Behind the Bimah: Communications, Marketing, and AV for the High Holy Days

By Deanna Levy, Director of Communications & Marketing

The High Holy Days are about showing up: showing up for one another, for our community, and for the year ahead. At Holy Blossom Temple, there is also a tremendous amount of work happening behind the scenes to make sure our congregation can show up, participate, connect, and feel at home; both in person and online.

For me, the High Holy Days begin long before the first shofar is sounded. Months of planning go into making sure our people have the information they need, when they need it, in ways that are clear, welcoming and, hopefully, a little beautiful.

And thus, the communications challenge that comes with the High Holy Days: there is so much to say. Services, study, family programming, security, registration, accessibility, emails, social media, the website, signage, tickets, and printed or digital materials, the list goes on and on…wait, what time are the goats coming? And behind every detail is a team of HBT staff, each playing a part in making it happen. My job is to help pull those many moving pieces together and make them feel less like a spreadsheet and more like an invitation.

It means thinking carefully about language, design, and tone. It means finding the balance between tradition and accessibility, between the sacred and the practical. It means making sure that someone who has been coming to Holy Blossom for 40 years and someone who is walking through our doors for the first time can both find their way.

And then there is the Audio-Visual work…

Meet the AV Team!

Behind every successful High Holy Days Service is a team making sure everything we hear and see works as it should. Our AV team is responsible for the tech that helps bring our services to life: from the audio throughout the building to the systems that make our livestream possible. And while technology is never perfect and often chooses chaos (thank you for your patience), our team is here to troubleshoot, adjust, and keep things moving so that the focus stays where it belongs: on the Service and the experience of being together.

Livestreaming has become an important part of how we gather as a community. It allows members who are travelling, unwell, caring for family, or simply unable to be here in person to join us in sacred worship. Making that experience feel connected and meaningful requires so much more than simply pressing “start broadcast.” It takes careful planning, technical expertise, troubleshooting, and a team that knows that the mic will absolutely decide to have a personality at the most important moment.

Meet the team who help make sure that whether you are here in person or tuning in from home, you can hear, see, and experience the magic of the High Holy Days.