Rural judaism survey

To my dear fellow Jews of Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine,

Shalom! Thank you for what you do to provide a space for Judaism and community in rural New England.

My name is Donley Johnson, and I am a senior at the St. Johnsbury Academy in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. For my senior project, I am researching the identity of Jewish people of rural New England, and investigating how it differs from the American Jewish identity.

I have looked into the literature on Jewish studies, identity studies, and rural studies and used what I found to create this survey, which will provide me with the information I need to create a snapshot of our collective identity.

I hope you will share it with your congregations, your friends, and neighbors (and that some of you will take it yourselves). I also know that many Jewish people in our region are not affiliated with any of the organizations included in this email. Sharing this survey with them, or telling me what other Jewish organizations I can reach out to in the area, would allow me to create a more accurate picture of our identity, which is not solely one of congregational Jewish life.

A final note: this project specifically focuses on rural Judaism. Please communicate this if you share this survey-- there are some urban Jewish communities in the region who I hope will be willing to help spread this survey, but who may not be a part of the target population.

I greatly appreciate your support. This is an exciting undertaking for me, and one that I hope will provide an opportunity for connection in our isolated corners of New England. 

Todah rabah,

Donley Johnson

P.S. This image is a flyer containing a QR code linking to the survey. If you know of good places to hang it up, it would be appreciated!