I grew up in a mostly Jewish suburb of New York. During my youth, I didn’t spend much time thinking about the health of the Jewish community. Jewishness was so pervasive and our neighbors so successful that community survival wasn’t at the top of my mind.
I’ve spent my career in television and have done well, winning awards for writing and producing, and being active in national organizations advocating for public broadcasting. I am proud of that work for a cause I believe in.
After years at stations in New York, my wife Mel and I moved to Champaign, Ill., in 1990. Our daughter Kyra was the only Jewish kid in her first grade class. The town had only one synagogue. I worked for the University of Illinois, and I saw at the school’s Quad Day dozens of Christian student organizations represented — but only one table with a Jewish theme, the U of I Hillel’s.
For the first time, I felt like a member of a minority group. My concern for the survival of the Jewish community grew. So I became involved in the small but vibrant Jewish community there, and found that to be rewarding.
We moved to Milwaukee in 2000, and while the Jewish community is larger, there are still small town echoes. My daughter was the only Jewish kid in her high school class. There were occasional anti-Semitic acts and movements to boycott Israel. Many Jews relied on critical social services. All this suggested to me the fragility of our situation as Jews.
That’s why I became involved in this community. And I support it not only with my time but also my dollars.
Ellis Bromberg is general manager of Milwaukee Public Television and the current president of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation. He has also served on the boards of Congregation Sinai and Hillel Milwaukee.
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