Finding One's Bashert On The Very Website Created for Others! - JNS.org
Finding One's Bashert On The Very Website Created for Others! - JNS.org |
| Finding One's Bashert On The Very Website Created for Others! - JNS.org Posted: 20 May 2021 12:00 AM PDT (May 20, 2021, London, JNS Wire) Ben Rabizadeh and Derek Saker founded Frumster.com in 1997 in Passaic, New Jersey. While it was a pioneering service – it faced many early challenges, not least hesitancy and even some resistance to online dating services by many in Orthodox community. Nevertheless, the need was real and Saker and Rabizadeh were driven by the mission to empower Orthodox Jewish singles with a more enabling and less dismissive dating environment. As Ben Rabizadeh recalls "Healthy social mixing was becoming a rarity and there was a gross gender imbalance, where single Jewish women, found dating particularly difficult." Within the first years, thousands of Jewish singles joined the service from different Orthodox observant backgrounds and from communities far and wide. Membership aggressively increased and the number of marriages continued to exponentially grow. The early success of the service – which has always been defined by the number of marriages – was nowhere more apparent than in the fact that over 65% of Frumster.com marriages were initiated by women. That is, where the female member was the first to initiate an email. The reality, still today, is that in the "traditional" Jewish dating world, and certainly the more observant world, it is often the woman who finds herself playing second-fiddle as it were, waiting for the phone to ring. The online dating service empowers Jewish singles – especially women – to take charge and to take the lead in their dating life. In 2007 Derek Saker left Frumster.com to take on the position of Director of Communications at OHEL Children's Home and Family Services. Fast forward 12 years later. Derek still in New York, but divorced, began to start dating again and created a profile on what was now JWed.com The name had been changed from Frumster.com to JWed.com in 2007, to meet the need of a growing market of Jewish singles who while not necessarily religiously observant, were equally marriage-minded and equally focused on marrying someone Jewish. Derek says he created a profile "more out of curiosity" – but was immediately taken by one specific profile – to whom he sent a message. Within 24 hours, he received a response from Devorah, a 46-year-old Londoner. She was also divorced and a single parent. They began communicating and found much in common. However, shortly thereafter, Derek felt he needed to take a break and self-suspended his JWed profile. Imagine his surprise 10 days later when Devorah sent a message to his work email! Devorah had tracked him down, knowing his place of work and full name. The email subject line was "Either You Will Think I Am Desperate, a Psycho, or Just a Tenacious Woman!" It was a bold move, and the perfect way to win Derek's heart. "I loved her email, and we started communicating again," Derek said. "This led to hundreds of emails, WhatsApp calls and videos and in December 2018 Derek flew to London for the weekend."  Derek flies from New York to London to meet Devorah……and…..Devorah flies from London to New York to see Derek Many back-and-forth flights followed between and May 2019 they were engaged and after Derek permanently moved to London, they were married in the winter of 2019.  JWed Co-Founder Derek Saker Met and Married Devorah on JWed.com! Shortly thereafter, Derek re-joined JWed.com as CMO. Derek says that while distance was of course a considerable challenge – he had not thought of leaving the U.S. after so many years – that it is important to bear in mind that a significant majority of JWed's over 3,600 marriages took place between members who were out of city/state and even country. As he says from first-hand-experience, "JWed enables Jewish singles – whether from a major metropolitan city or from a small town, whether from across the street, or across the world, to meet one another, like never before. And while geography is admittedly a major factor in whom one communicates with, JWed has in fact always encouraged members to search way beyond their immediate location – where character, shared life goals, personality and other virtues, are so often far more important, than "just" location. As he says "If two people meet and find so much in common, both current and their plans for the future – geography, however challenging, can be overcome." Interestingly the pandemic has seen membership continue to grow leaps and bounds – with many JWed marriages haven taken place during the pandemic – although very small events. Derek says the younger 18-28 generation, greatly curtailed by social interaction, have taken advantage of the default opportunity to try a dating medium that before some may have seen as unnecessary or had an aversion to. So too, there has been a huge increase in senior members where before, online dating may have been the furthest thing on their minds. Solitude during the pandemic has no doubt had a profound impact on senior Jewish singles. While seniors have been more technology averse, this loneliness has certainly fuelled the practicality to overcome any hurdles with the help of family and support staff from the service itself. Today we see an incredible mix in JWed marriages – now averaging 8 engagements/marriages a month. From younger couples to members in their early eighties. Saker says "we even have a member in his nineties!" As Derek Saker says "You're never too old to love and to want to be loved by another." |
| Harold Agrast: Dec. 31, 1923 - May 6, 2021 - Cleveland Jewish News Posted: 17 May 2021 01:00 PM PDT Harold "Hal" Agrast was a lifelong Clevelander, fully dedicated to making the community better – which was evident in his almost 50-year career at the Mandel Jewish Community Center in Beachwood. Agrast, who died May 6, 2021, at age 97, served in numerous roles before retiring in 1998, including working in the children's division, assistant director of Camp Wise, director of teen activities, and later as director of the young adult, adult and senior adult divisions. He started his career at the JCC in 1951, after serving in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943 to 1946. While in school, he met his wife, Charlotte Kancelbaum, and they married in 1949. One of his sons, Mark Agrast of Washington, D.C., said that his father always had a strong orientation toward public service. "Everything he did was organized to improve life for people in his community," Mark Agrast said. "After coming back from his service in Europe, he never left Cleveland again, besides his famous travels and tours he did with the JCC. But, he made his life here and was very devoted. You don't stay in a job for 50 years unless you're feeling like you make a difference. It was never the same job twice for him and it evolved over that almost 50-year period. I just see it all stemming from the same source – that desire to be of service." Throughout his career at the former JCC in Cleveland Heights and the Mandel JCC, Agrast initiated several social and cultural programs for young Jewish singles, single parents, married couples and retirees, including a candidates' night and welcome program for newcomers called "Cleveland Shalom" and "Design for Dynamic Maturity," a program to assist married couples to prepare for retirement. In 1979, he created and directed a JCC tour program for ages 50-plus, which he and Charlotte led for 20 years, resulting in over 200 trips around the world. His other son, Robert Agrast, of Cleveland, serves as director of campus nutrition services at Menorah Park in Beachwood. He said many residents tell him all about their experiences on his father's tours. "He got tremendous satisfaction that no matter where he and our mom went, he would see people who went on their tours," he said. "People always spoke fondly of the amount of detail that went into those tours, and I think that made it very special." Jordan Rothkopf of Beachwood served as the former assistant director at the Mandel JCC, working there from 1979 to 2007, and again until 2010. Recalling the years he worked alongside Hal Agrast, he said his personality and dedication to creating a meaningful senior program was "amazing." "I remember being a staff person at the JCC and Hal would also play the piano, for groups, staff and even at our Chanukah parties," he said. "His personality was as such, and that was what kept the program going. When he left, we tried in different ways to keep his programming going, but part of it was his personality and his wife's. They were only as successful as they were and ran as long as they did because of his personality. He had a following, people were always looking forward to what he was going to do next." Hal was predeceased by Charlotte, his wife of 69 years; and by his brothers, Julius and Michael. He is survived by his sons, Mark Agrast (David Hollis) of Washington, D.C., and Robert (Brenna) Agrast of Cleveland; grandchildren, Rebecca (Michael) Marcotte and Aaron (Nichole) Agrast; and great-grandchildren Jacob, Olivia and Kyla. A private graveside service was held May 10 at Mayfield Cemetery. |
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