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Dec. 15, 2006
New boss at the JCC
Nelson hopes to lead us to even more acclaim.
KYLE BERGER
Rick Nelson had two key objectives for the remainder of his professional
career. He wanted to be the executive director of a vibrant Jewish
community centre and he wanted to do it in a thriving community.
Nelson believed he set himself up to achieve both when he was hired
to be the new executive director of the JCC of Greater Vancouver.
Nelson, who began shadowing his predecessor Gerry Zipursky Dec.
1 and takes over full control Jan. 1, said that this is the new
home he hopes to finish his career in.
"I was looking for a JCC that would both match what I wanted
to do professionally with what they wanted to do professionally,"
he explained, "and find a sense of stability in a vibrant,
growing, enthusiastic, forward-thinking, inclusive community.
"There are a lot of fabulous things going on here," he
continued. "From the cultural Jewish programming to the Israel
connection to the children's programming to the Jewish hockey league,
it is really special stuff and you pick up that vibrancy when you
walk into the lobby. I was turned on immediately when I came to
visit."
Nelson's journey to Vancouver started in Jacksonville, Fla., where
he was a public school administrator and a high school football
coach in the mid-1980s. When that small community decided to develop
a JCC, Nelson got involved and soon made the professional transition
to Jewish communal life.
"I saw a lot of parallels and relevancies between running a
school and running a JCC," he said. "I really wanted to
work in the Jewish community."
From there, he moved to work at the JCC in Houston. Starting as
the director of health and physical education, he climbed the ladder
to become a branch director, then served as one of that centre's
assistant directors. He was also the games director for the JCC
Maccabi Games there.
Nine years later, he moved to Seattle, where he was hired to be
the associate executive director of the JCC for four years. He finally
realized his goal of becoming an executive director in Providence,
R.I., five years ago.
Coming to Vancouver was what he considered to be the next and final
step in his career as an executive director – a role he feels
combines all his passions in one job.
"There are 30 or 40 businesses that take place at the same
time at a JCC and as the executive director, you get the chance
to experience every one of those businesses at some level,"
he said. "I think the JCC has the potential and the responsibility
to be the central address for the Jewish community and it is often
the only agency that really can involve the entire community seamlessly."
JCC president Esther Chetner explained that, as they interviewed
potential candidates, there were a lot of things about Nelson that
the executive board appreciated.
"We liked his love of Judaism, the Jewish community and Israel,
his recognition of the valuable role JCCs can offer in Jewish journeys,
his great communication skills and his wide spectrum of relevant
and critical skills for this highly demanding job as executive director,"
she said. "I think Rick will mesh with our staff, leadership
and community exceedingly well."
Chetner is also confident in a smooth transition as Nelson steps
into Zipursky's 22-year-old shoes.
"We know that Gerry is good with details and will do his best
to ensure a thorough transition," she said. "Rick knows
what to ask. So along the way, he'll make sure he gets the information
which he considers essential."
From Nelson's perspective, Zipursky's departure helped create the
perfect environment for him to step into.
"One of the signs of great leadership is preparing the place
for the next leader and Gerry has done that," he said. "I
really feel comfortable taking the keys and moving forward.
"There is a learning curve when coming to a new centre and
a new community, but I'm really charged by the challenge,"
he continued. "I don't think anyone is satisfied with the status
quo. We want to maintain everything that is already great and then
see what else we can do."
Nelson, who has a 23-year-old son living in Israel named Mark and
a 27-year-old daughter named Leah living in Houston, will soon be
joined in Vancouver by his fiancée, Judi.
Kyle Berger is a freelance journalist and graphic designer
living in Richmond.
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