Prospective Members
2025 - 2026
Dear Friends,
Welcome to Temple Judea. Thank you for your interest in our synagogue.
Temple Judea is:
The home of Conservative Judaism in Lee County. An egalitarian Conservative Synagogue proudly affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
A warm and supportive community; a “family of families”.
A home in which we pray, study, learn, socialize, and meet, celebrate, and mourn in a caring and supportive way.
Temple Judea is a gathering place for shabbat services, a place where the young and the old can learn and pray together.
There are Shabbat services on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings.
There is a kiddush luncheon, prepared in our Kosher kitchen by our members, served on Saturdays following services
There are Monday morning minyans
In addition to prayer services
We also provide for the educational needs of our community with a fully accredited preschool, an afternoon and Sunday morning religious school and adult education classes.
• We have an active Sisterhood (called Chaverot) and Hazak group for both men and women 55 years of age and older.
Please visit us at any time and be sure to introduce yourself to one of us when you do, so we may welcome you personally. If you prefer, call the Temple Judea office to make an appointment to meet with us or with another officer of the Board to learn more about our Temple Judea community.
Enclosed you will find the Temple Membership Packet. Please contact one of us if you have any questions or concerns. You will also find information on the methods of requesting extended payment if necessary. If you are unable to pay your full dues, abatements may be requested by contacting me, Jan, via phone or email.
We hope you will join our congregation.
B’Shalom (With Peace),
Jan Klein.
President
DUES STRUCTURE FOR 2024-2025
Annual Dues for our Fiscal Year of July 1st, 2025 through June 30th, 2026
Family Membership* (to include United Synagogue Dues) $2,100.00
Single Membership** (to include United Synagogue Dues) $1,050.00
Associate Family Membership*** $900.00
Associate Single Membership*** $450.00
A $500.00 charge allocated to the Building Fund is assessed to all new Family and Single members. This will be billed as $100.00 per year for five (5) years.
Annual Security Assessment is $200.00 per family unit.
*In accordance with Article IV, Section 2a of Temple Judea’s by-laws, Family Membership will be “any household with at least two adults, as long as one adult is eligible for membership under Section 1 above, may be considered for family membership. This designation shall include their children under the age of twenty-one, single, living in the same household or being full-time students away from home except that such children shall not be eligible to vote, petition, or hold office. Each adult eligible for membership, under Section 1 above, shall have one vote. In the event of the death of one adult in a family qualified for membership under Section 1 above, the surviving spouse, if not Jewish, may continue his or her affiliation with Temple Judea as long as he or she fulfills the obligation of individual membership. He or she would enjoy all benefits of membership except the right to vote, petition, or hold office.”
**In accordance with Article IV, Section 2b of of Temple Judea’s by-laws, Individual Membership will be “Individuals, and those in a domestic partnership with an individual who is not eligible for membership under Section 1, may be considered for individual membership. This member shall have one vote. This membership shall include their children under the age of twenty-one, single, living in the same household or being full-time students, away from home except that such children shall not be eligible to vote, petition or hold office.”
***In accordance with Article IV, Section 2c of of Temple Judea’s by-laws, Associate Membership will be “Any individual or domestic partnership eligible for membership under Section l above, who resides here less than six months, may be considered for associate membership. This member shall not be eligible to hold office (unless he or she is the representative of Hazak, Chaverot or another synagogue group), vote, or petition. Other additional benefits may be available at the discretion of the Board of Directors.” Associate members shall not be eligible to vote, petition, hold office or receive High Holiday tickets unless eligible for them through another USCJ Synagogue.
PILLARS PROGRAM
We are delighted you are interested in joining. We want to share with you a special program we are instituting this year. The challenge for any synagogue, and hardest for small synagogues like Temple Judea, is that membership dues rarely cover all expenses, yet even small raises in membership dues may cause hardship. Our values say that everyone should be able to pray with us no matter their personal finances, to address this we do offer abatements. But we have found that we cannot cover the added expenses of decreased dues without asking those who can give more, to give more. We are introducing the Pillars program to meet this need. The Pillar donation levels include the standard dues plus an additional amount above dues that the congregation can depend upon from you. They begin with your commitment at membership renewal to donate at a particular giving level outlined below.
Honor - $2,800 - $3,599
Righteous - $3,600 – $5,399
Commitment- $5,400 - $9,999
Sustenance - $10,000 – 19,999
Courage - $20,000+
The Board of Directors at Temple Judea ask you to please consider adding to your dues’ donation, if possible, so that we can move forward together strongly and with confidence in our community.
Instructions on how to commit to the Pillars Program: You will find a new Dues Commitment form in your 2025-2026 membership application form below. The Dues Commitment form continues to include the type of membership and payment plan you prefer. It adds the option to commit additional resources to help stabilize our synagogue, as a Pillar. The Pillars levels are listed as ranges. Please select the range you want to join. At the bottom, there is space to add your specific donation. Donations must be received by March 31, 2026. We will recognize our Pillar donors throughout the year.
Temple Judea’s fiscal year begins July 1, 2025. Please indicate below how you will fulfil your dues’ obligations to Temple Judea for 2025-2026.
Temple Judea’s fiscal year begins July 1, 2025. Please indicate below how you will fulfil your dues’ obligations to Temple Judea for 2025-2026.