In the 2023 May/June cover story, learn how community members of Tenafly, New Jersey are growing with the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades.
Since its inception in 1950, the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades has put a premium on helping its community stay healthy in mind, body and spirit. So much so that when the JCC became constrained by space at its original location in Englewood, New Jersey, it moved down the road to its present location of Tenafly in 1980.
The Kaplen JCC is now home to a 185,000-square-foot facility situated on 29 acres of outside grounds featuring two fitness centers, an indoor and outdoor aquatics center, Group X, Spin and Pilates studios, two gymnasiums, tennis and racquet courts, an indoor track, luxurious spa, multiple playgrounds and sports fields, and more.
Steve Rogers, the chief executive officer of the Kaplen JCC, said not only are the JCC’s offerings unparalleled in the region, but its programming ensures they cover all things body and mind. This includes being home to the renowned Thurnauer School of Music, Leonard and Syril Rubin Nursery School, Neil Klatskin Summer Camps, and the JCC Dance and Dramatic Arts Schools.
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“The JCC is proud to offer extensive, high-quality programs and services to children and adults of all ages, as well as to seniors and individuals with special needs,” said Rogers. “While we are deeply rooted in Jewish values and tradition — and we are a vibrant home for the Jewish people — we welcome all and cultivate the social, intellectual, physical and spiritual well-being of the entire community.”
For the Kaplen JCC, serving the entire community extends even further than children and adults of all ages. Rogers added he is incredibly proud of the intergenerational aspect of the JCC.
A Place that Treasures Families
The Kaplen JCC is home to families who have been with the J since the start. Lenny Rubin, one of the JCC’s founders, played a crucial role in the establishment of the center in the late 1940s, leading to its opening in 1950. Rogers shared Lenny’s name is on the main building and the early childhood center is named after he and his wife Syril.
“Lenny and Syril’s son Daniel is on our board of directors, as are their granddaughters,” explained Rogers. “Most recently, one of Lenny’s great-grandsons took on a leadership position, serving as chair of a teen committee — equaling four generations of Rubins.”
Rogers added all three of his children who are in their mid and late 20s are graduates of the JCC’s early childhood center. “We are a place where children come to us at a young age and continue to keep coming throughout their entire lives,” he said.
A great testament to this is the JCC’s goal to allow older adults to age in place successfully through several senior programs and services led by an experienced leadership team member.
Diverse Populations
Judi Davidsohn Nahary, the chief program officer at the Kaplen JCC, started her journey in 2000 when she was hired to serve as the director of teen services. Since then, she has held various roles including director of youth services, director of senior adult services, director of adult learning, engagement and development, and most recently, chief program officer.
In her current role, Davidsohn Nahary works with department heads to further enhance the JCC’s programs and offerings across all age groups. “My background working with various age groups in my previous roles has given me an intimate understanding of what our community needs from us,” she said. “I’m most passionate about developing new and innovative programs to guide the experiences of our diverse populations.”
Davidsohn Nahary added the COVID-19 pandemic is a great example of how the JCC supported its diverse populations, especially seniors. “At the time, my position was the director of senior adult services,” she said. “My biggest fear was the social isolation would be more detrimental to our population than COVID-19 itself.”
Before its closure during the pandemic, the JCC provided resources including transportation, nutritious meals, exercise, socialization, entertainment and cognitive stimulation. Once closed, the team knew they needed to continue providing these resources to literally save lives.
Davidsohn Nahary added they also built a platform of three daily virtual offerings including chair exercise, musical entertainment, opportunities for social engagement and cognitive stimulating games. Additionally, they worked with aides and caregivers to walk them through Zoom sessions but learned many seniors didn’t have the technology and couldn’t access the programs.
“We decided to loan our seniors the 12 iPads we owned and then received grants from Bergen County and the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey to build our iPad lending library,” explained Davidsohn Nahary. “This allowed us to purchase 75 cellular iPads to loan out to any senior who wanted to participate in our virtual programs. I am proud to say since our closure we have been able to engage over 500 seniors across Bergen County and keep them social, mobile and actively engaged.”
Davidsohn Nahary said now as the JCC and the world reopens, their seniors know they are still there for them and will be every step of the way. One example of this is a new program the JCC launched in 2023 called Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs).
“Over the years, the JCC has received a lot of interest from seniors living in Hackensack, New Jersey, who wanted to participate in the JCC’s senior programs but we were unable to find transportation from their area,” said Davidsohn Nahary. “In response to the needs, we decided to bring our programming directly to these buildings that have NORCs.”
She added the program has been incredibly well received since launching, noting the number of participants continues to grow as well as interest from other buildings in the area. “Responding to the needs in our community with programs like this that don’t fit the norms is incredibly rewarding,” she said. “It sends a message to our community that we are listening and are here to make their lives better, healthier and more stimulating.”
And with the help of another leadership team member, the JCC will continue sending this message to its community.
A Partner in the Community
Sue Gelsey, the chief engagement officer at the Kaplen JCC, recently returned to her home community in early 2023 after a stint serving as the chief program and talent officer at the JCC Association of North America.
Gelsey said she came back with the goal of reimagining operations through the lens of engagement with professional staff, lay leadership, participants and the wider community. Her greatest interest is in exploring connecting the Jewish community as an active, equal partner and supporter to the wider community and faith-based organizations around the area.
“There is always a greater need for inter-community engagement and education as a means of knowing and understanding one another, reducing hate, and advancing social justice,” said Gelsey. “We welcome the opportunity to be a partner with other community leaders to actively engage in education and engagement. This can break down the silos of our communities and together we can create communities that are in it with one another and where people feel they belong. The gift of this role is the opportunity to address this internally and externally.”
To advance the JCC as a partner in the community, Gelsey is having one-on-one conversations with community leaders and learning the successes and challenges — as well as the needs and opportunities — of various communities, organizations and people.
“I am hopeful these one-on-one conversations will develop into a coalition of leaders who can work together to grow the efforts already underway in support of a more connected, just and equitable community,” said Gelsey. “This has to involve creating more opportunities for people of various communities to be in personal contact with one another socially, thereby advancing our understanding and education of one another.”
Gelsey concluded there’s great interest among other leaders, and the Kaplen JCC is prepared to do the heavy lifting on this work knowing the vast responsibilities of current community and faith leaders.
The Next 75 Years at the Kaplen JCC
When thinking about the future of the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, Rogers said the approach of the JCC’s 75th anniversary in 2025 has his team imagining what the upcoming 75 years will look like. On a smaller scale, he said the next five years will see continued growth as the local population grows.
“We need to ensure the facility will be able to handle a growing senior population and can pivot to continue to meet all the needs of our community,” said Rogers. “The premium on health is evidenced by the fact that one-third of our 185,000-square-foot facility is dedicated to health and wellness. The Kaplen JCC is not trying to be a great community center. We are already a great community center; we want to ensure that we are an integral part of a wonderful community.”
Hear more from Steve Rogers on the Causenetic Podcast with hosts Keith Vinson and Rodrigua Ross of the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas.
Photos by Bill Denver.
