Temple Chai welcomes new executive director

Deborah Mattes is the new executive director at Temple Chai, a Reform Jewish congregation in Long Grove.

Mattes believes that Reform temples must be committed to the concepts of “welcome and inclusiveness.”

A temple today cannot be a “top down” institution, she said. Rather, clergy, staff and lay leaders must take the initiative to learn what congregants and prospective members need from a temple and then respond by creative programs that meet those needs.

Mattes was excited to join the staff at Temple Chai because she saw that the “idea of inclusiveness was already being practiced.” The temple was offering programs to appeal to the varied interests of congregants and was experimenting with new programming ideas. There was weekly informal Torah study.

There were medication sessions and seminars for families and individuals aimed at enhancing emotional, physical and spiritual health. Now, she said, the clergy including Senior Rabbi Stephen Hart, Associate Rabbi Barry Cohen, and Cantor Scott Simon are going further.

They are creating a new vision by focusing on one to one relationships with congregants to better discover what they want in programming and from the religious and Hebrew schools. Mattes said that new members are going to be invited in small groups to meet informally at the homes of the clergy to discuss how the temple can meet their needs.

In addition, she said, the results of a spring membership survey is being carefully reviewed by the temple’s clergy and staff.

Mattes believes a challenge facing Temple Chai is finding a way to retain congregants as members after their children are B’nei mitzvah. To meet this challenge, she said, the temple must be more than a place to pray and celebrate Jewish holidays. A temple must foster a “feeling of community.” Temple Chai’s goal is to make the temple a “vibrant, innovative, and integral part of each member’s life,” she said. To achieve this goal programs are continually being designed to allow members to interact with each other in a relaxed social environment.

Mattes grew up in Buffalo Grove. Her parents were members of Beth Shalom. She graduated from Stevenson High School and the University of Illinois. She and her husband, Patrick, have two daughters, Elizabeth and Gabrielle, and a golden retriever, Maggie. Mattes has extensive experience in marketing and management. She was the general manager of Westfield Malls, one of the largest mall developers in the United States, for 11 years. She has left the corporate world for Temple Chai because she wanted to combine her management skills with Judaism.

Mattes is responsible for the business part of the temple. She supervises the temple’s staff and oversees building maintenance. In addition, for Mattes, an important part of her job is “to advise members and prospective members who have questions concerning the temple.”

“My door is open and I want congregants to tell me how the temple can become more important in their lives,” she said. “I’m a good listener, and I try to help. I want to do my part to help members to feel welcome and to know that Temple Chai cares about them.”

Mattes said that Temple Chai’s theme for its clergy, staff, and congregants in 2013-14 is the Hineini initiative or “I am here to make a difference.” As part of this program, members are being urged to donate school supplies which will be distributed to District 21 schools.

For information about Temple Chai, call (847) 537-1771. Temple Chai is at 1670 W. Checker Road, Long Grove.

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