#ReCatalyze Zeek -- aka Shameless Self-Promotion and Emphatic Gratitude (aka Co-Dependent Survival Necessities)

December 17, 2013

As Zeek’s editor in chief and executive director, I wanted to share my gratitude to all the early adopters who’ve helped our #ReCatalyze Zeek campaign take off on Indiegogo. Each time a crowd-funded donation comes in, I feel encouraged and energized by this showing of support for what we’re trying to do with Zeek and our vision for a strong, sustainable magazine in 2014!

We’re a little more than a week in, and almost 40% of the way to our goal, with two weeks to go. Wow!

We say a heartfelt thank you to our first 46 #ReCatalyze funders!

Anonymous (all of you, so modest!), Rabbi Rachel Barenblat, Debra Nussbaum Cohen, Steven M. Cohen, Cheryl Cook, Devin Harner, Robyn Fisher, Dan Friedman, JJ Goldberg, Nancy Goldstein, David Gottleib, Amy Green, Richard Haw, Maarten van der Heijden, Arlene Hyman, Michael Dax Iacovone, Jo Ellen Green Kaiser, Eliezer Kaplan, Matt Kaplan, Karen Kaplowitz, David Kelsey, Klezmer Shack, Sophi Kravitz, Laura Levitt, Julie Lemberger Gerald Markowitz, Jesse Meyer, Sammie Moshenberg, Paul Narkunas Alexa Capeloto Narkunas, Penny Newman Pensak, Hattie Proteau, Rachel PS, Rabbi-Mike Rothbaum, Rochelle Rothbaum, Sarah Seltzer, Howard Senzel, W Mae Singerman, Phyllis Snyder, Lisbeth Stelzig, Daniel Treiman, and Merrill Zack.

The next two weeks are crucial. And to everyone who’s spreading the word, this is your campaign, and you’re amazing.

More Absolutely Essential Thank-Yous

Since we relaunched earlier this year, a slew of smart, thoughtful writers have contributed content to Zeek – actually, they’ve donated it, generously. They’re Zeek’s lifeblood and heart, and we thank them here. Our writers are the ones who catalyze conversations and inspire action:

Rabbi Morris Allen, Asaf Bar-Tura, Rabbi Rachel Barenblat, Jennifer Bernstein, Jennifer Bleyer, Erica Brody, Rabbi Aryeh Cohen, Jessica Kim Cohen, Shulem Deen, Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster, Marjorie Dove Kent, Chanel Dubofsky, Danielle Durchslag, Zelig Golden, Emily Pearl Goodstein, Katie Halper, Sam Jewler, Jenna Weissman Joselit, Jessie Kahnweiler, Anya Kamenetz, Rabbi Debra Kolodny, Esther Kustanowitz, Abby J. Leibman, Abby Levine, Jake Marmer, Mik Moore, Sammie Moshenberg, Alexander Nemser, Jaqueline Nicholls, Jody Oberfelder, Shuli Passow, Margaret Port, Suzanne Reisman, Vic Rosenthal, Rabbi Michael Rothbaum, Sarah Marian Seltzer, Sarai Shapiro, Rabbi Suzanne Singer, Mae Singerman, Rabbi Eric Solomon, Leah Vincent, Barbara Weinstein, David Weisberg, Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz.

Raising Visibility

Zeek is a catalyst for conversations about the Jewish tomorrow. I’m proud to report that Zeek’s Women’s Visibility Project has surpassed our goal since relaunching earlier this year! Zeek is committed to ensuring that at least 50% of our content, subjects, writers and sources are women, raising the public profiles of progressive Jewish women. It might sound like a no-brainer, but it’s rarer than rare. What’s next? Ensuring our coverage is more diverse and inclusive. And that our writers are paid.

Just So You Know (More Promotional Stuff)

If We Raise 10K, We’ll Get 10K.That’s right! Zeek has a generous donor who’ll match 10K if we raise it by the end of the year. We were a quarter of the way there when we launched our Indiegogo campaign, and we’re gaining momentum every day.

What’s Next?

We’ve hatched a plan for 2014. Read all about it – and about how your support will help..

*And special thanks to the Jewish Women’s Foundation of New York for its generous support of our push to pay writers, and to the Forward, for support and hosting our site.

Zeek isn’t like any other Jewish magazine.

For many, Zeek serves as an affiliation for the unaffiliated.

For others, we’re a supportive, reflective space for an inclusive, diverse Jewish community to find common ground. Explore uncommon ideas. Find new ways to connect to Judaism and sustain each other. Grapple with moving through the world in a way that’s authentic and Jewish. And fun.

We refuse to see Jewish identity or Judaism as stagnant or immutable. In one space, we bring together articles no one else is running. We personalize Jewish social justice, arts, spirituality, and innovation, from true tales from the frontlines of social change, to living with mental illness and depression to leaving the ultra-Orthodox community, why climate change is bad for the Jews to what it means to pray with our legs – and lips.

Zeek – the oldest online Jewish magazine – has won awards, and catalyzed game-changing conversations. Now, we need your help. To advance our vision, we’re laying the groundwork for a strong, sustainable 2014. We’ll stay scrappy, fiercely independent, and fearless. And we’ll keep our content free. We need you.