Central Region East Aleph Zadik Aleph
State of the Region
As Presented by
Regional Aleph Godol
David Ari Hulnick
1997-1998/5757-5758

Friday, May 8, 1998
19 Iyar 5758

Rabbi Uri taught: Man is like a tree. If you stand in front of a tree and watch it incessantly to see how it grows and to see how much it has grown, you will see nothing at all. But, tend to it at all times, prune the runners, and keep the vermin from it, and all in good time -- it will come into its growth. It is the same with man: all that is necessary is for him to overcome his obstacles, and he will thrive and grow. But, it is not right to examine him every hour to see how much has been added to his growth.

 My Brother Alephs,

 The goal of every leader in AZA should be to give others the chance to grow and mature as you have. For, if you are a good leader in this organization, then you will undoubtedly be able to see how much you've grown because of it. And while you give others the chance to grow as you have, you must always strive to grow and learn yourself. Because it is only then that you will be doing your very best.

 This has been an incredible year. It has been an immense honor to serve as your Eighteenth Regional Aleph Godol, and I am here tonight to perform one of my last duties, to deliver the State of the Region address.

 One year ago, I said in my election speech that the future does not just happen, we must create it. Gentlemen, we have done so. We joined into Central Region East Aleph Zadik Aleph and were given the future in our hands. It was up to us to mold it to greatness. Gentlemen, we have done so.

From the looks of our accomplishments, it seems as if we are done. This is not true. We have only just begun. Now that we have the membership, we need to start working on the members.

Let me pose a question to you. What is AZA? Are we AZA? Do we represent the Seven Cardinal Principles: Patriotism, Judaism, Filial Love, Charity, Conduct, Purity and Fraternity as our founding fathers intended? Are we the future of AZA that those men envisioned? Look around you. No, look at yourself. What have you done to make Central Region East AZA a little better? What have you done to make your chapter better? What have you done to elevate yourself as a better Aleph? A few times a year, we come together and a man with a gavel asks, "How is our region?" But it is the chapters that make up the regions and the Alephs that make up those chapters. Often it is said that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Well, a region is only as strong as its weakest Aleph. And so again, I ask you tonight, what kind of Aleph are you?

I am highlighting the importance of the Aleph because I believe that this is one area Central Region East AZA has neglected. It took me a while before I understood what it meant to be an Aleph. When I was in Poland for the March of the Living in April of 1996 I was there with my brother Alephs. When I needed comfort or just someone to talk to, I always knew that I could go to one of my brother Alephs. That is what it means to be an Aleph. As brother Alephs, we all share the same history and traditions. We share the history and traditions of the Aleph Zadik Aleph and of the Jewish people. When we look for a source to the problem, we find that the problem is with education, or lack thereof. At February Execs in Washington DC, Daniel Septimus, the Grand Aleph Godol spoke about the education of the Aleph. We need to teach our members about our organization. There is a great history behind us and in order for us to survive as an organization it must be kept alive. Seventy-four years ago, on May 3, 1924, Sam Beber called a meeting. On this day the International Order of the Aleph Zadik Aleph came into existence. Members need to know this. We need to institute some sort of training for Alephs, something that many of us have never had. Putting Alephs through a training period could build fraternity at the chapter level and heighten chapter spirit. I urge all of you to institute AIT education in your chapters. In order for us to survive it is vital that the members be taught what AZA is so that they can recognize its importance and make sure that it lives on.

I would like to speak briefly on chapter spirit. I wonder where many of your allegiances are. Are you more of an Aleph in your chapter, region, or in the international order? I mentioned this because there was an alarming trend this year of Alephs traveling to other cities to go to other chapters' programs. In moderation, this is a beneficial process. But when the chapter board members, or even regular Alephs, skip their own chapter's program for another chapters', I am alarmed. Chapter programs should be scheduled around the regional programming schedule, not around other chapters' programming schedules.

On speaking about programs, I would like to talk about them in general. Do you think that you had enough programs in your chapter? Were you including programming that covered the five-folds? Do you know who Boris D. Bogen was? BBYO offers us an infinite amount of programming. We have so many different programs that we can choose from, ranging from Athletics to Social to Judaic to Educational to Community Service and Social Action. Many members join AZA for the social aspects of the organization, and there is nothing wrong with that. But in AZA, it is what you do in addition to the social programs that makes it the true AZA experience. Programming is built around the five folds that I mentioned before. Many members don't know what the five folds are about, so I will now briefly explain each. First, is Athletics. It is pretty self-explanatory. It can be anything dealing with sports, such as the chapter playing a football game or basketball game. Second, is social. It is probably the best known fold. It is one of the best tools for recruiting new members and can be a great tool when used in the right proportion. Third, is Judaic. This fold seeks to instill in the members an understanding of their religion and a habit of preserving the traditions of their people. We accept members of all persuasions of Judaism and incorporate all of their teachings into our programming. The fourth, is Education. There are two major areas that the educational fold stresses. The first being, learning about the ways of life of those outside our Jewish community and the second being teaching our members about the conditions and problems of the world and communities around us. An example of this could be having a speaker talk to the chapter about current issues. The fifth fold, one of utmost importance, is Community Service and Social Action. As an organization of young citizens of the Jewish and world communities, the Aleph Zadik Aleph accepts responsibility in every area where there is need. As Alephs we need to go out there into the world and say, "I can make a difference," because we can, and that is a lot of what being a complete Aleph is all about. Those are the five folds that we need to program around. Utilize them, learn from them, but more importantly, have fun with them.

There are also the simultaneous programs, which are seven International programs that occur simultaneously by our brother Alephs all throughout the world. They include Drug and Alcohol Month in December, Out R.E.A.C.H. (Responsibility Everywhere to Aid and Care for the Homeless) Month in January, Advisor Appreciation Month in March, Holocaust Appreciation Week from Nissan 24-30, Brotherhood Week which is the week surrounding Founder's Day, AZA Founder's Day on May 3, and AZA Shabbat on the first Shabbos of May. But how many of you have actually participated in these events? Year after year, these great programming opportunities are lost. For the first time in a few years, we did have more of these programs take place throughout our region. I would like to commend the chapters this year on participating in several of these programs. At Beau-Sweetheart we recognized our advisors and at several chapter programs, members thanked their advisors and gave them presents. For Holocaust Appreciation, West Chester BBYO attended a Holocaust Program in the community of West Chester and helped setup the program. Also, just last week, members from King of Prussia and West Chester AZA held a program for AZA Shabbat. AZA Shabbat is one of the oldest and best traditions of the Aleph Zadik Aleph and I hope that it will become something that our region will practice for years to come. There are excellent programs that we are given to participate in and we should take advantage of them. Make sure that they are not forgotten about in future years.

There are many ways for the Regional Board to be more effective. Just presenting ourselves at conventions as the regional board does not do anything. If we want to see things happen, then we need to make them happen. As a regional board, we are literally powerless at making things happen in the chapter. It all depends upon if the Chapter officers are motivated. That is where we come in. It is our duty as regional board members to make sure that they are motivated and they are doing their job. If they are not doing there job, then we are not doing our job.

This year's board really helped me in getting my job accomplished. Scott, Jason, Jason and Josh, you have all helped a lot this year and I hope that the Alephs of our region recognize that. In the beginning of the year, you were all gung-ho for everything, but as time pushed on, you seemed to lose some of that energy. It would have been nice if we could have seen releases from all of you and perhaps more calls to your counterparts. The only way we can be effective is if we communicate with them.

Scott Jason Hoeflich, Aleph S'gan: Scott, you were always there for me this year. In the beginning of the year, you set a goal for yourself. You said that you wanted to find out where the chapters needed improving and would find ways to help them. Though you didn't get as far with this task as we would have hoped, I am glad that you recognized the need for the re-evaluation of the chapters. You were a great help for me at the meetings this year and for that I would like to thank you. Also, with your position, is programming and I would like to thank all of the chapters that sent in programming forms. In the future, I would suggest that there be a compilation of all the chapter programs put together and provided to all the chapters several times throughout the year. This would be a great resource for us to see what chapters are doing and for chapters to get different ideas for programs. Chapters are having programs and they should be sending in their programming forms. Another item under your list of duties is to make sure that all chapters fulfill the International requirements of Program Thrusts and are following the Boris D. Bogen Five Fold and Full Program. We are given amazing ideas for programs and we should use them. For those of you who aren't seniors, take advantage of all that BBYO offers us. Scott, in your election speech, you talked about how you wanted to make AZA a better place for your brother. As we leave BBYO this weekend, I believe that we can feel content in saying that we have done so.

Jason Michael Torban, Aleph Moreh: Jason, you were the only Junior on the board, but in BBYO, age doesn't matter. Back in June you set the Regional membership goal at 200. Congratulations, we achieved that in no time flat. Besides your fascination with Austin Powers, Spice Girls, South Park, and spiked hair, you proved to be an excellent leader this year. You did an excellent job planning the IT convention this year; all of the members left feeling as if they belonged to AZA, and that was our goal. I was very impressed when all of the AITs were given the AIT manual that you made. I would also like to commend you on your steady flow of releases throughout the year. We, as regional board members, need to keep in constant contact with our counterparts and you did an excellent job. Speaking of counterparts, I would like to talk about yours. This is my fifth year in AZA, and never have I seen such a great crop of guys as those who you worked with this year. To them, our region owes a great debt of gratitude. It is because of them that we have brought our membership up by over fifty from last year.

Jason Michael Resch, Aleph Mazkir: Jason, I would like to commend you on doing an excellent job this year with the Grand Central. It was nice to see an issue at each convention. Also, this year, Mazkir had the added responsibility of fundraising and ISF. Though we didn't accomplish half as much as we planned to, we still had an excellent year with fundraising. But, on the topic of fundraising, I would like to say something. Many chapters raise a lot of money, but don't give it to BBYO's International Service Fund (ISF). Perhaps if we better informed the members on where the money was going, they would make larger donations. A large portion of the ISF funds go to BBYO Leadership Training projects where leaders of today and tomorrow are developed. These projects include the Chapter Leadership Training Conference (CLTC), International Leadership Training Conference (ILTC) and Kallah. Another way that ISF helps people around the world is through the AZA Philanthropic Fund. Money is allocated from this line in the ISF Budget to charity and service organizations worldwide. ISF also goes towards the AZA Disaster Fund which enables AZA to respond quickly and efficiently whenever and wherever disaster strikes in the world. Every AZA Chapter has a $4.00 per member minimum commitment to ISF, and funds may not be raised by chapters for any other purpose until this commitment has been met. One thing that I could recommend for future Mazkirim, is that they focus a lot on the communication aspect of their position. Many of the chapters have problems with their phone chains and problems with communication between members. They need some sort of direction and it should be coming from the Mazkir. Jason, I do have to thank you though, for always being there when I needed you. You did a great job with the ISF Box in the meetings. I was amazed at the amount of money that we were bringing in. I only hope that what we started, will continue in future years.

Joshua Samuel Schoenberg, Aleph Shaliach: Josh, your position is one that I hold very close and dear to my heart. You have held a young position in the region and it is still being molded. In the beginning of the year you set a goal of creating a Regional Community Service Award that was similar to the Perlman Award. Though nothing was finalized this year, it is still something that could be accomplished by a future Shaliach. I would like to commend you and Jess on redoing the Friday and Saturday Shabbat Service Booklets; they look really nice and I am sure that they will be used for many years to come. I was also pleased that chapters were visiting the Ronald McDonald Houses this year. Community service often isn't the most fun thing to do, but I hope that the members that have gone to the Ronald McDonald House understand the cause that they are working for. Also I would like to commend you on your excellent job of continuing the ongoing community service project at conventions. This was something that was started last year during my term and continued throughout this year. I hope that it will continue on in future years.

Brian Daniel Krasney, Aleph Kohen Godol: Brian, I would just like to thank you for always being there when I needed someone to talk to. I don't just want to thank you for your advice, but also for being a friend, but more importantly, for being my brother.

This year, we had six chairmanships. A chairman, when he takes on his responsibility, can make a difference. Often, Chairmen take the position so that they can add it to their list of "things they have done," but others do it because they want to make a difference. Heading Bridge the Gap were Matt Tanzer and Alan Brody. They contacted other regions and districts throughout BBYO in order to start Pen Pal programs. Alan sent out many emails trying to start communication between us and other BBYOers throughout the world I was very impressed with all of the work that he put into this position. I would like to commend both of them for their efforts and look forward to seeing their endeavors continued in future years. The Yearbook Chairman was Jake Milunsky. He was busy all year with Sara Pollan taking pictures for the regional yearbook. I am sure that it will be amazing. The Fraternity Chairmen this year were Aaron Eisenberg and Dan Feinberg. They promoted fraternity throughout the region, and ran a program at Brotherhood convention. I would like to commend you two on putting out a release to all of the chapters on fraternity. The Internet chair was headed by Adam Tope and Dan Odess. For the past two years I worked on our region's homepage and this year Adam helped out. This year, there were several elements added to the region's webpage, including members' email lists, alumni email lists and a message board. You can visit the site by going to http://www.bee.net/cre/. Many of the chapters in the region also have great websites, which are excellent tools for gaining the interests of members. The Internet has opened up many possibilities for BBYO, and I hope that it is utilized in the coming years. The Senior Trip Chairman was Brian Krasney. He worked very hard, putting in a lot of hours to make a senior trip, but due to lack of time commitment by the seniors we were unable to have it. The Havdallah chairman was Jason Deitcher. This year, he began using more Jewish songs. He added Im Tirzu and Bashanah Habaah as regular songs to be sung at each Havdallah. He worked with Adam Richman, Rebecca Incledon and Matt Aronson to create an amazing Havdallah experience for all of us.

Every member of AZA belongs to a chapter and every chapter is like a large family. The chapter is the most important facet of AZA. The chapter level is the most direct and focused. It is here that you will make your closest friends. It is in your chapter that you will plan programs and learn the meaning of what it is to be a Brother Aleph. In our region, our time is taken up by many conventions and we often lose sight of what chapter programming is. I would like to thank all of the chapters that had constant programming throughout the year. We need to remember that it all begins in the chapter. International has recognized the growing problem with the chapters in the order and has created the Chapter Advisory Commission. This Commission evaluates the chapters and then works with them individually to solve any problems that they may have.

This year, every single chapter in our region increased its AZA membership. This year has been an amazing year for membership and all of the thanks belong to the chapters.

Rabbi William Greenburg (Allentown) AZA #156: Last year you ended with an amazing number of members. This year you have ended with so many more. You have truly proved to be the heart of the region. Not only is the regional office located in Allentown, but also half of the region's membership. When I came up for your AIT Overnight Program earlier in the year, I learned a lot about AZA. You taught me fraternity and traditions as they should be taught. I experienced them as I was inducted into Allentown AZA as an honorary member. And for that, I thank you. You guys also had Football Tournies in October. They were a great success (with West Chester losing twice even under single elimination). Your membership this year has been incredible. Your membership is close to seventy and still climbing. Adam Richman truly out did himself as Moreh this year. Besides those on board, I have seen an amazing base of young leaders in your chapter. I only see good things for you in the future. I would also like to recognize Aleph Aaron Eisenberg on his amazing job this year with fundraising for your chapter. He never stopped fundraising and your ISF donation shows that. I would also like to thank all of the members that helped out at the regional office this year. We didn't have a secretary, and your help was much appreciated. I attended several of your meetings and was very impressed with the membership participation. When Daniel Septimus visited the region, we went to one of your meetings and the room was packed. Daniel later told me that it was one of the biggest attended chapter events that he had ever been to. Jon, you did a good job this year. At some points you were not as active as I would have liked, but all in all you had a great year. Good luck to all of you in the future!

Larry Urie (Harrisburg) AZA #128: First off, I would like to congratulate you on surpassing your membership from last year. You have a good base of young leaders and you need to use them. You guys need to work together to bring Harrisburg back to where it belongs. I regret that I was never able to make it up to one of your programs. In the future, please give the RAG dates so that he can schedule you in. The one time that I was in Harrisburg this year, was for Tournies. I would like to congratulate you on an excellent job with it. The new Spirit contests and sticks were a great addition to the convention. I was also very pleased with the choice for Best Small Chapter and Small Chapter Spirit Stick. And for those of you who didn't know, Larry Urie AZA participated in the AZAA Sectionals in Philadelphia and placed in fourth place! Great job guys! I would also like to wish Dan Saacks and the chapter the best of luck for next year.

Kol Hadroar (King of Prussia) BBYO #5035: One thing that amazed me, is that despite the inner problems among board members, programs always turned out being successful. I enjoyed all of your chapter programs that I attended this year. Another thing that I was very pleased by, was the amount of fraternity programming that you had this year. The AIT programs that I attended were excellent. The Hayride was also a huge success. Though it was rained out, I would also like to thank Dan Isaacsohn for planning Softball Tournies. I was glad that we were still able to have a program in place of it. I am also glad to see the chapter having programs and meetings every month. Another thing that has amazed me is your membership. Even though you had no Moreh in the beginning of the year, you still managed to keep the numbers on a rise. I would also like to thank Brian Krasney for his un-ending efforts to support his chapter. Also, I would like to wish Matt Goldfine and the chapter the best of luck next year.

Tikun Olam (Newark) BBYO #5181: I haven't had much contact with you this year, besides a few phone calls and releases. Members of the regional board attended one of your programs after our Execs program and I was very impressed with the attendance and the programming. One thing that I would like to see in the future, would be an effort to increase AZA participation.

Chai (Reading) BBYO #5150: First off, I have to say, WOW! Your AZA membership this year has more than doubled from the ten Alephs you had last year. Now that you have the members, you need to start doing some AIT education and AZA separate programs. Chad, I want to wish you and the chapter the best of luck next year as Godol.

Ariel (State College) BBYO #5036: I was very worried for the first part of the year when we had no members for State College. Finally, you sent in your dues. However, we still need to get more. Once upon a time, State College used to be one of the largest chapters in Central Region East. Now, you have only a few members. You need to get the whip cracking and start getting those guys to join. With a small Jewish population, you need to get all the members that you can get. If you need help, you have the regional board and office at your disposal. Every month or so, I received in the mail a newsletter telling me about your programming. It was very impressive and I was excited to see all of the programs that your chapter had. Your chapter has a lot of girls, but hardly any guys. I can only hope that you will start working on recruiting more guys. Best of luck next year, and being that I will be at Penn State, you can count on me checking in on you, and feel free to call me if you ever need any help.

Sondra Moore (West Chester) BBYO #5206: I love you guys! I am amazed when I take a look at all the programming that has gone on this year. You have doubled and tripled the amount of programming that we had in past years. Never before have we had so many AZA programs! And our membership is amazing. We have over twenty-four Alephs now; that is a huge increase from last year. I was a bit worried with the thought of ten seniors graduating this year, thinking that there would be nothing left of the chapter. I am glad that I was proved wrong. Mike Rawl did an amazing job this year as Moreh and Acting Aleph Godol. He not only got the members, but he also taught them and kept them coming back. I was extremely excited when we had our first AIT Overnight and Induction's, in which we were graced by the presence of Jason Torban. The Turkey Dance was also a huge success with the new DJ, the fire alarm going off and the Miss AZA and Mr. BBG contests. I would also like to commend you on your visit to the Ronald McDonald House.

Brian L. Dombchik (Wilmington) AZA #164: First off, I would like to congratulate you on exceeding your membership from last year. Also, great job on Kickoff! I have been to a few meetings and have seen a lot of good things. I would also like to commend you on your visit to the Ronald McDonald House. You have the convenience of having it in your town, so take advantage of it and visit more often. I would also like to mention that you have an excellent variance of programs. By the way, how was Hooters? I would like to wish your chapter the best of luck in the future. Good luck next year, Jake.

Well, we are almost done. Let's take a break. Get up and stretch. Okay, much better.

Now, I would just like to test your AZA knowledge with the following questions:

1. What day was AZA founded? By Whom? Where?
2. What is the name of the 1983 350-page hard-cover book about BBYO?
3. How much was Nathan Mnookin, the first AZA advisor paid?
4. Of 13 Cabinet members in the Carter administration, how many were AZA alumni?
5. What are the fifth and sixth words of For Tomorrow and Today?

Hopefully you had no problem answering these questions. If you did, then, it is a sure sign that you need to stress AZA education more in your chapter. Here are the answers:

1. The Aleph Zadik Aleph was founded May 3, 1924 in Omaha Nebraska. A man named Sam Beber is given credit as its founder.
2. Dealing in Futures, by Max F. Baer.
3. Nathan Mnookin, the first AZA advisor, like all advisors today, was a volunteer.
4. At one point in Carter's administration, two of Carter's 13 cabinet members were former Alephs.
5. The fifth and six words are "we believe."

Our region is unique in many ways. One of those reasons is that we have many conventions. Briefly, I will talk about each of the conventions from this year:

RLTI, Camp Saginaw: Just about a week after school started, the chapter and regional board members made the yearly pilgrimage down to Camp Saginaw for our Regional Leadership Training Institute (RLTI). When we got there on September 12th, we were ready to begin the year. Jason Resch coordinated it, along with Meg Synnamon. It seemed to be a complete success with almost all of the members leaving motivated to begin the new year. RLTI was not just a time for us to learn how to do our positions, it was a time for all of us to get to know each other better. This year, at RLTI, members learned the true meaning of CRE (Cock Rear Entry) and also learned that "There's no such pwaaaaaaaaaaah!! THAT'S BEAT!"

In Training, Reading, PA: IT convention was amazing; It was very inspirational for all who attended. Seeing all the new members really inspired me. To Jason Torban, I owe a lot of thanks. He did an amazing job, planning this convention, along with his co, Allison Goldberg. His time spent working on it really paid off. There were a few things added this year to IT Convention that really made it special. One thing of major importance was the Trust Walk. This gave the members a better feel of what the history of AZA is. Yes, it is nothing compared to the extent of the education that should be happening, but it was a start. The AIT Manual that Jason made was also a great addition. Induction's, however, was what really amazed me. Fifty-four members were inducted into the Aleph Zadik Aleph at IT Convention. We had sixty-five Alephs present. That was more than we have ever had in my five years as a member. It really touched me to hear Aleph Fabio Apelbaum and other members talk about what AZA and BBYO has/and is doing for them in our Good and Welfare.

Kickoff, Wilmington, DE: Nothing truly starts till you give it a kick. And thus began the social scene for Central Region East. Kickoff convention was coordinated by Mike Stiebel and Andrea Weissman, and held in Wilmington. We had many exciting programs during this convention including the baby naming of Emily Mara Slavkin and the Jews for Jesus program. The meeting was also a lot of fun with the reading of the housing lists and our AZA cover-ups.

Tournaments, Harrisburg, PA: This year, Tournaments was held in Harrisburg. Matt Forman and Rachel Lehner coordinated it and everyone seemed to have an excellent time. West Chester came home with the Best Small Chapter Award and the Small Chapter Spirit Stick. Allentown won for Best Large Chapter and Harrisburg won the Large Chapter Spirit Stick.

Traveling Kallah, West Chester, PA: A little over forty members traveled to West Chester and then to Washington for Kallah this year. Josh Schoenberg and Jess Johnson coordinated this program. Saturday night we had a Holocaust survivor speak to us and Sunday, we traveled to the Holocaust Museum. All of the members left with a greater understanding of the Holocaust and a yearning to learn more to make sure that something like the Holocaust can never happen again.

Brotherhood/Beau-Sweetheart Convention, Allentown, PA: Last year, we started something new. We changed Beau-Sweetheart convention and added a new element: Fraternity. From Friday until Saturday before the dance we had separate programming for AZA. On Saturday, we had a Sam Beber seance, led by Aaron Eisenberg, and then we talked about our times in AZA. This was one of the best programs that I have ever been too. It was really touching to hear the stories of our brother Alephs as they opened up to all of us. This convention was coordinated by Jon Englert and Kira Saltzman. Saturday evening we had our Beau-Sweetheart Dance, where once again, I was named the Regional Beau, and Allison Goldberg was named the Regional Sweetheart.

Spring Fling, Camp Saginaw: Well, here we are. This is the final convention of the year. Tonight I am giving the State of the Region and tomorrow evening my brother officers will give their Final Reports. Tomorrow night the seniors will say good-bye and give life, and Sunday we will have elections and the new year will begin. The coordinators this year for Spring Fling are Dan Isaacsohn and Lesley Furmansky. They put a lot of work into this convention and I am sure that all of you will have an amazing time with the CRE's First Color War!

The purpose of the State of the Region, is to give the Regional Aleph Godol the opportunity to express to the members where the region stands. In addition to that, it is also a time for the Godol to give the members some recommendations for the future. Right now, I am going to talk about Lives. This year there was a motion brought up to allow all members to give life. I think that many do not truly understand what it means to give life. In the Grand Order of the Aleph Zadik Aleph there are many levels, including the Chapter level, Regional level, and the International level. Thus, that means that there are three levels at which members can give life. The most important Life Ceremony should be that of the Chapter Life ceremony. It is the chapter that is most important in this organization and we should start treating it that way. Regional lives are for those who have dedicated their service to the region, International lives are for those who have dedicated their service to the International order, and chapter Lives should be for all members. I urge all of you to institute Chapter Life Ceremonies into your chapters. All members should be given the opportunity to become Life Members of their chapters in the Aleph Zadik Aleph.

BE IT RECOMMENDED that all chapters institute Chapter Life Ceremonies for all graduating seniors.

Being that the organization we are in, includes BBG, I will talk a bit about them. This year's board has been a pleasure to work with. Hey, they took our pranks extremely well. To highlight our evil deeds: we kidnapped their Sesame Street crap and ransomed them off for their bras and panties to be hung on the flagpole as they danced and sang around it. We also mocked their regional T-shirts by creating our own which jokingly and phallically made fun of them. Stay tuned as we put closure to our pranks this weekend.

Now, I would like to talk about some people that are not a part of my board, but had a great effect on my year as Godol. First, I must thank my co, Aliza Paskow. It has been incredible serving with you this year. We have been friends since nursery school and to be able to work with you has been such an honor. The girls were very lucky this year with you as N'siah.

Next, to Linda Rosenberg, our Regional Director, I owe a lot of thanks. She went through many tough times this year and was still able to keep on strong as our regional director. Throughout the year, you acted not only as my mentor, but also as my friend and for that I thank you. Next year, who will I call every afternoon? Thank you again Linda for all of your help this year.

Another person that I would like to thank is Rob Slavkin. Whenever I needed any help, he was always there. Thank you again Rob for all of your support. And speaking of advisors, I would like to speak about them briefly. As many of you know, the advisors in our region are here as volunteers. They don't get paid and do everything that they do out of the goodness of their hearts. Yes, they are here to advise us, but more importantly, they are here to be our friends. Next time you see your advisor, go up to him or her and give them a big hug and tell them how much you appreciate all of their help.

And last, but not least I would like to thank my family. They have supported me all throughout my time in BBYO and especially during this year. You are the best family that a kid could ask for and for that I thank you. BBYO has always been very important in our family. I want to thank Grandmom, Grandpa, Aunt Barb, Uncle Ron, Mom and Dad for all of their counseling and advice throughout my term. And to Jennifer and Scott, I would like to say thank you. Scott, you brought me into AZA and left me to do great things. Jennifer, I brought you in, and I trust you will also do great things. I would like to also mention a very important member of the family when it comes to BBYO. Aunt Carrie, you started as an advisor when I was president of West Chester BBYO and you have continued on. It makes me feel so proud when I see everyone call you Aunt Carrie. You have been such a great addition to Central Region East and you helped me so much during the year. Grandmom, Grandpa, Aunt Barb, Uncle Ron, Aunt Carrie, Mom, Dad, Scott and Jennifer, I will miss you very much next year. Thank you all for your love and support. I would not have been able to do this without you.

Also, being that we are an "International" organization, I will talk a little bit about International. In the past few years, Central Region East has been sending many members on summer programs. This year, we have many members going on summer programs, but there is still one more International Program that we need to sign up for. International Convention will be in late August and anyone can attend. If you would like to attend please contact Linda in the regional office. We would like to send a huge delegation this year. The International Convention of the Aleph Zadik Aleph is a serious and time-honored tradition. It is held at our own B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp, which is located in our region. The week is filled with speakers, competitions, workshops, social events and much more.

This year, we were honored with the visit of our Grand Aleph Godol, Daniel Adam Septimus. He was here in the region from April 19 to April 22. Daniel and I traveled to King of Prussia, West Chester and Allentown programs. I would like to thank all of the members that were present at those programs. You all made me very proud. Prior to Daniel's visit, it had been about three years since we had last received a visit from a GAG and we were long due. Throughout the year, Daniel Septimus was very active in promoting our region. He included us in his releases and in the Mid-State of the Order, congratulating us on our membership increase and participation. In speaking about International, I will speak about a policy that was passed by them this year. This year, the members of the Aleph Zadik Aleph, B'nai B'rith Girls, B'nai B'rith Youth Organization as a whole, and the B'nai B'rith Youth Commission voted on making BBYO International a Smoke-Free organization. All of the motions passed and all throughout the world, BBYO became smoke-free. This shows that we as members of the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization can take a stand and make a difference.

On the Region as whole, there have been many things which have happened to us this year. As you all know, we received a budget cut from International. This budget cut forced us to lose our secretary, Bobbi Rogers, after 20 years of service to Central Region East. With Bobbi gone, lots of volunteer help is needed at the regional office, so I urge all of you to continue to contact Linda and find out where you can help. With the bad, however, there is some good. On a whole, Central Region East membership is up by over fifty members. In fact, we are at almost a ten year high!

Baruch Spinoza said, "If you want the present to be different from the past, study the past." Throughout this year, I have done a lot with the files of Central Region East Aleph Zadik Aleph. In my basement I had an office filled with files that tell the history of Central Region East. Following suit after Brian Krasney, I went through the files (all of them) and worked on organizing them. Through doing this, I came to learn a lot about our region. I have seen when it was good and I have seen when it was bad. I have seen what we have done in the past and I have seen what we did this year. In my heart, I know what Central Region East is capable of doing. I know that we can do a lot better. This is not to say that this year wasn't good. On the contrary, it was exceptional. It was one of the best years that our region has ever seen. We improved in so many facets, but there are still a lot more places that need improvement.

I hope that you are all proud of our accomplishments this year. Though at some points the tree did not seem to be growing, after a little patience, it grew. It's time did come and before we knew it, it was fully grown. There is not a person in this room who does not have the ability or potential to become a good leader. It is a matter of dedication and pride. It is the willingness to grow within yourself and allow others to help you grow. Be open and sincere in both your listening and speaking. Give of yourself and never forget the tenets of our order and you will undoubtedly prove to be a great leader.

Before I finish, I would like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to serve as your Regional Aleph Godol. This was an experience of a lifetime, and I would not have traded it for anything else in the world. I wish you all the best of luck with your future in AZA and in life. We are all in this organization to become better people and to learn to become leaders. However, always remember that no matter what you do in BBYO and in life, it will all be insignificant if you don't have fun.

Fraternally submitted, with an undying love for Central Region East Aleph Zadik Aleph and the potential within all of you to become better leaders, I remain,

David Ari Hulnick
18th Regional Aleph Godol
Central Region East Aleph Zadik Aleph
1997-1998/5757-5758

"If you will it, then it is no dream"