In today’s day and age a four-digit figure is not very impressive. However the four digit goal just announced by Jewish Educational Media is indeed ambitious.
JEM has rolled out a new campaign to save 1,000 interviews on videotape – attempting to capture firsthand, previously undocumented accounts of the Rebbe’s life and his impact on lives and communities.
The My Encounter with the Rebbe oral history project has already collected over 350 interviews ranging between one and seven hours in length. While each interview tells a different personal story, together, they comprise a testament to the Rebbe’s impassioned leadership and unending inspiration, and will serve as a tool to teach ours and future generations.
Selected excerpts from these interviews have been released in the popular weekly video magazine, Living Torah. Watched weekly across the globe by over 200,000 viewers, the My Encounter segment is one of the series’ most anticipated.
The interviews also constitute the basis the documentary series on the Rebbe?s early life, The Early Years Series, as well as other films such as The Rebbetzin, and Sensitivity Most recently, the monumental series, Faithful and Fortified was launched. All of these releases prove that these testimonies – when joined together in a theme, create a clearer window in understanding the scope, depth and broad vision of the Rebbe’s interaction with our generation.
Recognizing the extreme importance of these interviews, JEM spared no effort in time and expertise – as well as a fortune of money, to capture more and more precious interviews.
However, time is passing, and they are reminded time and again of testimonies lost (most recently, Lady Amelie Jacobowitz at the last minute canceled a scheduled interview, and passed away 3 days later). JEM has turned up the heat and is ready to go all out.
The goal of a thousand testimonies is ambitious by attainable. Not a day goes by without superb new leads for interviews pouring into the My Encounter office. While the 350 encounters to-date are a superb accomplishment, JEM feels a tremendous responsibility to make sure that more of these vital interviews do not slip through their fingers.
Ultimately, JEM can’t do it without your help. Every interview that JEM conducts is funded by viewers. JEM has launched a drive – aiming from now until Gimmel Tammuz, asking for help to meet their goal of saving 1,000 encounters before it’s too late.
A generous donor is promising matching funds for every dollar raised during this campaign. Every dollar you give is worth two and can help JEM meet their most impressive four digit goal.
Get Involved. Visit 1000Encounters.com
they already have it! on living torah disc menu on the bottom left hand corner click on mehudora beis that automaticly takes off woman etc.
On the main page on the bottom there is an option called “Mahadura Basra” for just such people.
You need to manually change the language to English.
I was recently watching the weekly JEM video and when it came to “my encounter” a number of chsidesher yiden got up and left, they don’t like watching females on this program.
I think its very important to interview these people buy maybe JEM should make another version for the chasidisher chevra.
It’s all on the site, check it out..
To JEM – alu v’hatzlichu, in your mission to tell the world, “Yesh Rebbe” !
How can i sponsor an interview? I would like my grandfather to be interviewed…
its truly amazing that while each of us is busy with our own lives, these people are actually doing the things we all care about and cherish. when i make my first million i will give JEM half. (for now i will send my little something)
This cause will keep Yiddishkeit and Chassidishkeit and Hiskashrus to the Rebbe untill Moshiach comes.
Everyone should contibute in some way to this extraordinary effort.
Kudos to the Entire JEM team, Rabbis Shmotkin and Yechiel Cagen and the entire staff.
A. Friend.