AEPi instills values in its members, keeping them focused on helping their communities and others. This is a formidable task.
I’m standing in this hotel ballroom looking around at hundreds of attendees at this conference and can’t help but wonder: “How did I end up—at of all things—a fraternity meeting?” I’m also wondering, “Why are all of these people so young?”
Let me start by saying that this wasn’t an ordinary fraternity meeting. This was the 111th convention of Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi), the world’s largest Jewish fraternity. And, here I am, a somewhat (ahem) more mature female presence at this meeting.
Who am I kidding? I felt like I was at a meeting of 300 Jewish grandsons. Let me tell you how I got here.
As the director of development for the Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF), I was at the AIPAC Policy Conference in 2015, and I saw a group of young men at another table. I didn’t know them and since I’ve never been accused of being shy (that’s not a great trait in my business), I walked over and introduced myself. This began a relationship that has been one of mentorship, volunteerism, and, above all else, tikkun olam.
AEPi’s commitment to tikkun olam is not a secret in our Jewish philanthropic world. For many years, the brothers have raised awareness and money for Jewish and Israeli causes on their campuses and in their communities. As soon as I began talking about working together with AEPi, we knew that this would be a great opportunity to get more young people aware of and involved in ICRF.
The fact is that cancer personally touches one in three people. Since the undergraduate brothers selected ICRF to be one of the beneficiaries of the fraternity’s national philanthropy efforts a few years ago, I’ve heard so much more about those personal connections. When I come to this meeting in the summer, I almost always meet a young man who tells me a story from his family and thanks me for everything that ICRF is doing to fund research to prevent more cancer deaths.
I’ve been to several AEPi conventions before, but this year was different. After so many months of awful news in Israel, on college campuses and in city streets, I felt like there was a dark cloud hanging over the whole world. People are being so rude to each other. The lack of civility and decency in our world frankly has been wearing on me.
But surrounded by so many young AEPi men who came to Florida because they wanted to learn, advocate and better themselves and their Jewish communities, I felt joy. I felt like the dark cloud was replaced by sunshine for a few days. I felt hope.
Sandy Rosen is the director of development for Israel Cancer Research Fund and the grandmother of an AEPi brother.
