Tribefest met its goal of drawing many federation first-timers to Las Vegas for a conference March 6 to 8, federation officials said.
“We’re not only satisfied, we’re thrilled,” said Joe Berkofsky, spokesman for the Jewish Federations of North America, which organized last week’s gathering at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino.
Nearly 1,300 Jews, mostly in their 20s to early 40s, showed up for three days of lectures, workshops and performances.
Officials said Tribefest 2011 was the first step in a new strategy for the national federation system. Instead of targeting Jews aged 25 to 45 who already donate to federation campaigns — a tactic tried by previous Young Leadership conferences — Tribefest offered an open invitation to any young Jew, affiliated or unaffiliated.
Results from 150 participants who took a post-conference survey showed that
30 percent of them were not already federation donors.
Forty-two percent said they had never participated in or helped organize a program at their local Jewish federation, and 45 percent said they had never served on a federation committee. Sixty-two percent said Tribefest was their first national federation conference.
However, 11 of 12 Tribefest attendees interviewed found that they already are active members and donors in their local federations.
“Connect, explore and celebrate” was the tagline for Tribefest 2011. Workshop topics ranged from new trends in Jewish art to the 2012 elections to the etiquette of offering a “L’chaim!” — jta