Jill of America Inc. and
ComePlayDetroit is Metro
WXYZ's Detroit 2020 Initiative.
Detroit's
fastest-growing provider
The selection of awardees
of
recreational
sports leagues.
is based on the core values of
Summer leagues are now open
Playworks Detroit, which include
for sign-up online at www.
healthy community, healthy play,
comeplaydetroit.com . ❑
respect and inclusion.
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April 5 - 2012
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