Editor's Note: Chabad-Lubavitch of Fairfield County in Stamford, Conn., co-directed by Rabbi Yisrael and Vivi Deren, honored the author with its annual Lamplighter Award. A former board member of investment firm Neuberger Berman and a past president of the United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, Ed Spilka was hailed by the rabbi as a “true profile in courage [and] a model of what leadership truly is.” This article is based on the author's acceptance speech.
We met the Derens about eight years ago when our son Nathaniel attended the Chabad Gan Yeladim preschool. It was the start of a wonderful friendship and journey.
Being a Jew Requires Constant Action
Editor’s Note: Chabad-Lubavitch of Fairfield County in Stamford, Conn., co-directed by Rabbi Yisrael and Vivi Deren, honored the author with its annual Lamplighter Award. A former board member of investment firm Neuberger Berman and a past president of the United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, Ed Spilka was hailed by the rabbi as a “true profile in courage [and] a model of what leadership truly is.” This article is based on the author’s acceptance speech.
We met the Derens about eight years ago when our son Nathaniel attended the Chabad Gan Yeladim preschool. It was the start of a wonderful friendship and journey.
I didn’t know much about Chabad-Lubavitch then, and what I did know was not without its dissonance. So I approached the relationship cautiously. But the reality is that we were disarmed pretty quickly.
Now, maybe I’m a soft touch, but my experience is hardly unique as it relates to the Derens specifically and, more broadly, to Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries around the world. I’ve heard it said over and over that they have a special way that touches people.
I think that special “something” was captured by a relatively insightful guy named Albert Einstein. He said: “There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
