Show Notes
In this episode of The Localist, host Carrie Rollwagen sits down with Brooke Bowles, CEO of Birmingham’s Levite Jewish Community Center (JCC), to explore how the organization has become more than just a gym — it’s a thriving hub of inclusion, connection and community. Brooke explains how the JCC lives out its Jewish values of kehillah (creating community), edah (enhancing community) and tikkun olam (repairing the world) through a wide range of programs that serve all ages and backgrounds. From preschoolers to legacy members of 40+ years, the J offers everything from fitness classes to knitting circles, cultural programs and inclusive initiatives like subsidized swim lessons for underserved kids and families.
Brooke also shares how the JCC navigates challenges such as increased security concerns, rising antisemitism, and economic uncertainty while staying focused on its mission. She highlights creative outreach efforts — like transforming the lobby into a communal “living room” after the October 2023 attacks on Israel — and partnerships that extend the center’s impact far beyond its walls. Throughout the conversation, Brooke illustrates how intentional leadership, community-driven programs and a welcoming culture make the JCC a model for mission-driven organizations everywhere. Whether through their annual J’la fundraiser or simply stopping by for a tour, listeners are invited to experience firsthand what makes the JCC such a vital part of Birmingham’s fabric.
Mentioned in this episode:
Levite Jewish Community Center
The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal
Morgan Johnston on the Localist
Duquette Johnston on the Localist
Episode Transcript
Carrie
Today, we’re talking to Brooke Bowles, who is CEO of the Levite Jewish Community Center, otherwise known as the JCC, or the J. So the J is commonly known, I think, as a gym, and they do have a gym, but they also have a lot more community programs, like, really, at their core, they’re a community center. Brooke talks a lot about that. She talks about how they run as a nonprofit, how that like is influencing everything that they do, and also she talks operationally about how that actually functions. I really love this conversation, not only just because I learned so much about the J but also I learned a lot about how to connect with your community and whether you’re running a nonprofit or just doing your own thing as a freelancer, or you are running another business, I think that community piece and that community connection is really important for all of us. I did want to say one great way to learn about the j is to go to their website. And I am also giving a plug here because infomedia, which is the company that I work for, and also the company that sponsors this podcast, actually does the website for the J So I’m saying that as a plug, and also as kind of like a caveat slash disclaimer. But I really enjoyed this conversation. I think it’s fantastic, and I hope you will as well. Welcome to the podcast. Thanks for coming.
Brooke Bowles
Thanks for having me.
Carrie
Yeah, I’m really excited to kind of dive in, not only to just how you run like a fitness space, but it’s not just a fitness space, a community space, and also to talk about some non profit kind of thoughts and concerns, because we don’t often have nonprofits on the localist, so I’m happy you’re here. So can you tell me, kind of start off with what the difference is between, like, what does community center mean? Because I think sometimes a lot of people think, Oh, the J is a place to work out which it is, but I think it is maybe more than that, too. Can you talk about that side of things?
Brooke Bowles
Sure, sure. So community center. We say community is our middle name, the Jewish Community Center. And really we our goal is to bring people together from differing backgrounds. So we are a space for all people. We have programs geared towards the mind, body and soul across all ages spanning a lifetime. So we have, you know, a preschool program for infants through 4k and then we have a camp program for children and they can grow into counselors. And then we do young adult programming, programming for new moms, older adult programming. So we have so much to offer besides just a gym. But what the fitness piece does do is it helps bring people together. Oftentimes, people don’t come together from different backgrounds just to do that, yeah. And so having activities planned at the community center allows us to get people from all walks of life together around a shared program,
Carrie
yeah. I was actually, reading this book called The Joy of movement, that’s talking about not just exercise, but movement at all, and a lot of what it talks about is that community aspect and how and so much you know, you have different places like a CrossFit space or some yoga studios that kind of have almost like this, this very dedicated following, and it’s very much a community and that that is kind of normal for a fitness like space. And I thought, I just thought that was interesting, that they were talking about how you’re kind of already primed to make connections, almost.
Brooke Bowles
Yeah, that makes good sense. I will say we’re pretty quirky at the j so we do pride ourselves in being a very comfortable place to be. It’s a it’s an older building, and it does need some work, but we like to think that we are the friendliest, most diverse space in Birmingham, and so people who are in that community mindset that you’re describing, but maybe aren’t comfortable going to a CrossFit or yoga or something that they’re not used to. I think would be comfortable coming to our center, because you truly have a little bit of everything.
Carrie
yeah, what are some things that you do intentionally? To make people comfortable. If you’re like, yes, of course, there are certain people who are going to go to a gym no matter what, but for everybody else, like, how do you make different people feel welcome, especially across so many like, like, young people, older people, people who are like, super fit people who are not?
Brooke Bowles
you know, I think our size allows us to do that. So we serve about 2000 families. And being that’s that’s actually pretty small when you compare, like the YMCA or something, and it allows us to know people’s names. It allows us to know their children’s names, their pets. And so I think having a dedicated staff who really, really care deeply about the people in the building, and that’s really what wakes us up in the morning, is the opportunity to serve the people in our building, and that mindset alone, I think, allows us to be a space where people feel welcome and feel comfortable.
Carrie
Do you do you address that in any of the training for your staff? Or is that something that like because the culture is already there of being accepting that people tend to kind of get it, or both?
Brooke Bowles
I think it’s both. I think we, we try to be really careful about hiring. You can’t always get it right, but we try to be really careful about hiring and intentional about bringing in people who share our values of, you know, strong customer service and diversity. There’s a Jewish value of welcoming the stranger, and so we study different Jewish values tied to community. You know, do not have to be Jewish to go to the Jewish Community Center. That’s a big misconception. So I want to make sure people know that. But we do see things through Jewish lens, which are some beautiful values. So we do some training for our staff. We try to get it right when we make the hire. And it is a culture where everybody is just going out of their way to make people feel good,
Carrie
yeah. How do you balance that? Like, balance the Jewish, Jewish culture and Jewish values and and in like, inviting people who are Jewish to participate, like that. Seems like it would be a difficult balance to me, to be like, what? When is it important to say no, like this, this side of things we really need to tie to the culture, or we need to tie to values, or and this side of things we don’t, does that? Does that make sense? Like, how do you
Brooke Bowles
Yeah, so I’m not Jewish, and lead a Jewish organization, so I do a lot of learning, and we have three main Jewish values that we highlight, and those are kehillah, which means to create community, Edah, enhance community, and tikkun olam, which means repair the world. So if you think about those three values, creating community, so getting people in the space together, enhancing community, helping people have meaningful life experiences together, and then repairing the world, doing good for the greater good for each other, it’s not hard to truly look at everything through that lens. We also are firm believers that we are a huge part of combating anti semitism. You know, a lot of people here in Birmingham don’t have Jewish friends. Don’t know a Jewish person. The Jewish community here in Birmingham is about 6000 people, so it’s relatively small. And so having a space where Jewish people can be side by side with non Jewish people and learn from each other, we think, is really, really important in dispelling, you know, old stereotypes and that sort of thing.
Carrie
Yeah, I imagine that’s gotten harder over the past couple of years. Can you like, what has that kind of been like to operate while things politically are so different? If that makes sense?
Brooke Bowles
it does. It’s not easy. Yeah, we have really taken on the belief that people are hurting, so kind of no matter where you fall politically, people are struggling. People are hurting, and so offering a safe and welcoming space for people to find a sense of belonging and community has been our role. We So October 7, 2023 is when Israel was attacked. And on October 8, 2023 a small group of us, it was a Sunday, met at the J to determine what. Do we do? What is our role in this situation, in the subsequent, subsequent war? And we agreed that having a space for people as they are devastated, as they’re struggling, is our role and having a safe space. And so we opened up our lobby to become kind of the living room of the community. We had food and beverages. All of our staff took did their work from the lab lobby, so we did all of our meetings in the lobby. We really had a strong presence for people. So we had people just coming in and sitting and visiting with us. Over the past two years, we’ve really increased our security around the organization so people feel safe. We were hearing from some people that that, you know, safety and security around a Jewish organization right now is a top priority, and so we wanted to to offer that to folks as well. But yeah, just really leaning into that compassion of people are having a hard time. And how can we help? How can we provide this warm space?
Carrie
Yeah, well, that seems so is, have you seen other people in the community who maybe even aren’t Jewish, like, step up and went to help as these things happen?
Brooke Bowles
Yes, we have definitely, especially the weeks after October 7, we had people come to join the J who were not Jewish, just because they wanted to support a Jewish organization. We had different groups sponsor food in our lobby because they wanted to provide food, something that would be nourishing, and, you know, yeah, kind to others. So we have had different groups step up to get involved and really to learn from each other,
Carrie
yeah. Well, okay, let’s move on to something a little less, you know, fraught, and just kind of, I want to kind of get into how you serve so many different ages. And you know, you have, like, classes for preschool kids, or, I don’t know, maybe even younger, and classes for people older. How do you as an organization, like, do you, I guess, operationally, do you have different groups within the organization that are like, they’re walking, you know, they’re this group is work working with this age people, or this group is working with this or is it just kind of like the same people are running the programs? Like, how do you make sure you’re serving different ages?
Brooke Bowles
Yeah, that’s a great question. We laugh and say that running the Jewish Community Center is like running 11 small businesses. So we have, you know, various departments in the organization, department dedicated to our early learning center for infants to 4k children department dedicated to our aquatics program. So how are we offering therapeutic aquatics across the lifespan, including this partnership with Veterans Affairs, where 65 veterans come over to the J on a daily basis to utilize our pools for therapeutic aquatics. Yeah, we have a department dedicated to athletics, a department dedicated to wellness and fitness, departments dedicated to the member experience. So truly, there are two employees whose entire job is to focus on the member experience when they come into the J What is that like? So we we are. We do have different groups dedicated to different pieces and generally, which, well, we try to all come together regularly to make sure that, you know, we’re not too siloed, or we’re working together,
Carrie
yeah. What are those member experience people do? What are they looking at? Are they talking to people? Do you do surveys? Do you is it kind of both? Are they talking to department heads? Or how does that work?
Brooke Bowles
Well, I think we’re real fortunate that our members are not shy about giving us feedback. And so we do receive feedback on a regular basis. We do have a monthly survey that goes out that our experienced team is studying, and when possible, you know, fixing a complaint instead of just saying thank you for sharing that with us. We really try to work with our facilities group on how can we address this particular issue that seems to have upset this member. We also try to find champions for the organization and really lean into them and try to hear what it is that they love about the place, so that we can make sure other people are having a similar experience. This year, we created the legacy members, which is this group of members who have been a member of the J for 40 or more years. Would you think about that? Like, where are you a member for 40 or more years, not many places, and I have 124 people who are in our legacy member group, and they really share with us their whole life long experience, multi generational experiences at the center. And so we’re trying to make sure that we’re capturing those kind of experiences for all of our members.
Carrie
Yeah, that’s really cool. So what are those in that in that legacy program, do they have, like, coffee meetings where they share this? Are they getting surveys, or
Brooke Bowles
where it’s pretty new, but we had a big luncheon. We are dedicating some outdoor courtyard space to the group. I communicate with that group, you know, with special communications for them, I’m seeing them all over the place, because they are our dedicated members, so I see them on a daily basis and really make sure I’m reaching out and spending time with them.
Carrie
Yeah, well, what’s the feedback been from the group?
Brooke Bowles
Oh, the feedback, the feedback, generally speaking, whether you’ve been with us for 40 plus years or for 40 days, the feedback is that this is a place for community, like I come here. I don’t come here for the treadmill, though, our treadmills are pretty new, so they’re great, but I come here for the community, and so this is a place where I’ve raised my children. This is a place where I have done life with my friends through Mahjong or bridge club or the knitting circle. I mean, you name it, but people really experience life together at the J
Carrie
Yeah. So do you think that happens? Like, does that happen over time, usually where it’s like, okay, your kids are in this class, and you meet some people, and then you’re, you know, in a knitting circle. Or is it kind of like just when you come in, like, are there people who just go to the treadmill and leave if, if you’re doing that, are you gonna be, I mean, obviously you’re not gonna be as much of a part of a community. But how do you kind of capture, how do you get people to take that step from, I just wanted to work out to, like, becoming part of the community.
Brooke Bowles
So there are certainly people who, frankly, don’t want to be bothered when they go to the gym. And I’m a real people person, so I’m constantly walking around and saying hi, and I try my best to make sure I’m not bothering someone who doesn’t want to be bothered. So there’s space, you know, we’re not going to force anybody to jump right in and be part of all of our programs. The knitting circle is a pretty great group. But I think, like I think about this woman named Bev who, in 2022 her husband passed away. All of her family lives outside of Birmingham, and she decided to join the J and she went all in so Bev, you know, attended, she worked with a personal trainer, so she was on the fitness floor all the time. She joined the knitting circle. She joined, we have a program called questions with the rabbi that you can talk to a Jewish rabbi and get some of your biggest questions answered. She joined southern Jewish voices, which we highlight a Jewish person once a month, and their story of growing up Jewish in the South. She joined mahjong. I mean, Bev has joined everything, and she brought her family was in town last year, and they couldn’t wait to come meet their mom’s new family. And so I think it just really depends on what you’re looking for. You know, Fourth of July, we cooked kosher hot dogs, we had a fourth of July party. And for so many people that right there gave them plans on Fourth of July. I mean, not everybody has an opportunity to go to a lake house or to vacation this week or whatever, but to have a party at the J, yeah, it was packed.
Carrie
Yeah.
Brooke Bowles
You know, it was a pool party at the j with kosher hot dogs. It was a ton of fun. And that is building community. That is giving someone plans with their family, with a lot of, you know, 300 other people together on a holiday.
Carrie
That’s really neat. Well, speaking of that, I feel like the pool at the j is like the place to be. It’s like its own. Sosial scene. when, I mean, there are multiple pools, I think also kind of, do, you know, like, how did that happen? I mean, is it these same community things that you’re building? Or I just think it’s funny that I have so many friends who are like, oh yeah. Like, of course, I go hang out at the J. We were talking about, actually, before we start recording, we’re talking about Morgan and Duquette Johnson, who’ve both been on the podcast, and they are very open about the fact that they’re like, Yeah, we are at the pool at the J. That’s where we are.
Brooke Bowles
They are every day. You know, I don’t truly I’m relatively new. I joined the team at the J in November of 2021 and so I believe we have this long history of having the best pool in town. Yeah, that, you know, I’ve had, I’ve worked with consultants who’ve come in and studied our pool and gone to other places and studied their pool here in Birmingham, and said, like, you guys really have the best game in town here with your aquatics program. So I think we offer just a enormous fun pool. We have these huge inflatables that people love to come play in our pool. We have a high dive, which is extremely rare these days, but it’s been a rite of passage for a lot of people. So that’s a lot of stories I hear. Is that? Well, yeah, I jumped off the high dive for the first time at the j so I think it’s this long history of having a place where people hang out and it’s a lot of fun.
Carrie
And do you have an outdoor and indoor pool?
Brooke Bowles
We do. We have a large outdoor pool, a smaller baby outdoor pool, and then an indoor pool as well. It’s open year round.
Carrie
Yeah, and I think a lot of people like having the separate pool for for babies also,
Brooke Bowles
oh yeah, that’s that’s been really, really popular. We also offer private swim lessons, which has been a really, really popular program. Our swim instructors are top notch. And so a lot of people, in fact, my daughters, who are 21 and 24 learned how to swim at the j so a lot of people learned how to swim thereas well.
Carrie
Yeah, did they learn how to swim as children or as adults?
Brooke Bowles
As children, but we also do teach adults as well. We have this incredible program. I’m gonna digress a little bit, but it’s called Swim School, and it is so we understand that not everybody can access private swim instruction for a variety of reasons, and so we recognizing that we had this stellar aquatics program, wanted to make sure that we were offering that opportunity to as many people as possible. So we got some grant funding and open swim school, which we partner with. I3 Academy and Girls Inc, and for $25 that’s the total family investment. They get 16 swim lessons.
Carrie
That’s awesome
Brooke Bowles
at the j with our swim instructors. And so these are children that we’ve worked with, but what we’ve what’s happened through this program we’ve been doing it for a couple years now, is their parents may not know how to swim either and want to learn as well. So it’s been really, really neat, to see the impact of that program in particular. That’s really
Carrie
cool. So when you see something like that. Where do you get ideas for because that’s a different kind of program. I mean, it seems like you’re like, oh, swim lessons. I get it there. There’s already a pattern for swim lessons, but what you’re talking about is kind of a different thing. Like, do you do those ideas mostly come from your staff? Is it like, do you follow other community centers and gyms around the country and things like, that’s a cool thing, and we can do that. Or like, how do you come up with different ideas like that?
Brooke Bowles
I definitely have a staff who is very interested in working with marginalized communities. And then that’s my background, as well as working in non profits and marginalized communities. And so we think about the J The Montclair campus as kind of a blank canvas for opportunity for people to access programs who would not otherwise have the chance to access those so whether it’s swimming or community theater. We have a inclusive theater program,
Carrie
yeah?
Brooke Bowles
We really try to look at everything we do and think about who could benefit from this. We are intentional about diversity, so we know that people aren’t necessarily going to just walk into our doors seeking an inclusive environment. We need to go out and find people who might need a community and a place for belonging, and get them in our doors. We’ve, so far just this year, we’ve given away about $125,000 in scholarships and discounted programs to individuals in financial need. So it’s on our website that we. Don’t turn anyone away for their ability to pay or not pay. It’s really important work that we do is not to just look at our paying customers and what services they want, but how we can provide those opportunities for folks with limited resources.
Carrie
Yeah. So how do you reach it? How do you reach different communities? Is it like, social media or advertising or like, do you go to specific like, where other organizations and like, how do you, how do you get the word out?
Brooke Bowles
Sure, I think we can do better. Yeah, getting the word out. You know, nonprofits don’t have a huge marketing budget, and so we are thankful for places like infomedia and other groups that help us spread the word. We’re also a United Way agency. And so that relationship certainly connects us to lots of other non profit organizations. We have a lot of programming for people with disabilities, which is my background, and so working with like Glenwood and united ability on some of these programs, such as inclusive tai chi or an art program. But it to me, the partners are not hard to find. If you are wanting to do this work, which we are, it’s not been difficult to find partners who can help us get the word out to various individuals, and frankly, to get people to us for this Swim School, for example, one of our biggest expenses around Swim School is bus transportation, because we want our swim school program to be as convenient as possible on families. And so we are literally bringing children over after school. Immediately after school. They come for swim lessons. Their parents pick them up at the j so working through everything, not just getting the word out, but the actual logistics of getting people on our campus,
Carrie
yeah, well, and, I think you answered my question well, too, it’s like, kind of like partnering with these other community organizations who are maybe working with people group that you want to work you know, like that makes that makes sense. Yes, is really cool. And yeah, like, I love that. Like thinking through all of the bussing, you know, like that is, but it’s kind of like if you run this program and kids have no way to get to it, right? Or, you know, most parents, especially if you’re kind of like, I can’t afford swim lessons. Can you afford to get off work at 330 and run your kid over the J, probably, no, right,
Brooke Bowles
right, right.
Carrie
So it’s like thinking through all of those logistics is important.
Brooke Bowles
It is. And then, you know, the opportunity to provide a positive experience with an organization that has the word Jewish in it, so bringing various populations over to the center to experience, you know, aquatics or theater or our fitness programs, and they have a great experience with the word Jewish, and the organization that alone does so much with fighting anti semitism,
Carrie
yeah, no. I mean, I think that makes a lot of sense. So you’ve talked some about your background and that you haven’t. You know, you’ve been with the J just a few years. What kind of what is your background, and how did you how did you come upon this? Like, how did you get where you are?
Brooke Bowles
So my background, I’ve been really fortunate to have worked at nonprofits my whole career. That’s since 1996 so we’re about to do 30 years next year, a long time, but specifically, my background was in working with individuals with developmental disabilities, and that was a passion of mine, from the time I was in college to my first job after college. So have built nonprofit organ, a nonprofit organization, work with other nonprofit organizations. Really love, I love the mission part of a nonprofit, for sure, but I also really love the opportunity to run a nonprofit like any business. I think there’s a misconception. You know, that nonprofits are supposed to end the year at a deficit.
Carrie
Yeah, it’s in the name, right?
Brooke Bowles
right You’re a nonprofit, or in the Euro 000, which is it’s so not. It’s not true. It’s just not true. The IRS invests in these organizations as tax exempt organizations. They want nonprofits to succeed and to do well. And so I really, as much as I love the mission work, the hands on mission work, I also really enjoy. I. Yeah, the business aspect of it, so the strategic thinking and the financial piece and the, well, I don’t love the personnel piece, but nobody does. I don’t think, yeah, but really thinking about how we can scale programs, for example, or what, where we want to be in the future. So that’s been a lot of my career, and then I was just volunteering at a little organization called full circle. They are a women’s boutique, consignment boutique. Now they’re located in Homewood, but they offer job opportunities for individuals with disabilities. And when they were just getting off the ground in 2021 I was they were housed at the J, like, kind of an incubator space, yeah, and I was volunteering with full circle on the weekends at the J, and just got involved at the center. Met leadership there. I had, at one time, been a member of the J and my children learned his time there and all of that, so I was pretty familiar with it, but once I got to know the leadership and studied the values of the organization, I thought this could be something really neat. You know, I’ve dedicated my career to empowering individuals with disabilities or from marginalized communities to be as independent as possible, to reach their potential. It might be a lot of fun to work at an organization where we could become the welcoming space for these individuals. So kind of on the other side, as folks are trying so hard to, you know, pull themselves up by their bootstraps, or what have you, to have the chance to be part of an organization that is welcoming to folks. So that’s, that’s how I landed there,
Carrie
yeah, well, and at an interesting time too, because right, did you come at the end of COVID?
Brooke Bowles
Yes, yes.
Carrie
So they, can you tell us about that? Or is that like, I never want to go back, and sometimes when I think back, I’m just like, oh my gosh, like, let’s move on. Like that. But it, but, yeah, what was that like?
Brooke Bowles
It seems like a long time ago, but then it also sort of feels like yesterday, yeah, well, I love to talk about COVID and the J and how the J managed through COVID, because that was before my time. And so I can brag about the J. I was not involved in this great work, but despite losing about 35% of our membership and the revenue tied to that, the J took great strides to serve the community during COVID, and that 35% loss, that’s about what community centers around the country faced. So we were not out of the norm, right? But what I’m so proud of with my predecessors, they quickly so some things we did during COVID are, we had to close our preschool because the health department had new standards. If you’re going to operate a preschool during COVID, you have to, you know, meet these new standards. Well, the team at the time were able to meet those new standards in one week. So we closed for one week. But our families, I think this is March of 2020 our families were not ready to send their children to a preschool, right? You know, we weren’t ready to leave the house, yeah, in March of 2020 and so what the J did was open our doors for we had all these teachers who wanted to work. We opened our doors to the children of first responders and essential workers with this newly, you know, accredited license preschool that met all of the new standards. So we were able to serve these folks who had to work and maybe their preschools were not open, or their daycare centers were not open. So we did that, and then we also extended our WiFi as far as it would reach. And so, it’s interesting, right? You wouldn’t think to do that, and I probably wouldn’t have either, but luckily, the folks in charge at the time did. And so we have this fantastic employee named Coach K. Everybody knows Coach K, but she is our athletics director, and she didn’t have any teams to coach. So what we decided, they decided to do at the time, was extend the Wi Fi as far as it would reach, and open our parking lot for remote learning. So you have all these children who were given tablets from their school, but they may not have Wi Fi at home, and so Coach K literally became the like remote Learning Instructor working the parking lot with all of these families. And of course, you don’t have to be a member of the J I mean, we’re just opening this up to the community. And then another thing we did is we partnered with the Community Food Bank and opened a Mobile Food Pantry. And so I’ve heard that like traffic. Would be backed up a mile for cars to drive through our Mobile Food Pantry. So all of this really set the tone for being that blank canvas to serve others coming out of COVID. And when I joined in November of 2021 I was brought on to try to diversify revenue we had. Our business model was heavily reliant on membership dues and preschool tuition, and we did not really have development dollars coming in. And so my initial work was to build a development team with a grant writer, communications manager and Events Manager to start looking at other revenue sources, and that from a timing perspective, that worked out really well, because, you know, grant funders or individual donors want to see you doing this community driven work. And so we’ve got the staff who are primed to do the work they’ve just come out of COVID impacted so many lives in a positive way. And then we want to raise development dollars and have the opportunity to do that.
Carrie
Yeah, well, I think that’s so so much of your income is coming from credit or not so much, but you are getting, like, grants and things like that has that, I feel like the past six months or so has been very difficult in like, have you guys, have you seen pushback from that? Are there things that are in question because of things that may be going on politically and are like, are but are most of your grants locked in? Or is that just like a it seems like a space with a lot of uncertainty right now. Is that correct?
Brooke Bowles
That is very correct uncertainty, I think is the right word. Whether you’re talking about from a grant perspective or just an individual donor or a corporate sponsor, people are really fearful about spending money right now, and we’re certainly seeing that from a development standpoint, and even, you know, we’re fortunate in that we don’t have a lot of federal grants. We have one major federal grant that we’re not sure what the future of that grant will hold. But what we have seen is that foundation grants, local grant funders, they want to support nonprofits who are heavily funded through these federal grants that have been cut, which I can’t blame them, you know? I mean, that’s where they should want to, you know, invest their their funding. And so we’re seeing that kind of consequence from these uncertain times,
Carrie
which that’s really interesting. Like, I wouldn’t have even thought about that that, yeah, it’s and you are kind of getting hit on both sides, which is kind of like the grant side, but also, like you said, the private funding side, like every business owner I talk to is kind of like, well, even businesses that are doing well right now. A lot of them are kind of saying, like, well, I’m waiting to spend the money until I figure out, kind of like, where the wind is going to blow.
Brooke Bowles
Right,
Carrie
we’re all like, where is that? Like,
Brooke Bowles
right? There’s just a lot of anxiety, fear about spending right now.
Carrie
Yeah, so how are you navigating that? Like, is that something that is you’re talking to your probably not the members, but like your staff about and how’s that? How do you handle that?
Brooke Bowles
Well, in a couple of ways. So we are acknowledging that development funding may be a challenge right now. And so how do we approach that challenge? One is, are we telling a compelling enough story? Do people understand the work that the J is doing? And a lot of people don’t. And so how are we telling that story? We’re trying to kind of rethink our case for support when we’re approaching donors and foundations. But then, in addition to that, we’re recognizing that you know this, no matter how compelling we might be, this is just a difficult time to raise fundraising dollars. And so what are our other opportunities to bring in revenue for the center so that we can be sure that we are around, you know, 510, years from now. So it’s, it’s a two prong approach, really looking at the development work we’re doing and making sure that we are telling our story correctly, but then also analyzing all of the programs that we do offer, and seeing if there is room to grow those programs so that it’s, you know, it can help us continue.
Carrie
So does that mean growing memberships or growing like, I don’t know if there are, if there are certain programs that are paid, or is that what you’re mostly looking at?
Brooke Bowles
sure, it’s memberships, but it’s also, you know, we just partnered with a large organization in town to provide health and wellness programming for their employees. So that’s a new partnership that is certainly in line with our mission, and that we, you know, had not budgeted for this partnership, for this revenue. And so look thinking outside the box, and how we can take what we do, well at the J and turn it into opportunities for increased funding.
Carrie
Yeah, well, we talked a little bit about the before the podcast, about one of your biggest fundraising like, I think, events of the year. Yes, the J-La is coming up. Yes. So I, I know, like a lot of us at infomedia, go to the J-la, it’s always so I actually haven’t been, but the stories are kind of legendary, like they’re just everybody has a they have a lot of fun. I think that you guys do a good job of making people have so much fun that they’re happy to give money. So that’s good, but kind of tell us what is the J-la, how can people get involved? Is this a good way for people to get involved? If they’ve learned anything on the podcast about what you do and want to support
Brooke Bowles
sure this is a great way to get involved. So it’s August the 21st and it is the event that we hold each year that supports all of our scholarship and discounted programs. So you know, we’ve given away $125,000 just so far this year in the scholarship and discounted program. So this event is the fundraiser that helps us generate about $250,000 to support the work we do for folks who couldn’t access our programs otherwise. But it’s a silent and live auction. There’s a huge program part of the evening where you can really learn about the J and hear firsthand from people who’ve benefited from our programs. That’s really, really neat. And it’s, I think, just a lot of fun. There’s a kosher meal, so a four course kosher meal, if you haven’t experienced kosher dining, it’s delicious, and there’s an open bar, so we have a really good time.
Carrie
Yeah, and you don’t, I think you said this, but you don’t have to be a member of the J to go the J-la.
Brooke Bowles
Oh, no.
Carrie
Have a nice evening out. And also see what it’s all about.
Brooke Bowles
Yes. And if you know, if the J-La is not your thing, come visit anytime. We Our doors are always open and secure, but they’re always open. And we would love to welcome anybody who would like to learn more about the organization. Give you a tour. Hang out with you. Give you a day pass. Yeah, we really want people to experience the center.
Carrie
So is that kind of the experience? If you’re saying, like, if I’m like, Hey, I might be interested, but I don’t know. Is it? Do you just walk up to the front desk? You go to the website? Do you call or is it any of those things
Brooke Bowles
you can do any of the above. I believe on our website there’s an opportunity to sign up for a tour, but you don’t have to do that. You can just come in and tell the front desk that you are there for a tour. I mean, you’re welcome to come in and ask for Brooke. I would come shake your hand in the lobby, we’d really just welcome people to come check us out.
Carrie
Okay, so you kind of you get a tour, and then you can get a day pass. Is that
Brooke Bowles
Sure? sure. Yeah, absolutely.
Carrie
And just see how that, how it works out?
Brooke Bowles
yeah.
Carrie
And then one thing I keep hearing about, the j and this is out of order, really, but is the trails around the back, right? I feel like that is kind of unique, like, maybe it’s just my ignorance about community centers, but maybe talk a little bit about that, because I think you have a lot of outdoor opportunities that not every community space or gym has.
Brooke Bowles
sure. So we have five miles of hiking trails behind our facility, and it’s just beautiful. We have, there’s a lot of Boy Scouts that do their Eagle project on our hiking trails. And so it’s, it’s wonderful. You know, people use the hiking trails. We do not police the hiking trails. You can access them from our parking lot. Y’all come visit our hiking trails. We don’t mind if you have a great time, maybe consider joining the J. But yes, we have five miles
Carrie
If you’re using the trails Come to the j-la and donate to assuage your guild.
Brooke Bowles
There you go. I love that, but we also have tennis courts and pickleball courts and soccer, outdoor track and indoor track. I truly think there’s something for everyone.
Carrie
Yeah, well, thank you so much for coming on. I know I happen to know, because we built your website. There’s a lot of information on the website,
Brooke Bowles
yes,
Carrie
so I’ve been it’s, I felt like I knew a. About the J, but I think you’ve like, even like, there’s so much to kind of learn and explore which is really, really cool and interesting. So
Brooke Bowles
great.
Carrie
Thank you so much.
Brooke Bowles
Thank you.
Carrie
The localist podcast is written and produced by me Carrie Rollwagen. We record right here at infomedia studios. So if you are interested in doing a podcast or maybe recording some social media clips, or really anything with photo, video, digital marketing or your website, hit us up. Head to infomedia.com fill out that contact form. We would love to help. There’s a whole team that puts the localist podcast together. Our showrunner is Taylor Davis. Alana Harmond is our promotions manager, and our podcast engineer is Paul Bryant, so until next time, here’s to thinking global by Acting local and putting small shops before big box.