The future of FJMC

How do we engage the next generation?

By Jonathan D. Epstein

How do we get younger men to join?

Sound familiar? That’s because it’s a challenge that has bedeviled most North American synagogues and men’s clubs for years.

Look around. Men’s clubs, and synagogues in general, are facing a potential long-term existential crisis, as they see more gray or white hair in their membership. The current roster is aging, and they’re not being replaced fast enough with newer members on the other end of the age scale.

Enter FJMC. FJMC International recognized this problem years ago, and has begun efforts to change the dynamic by encouraging our clubs to rethink how they operate, how they program and how they recruit. Through an initiative led by New England Region’s Elliot Feldman as chair, with his Engaging Younger Men committee that has been meeting regularly for the past two years, FJMC has been studying the problem and working to spread the word about the importance and necessity of this effort for all clubs, while offering up or even recommending a few techniques and models to pursue.

“The very survival of the organization depends on our figuring this out, because I’m very concerned about the future of FJMC in 10 to 15 years. Some cynical people say five years,” Feldman said. “Our guys are aging out. They don’t know how to connect with these younger guys.”

Led by Jerry Brodsky from Cleveland, FJMC conducted a strategic planning effort two years ago that resulted in the Atid report in May 2024, and led to the organization’s rebranding, its membership expansion to include non-Conservative synagogues and individual members, and other changes. And engaging younger men is a fundamental component of that change.

“The organization’s past is replete with examples of positive programming and currently provides a wide array of amazing opportunities. The problem that can’t be ignored much longer is that the number of men whom these programs and opportunities resonate with are waning,” said the report. “All our research points to the truth that organizations like ours, if they continue to live in the past, are winding down and organizations that embrace and adapt to new ways of serving the new needs of people thrive.”

The challenge

But it’s not easy. It’s always been difficult to draw in younger guys who are busy with their jobs and starting their lives, especially those who are single or just married, before they have a family that prompts them to start thinking about Hebrew school and bar or bat mitzvahs. And the current young generation – with its strong use of technology to connect and communicate – brings extra challenges.

As a whole, studies have shown, they are less likely to join synagogues and other mainstream Jewish organizations, and indeed less likely in general to join traditional organizations. The very concept of membership is weakening. Even for those who still want their children to have a bar or bat mitzvah, there are other ways to do so independently without joining a shul. They have grown up with the Internet, social media and other new technology, and engage with each other accordingly, preferring group texts and WhatsApp chats to phone calls and even email. Spontaneity is gaining over pre-planning. And Facebook? That’s old school now.

Meanwhile, many clubs and club leaders are still following traditional models, with events and activities geared to their existing members – such as Sunday morning brunches with speakers, or programs held at the synagogue. But younger men aren’t necessarily interested in those, preferring to be with each other instead. And they view men’s clubs as something their parents or grandparents did – not them, not yet.

“These younger guys aren’t interested in a bagel breakfast,” Feldman said.

Yet they also need a group of friends perhaps even more than ever before, even if they don’t know it or recognize it. They live harried lives, between work, family and other obligations. If they have kids, they feel guilty about going off on their own and leaving their spouse with the youngsters. Because they have learned to function more on technology, they may be less likely to have as many friends or set aside as much time for themselves. So their social circle may be smaller. And isolation and loneliness are much more common.

The solution

That’s where men’s clubs come in, operating as essentially an adult fraternity that they can relate to – but only if we can appeal to them in the right way.

“Anything we can do to get them involved in FJMC, whatever the capacity, helps them and helps us,” Feldman said. “It gives them an avenue for socialization. It gives them an avenue for getting involved in activities that are bigger than them, part of the community. What we want to do is mutually beneficial.”

The key is to change what clubs do, and how they do it. Based on two years of discussion and analysis, Feldman’s committee has developed a set of guiding principles, first steps and suggested activities that clubs (and regions) can use, as well as other reference materials. Not every technique will work in every place, and some will have more success than others. But he believes it is imperative to at least try.

Moreover, he says, it’s not just about different events or programs, or broadening your membership – although both are important. It’s a wholesale change of mindset.

Perhaps foremost among the recommendations is that existing clubs and club leadership should not expect that the new generation will just join them in their activities and events. Rather, success may come from identifying and recruiting at least one but ideally two or three younger men with a network of friends, to start their own “group” that would operate separately but hopefully under the auspices of your club and with your club’s financial support.

This would allow younger men to coalesce around each other, to do what they want together, to develop friendships and long-term bonds, to enhance their Jewish identity, and ultimately to strengthen each other and the community around them. Eventually, they will become the nucleus of our future. And that’s what we want.

There are at least two success stories to share – one in the Boston area and one in Cleveland. If you have your own story, please share with us at HaD’Var, at .

Jonathan Epstein is editor of HaD’Var, and a member of the Engaging Younger Men Committee.