Daryl Messinger has a thing for hats, at least the metaphorical kind. The Palo Alto resident has worn many throughout her years in the Jewish community.
But now comes the biggest: The Union for Reform Judaism has named Messinger its next board chair.
She is slated to assume the post at the URJ Biennial in November — at which point she will become the first woman and the first Northern Californian to serve in what the organization describes as “the top lay leadership position in the Reform movement.”
The URJ, which made the announcement last week, is the congregational arm of the Reform movement in North America, representing some 900 synagogues and more than 1.5 million Reform Jews.
Messinger, 56, is slated to succeed Stephen Sacks, the board chair since December 2011. The URJ’s top dog is Rabbi Rick Jacobs, who became the organization’s president in 2012 and often serves as the voice of the movement.
Though the full URJ board of trustees meets only twice a year, Messinger will be busy. She will preside at oversight committee meetings, make appointments to various committees and task forces and maintain strong connections with other Reform institutions.
A URJ board member for 15 years, Messinger’s overriding task as chair, she told J., will be to shepherd the URJ’s “2020 Vision,” a strategic plan intended to strengthen congregations and make them more welcoming, and to increase the Reform movement’s commitment to social justice.
“First and foremost is the strengthening of congregations,” Messinger said. “We need to help them be the best they can be. They might want to innovate with various programs we offer.”
The URJ is part of a constellation of national Reform organizations, such as the Central Conference of American Rabbis (the rabbinic arm), Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion (the seminary), the Religious Action Center (a social justice hub) and a network of summer camps (including Camp Newman in Santa Rosa).
All must work together if Judaism’s largest denomination in North America is to thrive, Messinger said.
“[The URJ] doesn’t stand by itself,” she said. “It’s the congregational arm, but it really is about the Reform movement in North America. We have the responsibility to ensure that all of our efforts are coordinated, focused on strengthening congregations and welcoming [those] who want to be involved in Jewish life, making sure we find a place for them.”
Messinger previously chaired the URJ’s Reform Pension Board, and also served as URJ vice chair and assistant treasurer.
At her home synagogue, Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills, she has served many roles, including president from 1995 to 1997. At age 36, she was the youngest person to ever fill that role at Beth Am.
Her connection to the Reform movement goes back to her childhood in New York, where she grew up in Scarsdale and Rochester.
“It started when I went to Eisner Camp, the URJ camp in Massachusetts,” she said. “My life was changed that summer, as it is for so many kids that go to [Jewish] camp.”
She and her husband, Jim Heeger, settled in Palo Alto to launch careers and bring up their sons, both now grown. Her professional life was spent in the fields of communications and investment management, but Messinger has devoted much of her spare time to Jewish communal work.
She currently chairs the URJ Camp Newman advisory board, and sits on the endowment committee of the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund. She was president of the Oshman Family JCC in Palo Alto from 2011 to 2013. And at Beth Am, she has been treasurer and chaired the capital campaign, in addition to being president.
“All those jobs gave me an insider’s view into the possibilities that congregations and congregational leaders encounter,” she said.
“The Reform movement is blessed to have the benefit of Daryl’s insight, intelligence and passion,” said Zack Bodner, CEO of the Palo Alto JCC. “She understands complex organizational and fiscal issues, she has deep institutional knowledge of the OFJCC and she brings so much passion to the cause. She’ll be amazing at the URJ, as she has been here.”
Messinger will have a full plate this fall. In addition to her installation as URJ chair in November, she’ll be a delegate at the 37th World Zionist Congress in Israel in October.
For her, it’s all part of building a movement.
“There are many more people outside our congregations than inside,” she noted. “We need to make sure they are welcomed and brought inside. They need to find a home in Reform Judaism.”