20 | JULY 27 • 2023 

learning about their needs, 
taking notes and building pro-
grams that could serve those 
needs. 
It’s a 24/7 job. To this day, 
when the phone rings, and 
someone is in a situation or 
crisis, Kari is there. But as 
Sosnick envisioned, Kari’s role 
was always about more than 
the crescendo of a crisis, it was 
about normalizing care and cre-
ating supportive avenues that 
helped before a situation would 
become dire. 
As the Family Life Center 
evolved, Kari remembers, it 
quickly became an educational 
resource and touchpoint for all 
phases of a person’s life cycle. 
Kari and Robert would meet 
every three months to discuss 
the progress of the Family Life 
Center. They would meet in 

a boardroom that had a large 
marble table, maybe 16 feet in 
length. At the first meeting they 
were on opposite ends of the 
table, with Kari giving a presen-
tation. 
With each meeting they’
d 
slowly get closer together, that 
massive table felt smaller, and 
the presentations became less 
formal. 

“We’
d eventually sit next to 
each other at the table, and I’
d 
just tell him about the stories 
of the people we’
d help, the 
difference it was making in 
people’s lives,
” Kari said. “
And 
he just wanted to hear those 
stories. This was a mitzvah for 
him. It was all about making a 
difference for people who never 
would have known he made it 
happen.
”
The Temple Israel Family 
Life Center didn’t become “The 
Robert Sosnick Family Life 
Center” until after Robert’s 
death, when his wife, SuSu, 
and children decided to endow 
the center, continuing Robert’s 
work and honoring his legacy 
by breaking the anonymity. 
While he never wanted 
his name on the Family Life 
Center, Sosnick’s vision has 

lived on for more than two 
decades after his passing with 
Kari Provizer’s leadership. The 
Family Life Center has evolved 
and grown, it’s been on the 
forefront of understanding and 
education, and it’s become a 
vital connection for the greater 
Jewish community. 
“
As a rabbi, having that type 
of person, that type of resource 
right down the hall in Kari, 
someone who has the expertise 
in so many spaces, it’s amaz-
ing,
” Rabbi Josh Bennett said. 
“I think when Kari came in, 
part of the plan was to have 
someone who could support 
the rabbis and better help them 
connect with the Temple mem-
bership, which she has. But Kari 
has taken it and done so much 
more, creating a space that goes 
above and beyond.
” 

Kari Provizer

OUR COMMUNITY

continued from page 18

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