Volunteer of the Month: Cantor Meredith Stone
Why do you volunteer for the ACC? How do you make time for it in your busy schedule?
I started an informal group of “midlife” women colleagues last year with Dana Anesi because we both felt the need for it. In school we learn all about our craft, but of course nothing about what our jobs and lives will look like twenty five years later. (And how they are different!) We are within the first wave of women in the cantorate, lacking role models, baby boomers who are trying to re-write our own scripts. Though everyone is very busy, the camaraderie we share is well worth the time it takes to organize our gatherings, which, by the way, are always open to colleagues who would like to attend. For those who live too far away, we would be happy to share ideas on starting groups of your own.
What projects are you currently involved in with the ACC? What past involvements have given you exceptional memories?
Although our women’s group is not an official ACC activity, we are all ACC members who have found this unique forum in which we can share our experiences, our concerns and our issues with others who truly understand the nature of our jobs and lives. Midlife – which I think women experience so differently than men - can be a powerful time for renewal. Some of the things we discuss include issues dealing with empowerment, our roles, finances, and the demands on us as women of the “sandwich” generation. We are grappling, each in our own way, with aspects of the very diverse paths we find ourselves on.
As time goes by, I increasingly value my connections with other cantors. That’s one of the many reasons I love attending the ACC convention every year. I have many wonderful memories of meeting new colleagues, and strengthening my relationships with those I’ve known for a long time. We cantors are a very special community! We share so much history together and will likely walk parallel paths for years to come. It is really great when those paths intersect, when we have colleagues to turn to, and when we can support each other along the way.
How do you try to inspire young people?
I try to let them know that it really matters to me, personally, that they learn Jewish skills. For most of these kids it’s now or never when it comes to learning the alef bet, the Maoz Tsur, the Kiddush. As I watch adults struggle with basic Hebrew I realize all the more the responsibility we bear to inculcate children when their brains are facile and absorbent! I want kids to feel competent: they can hear when the junior choir sounds really good, and they can take pride when they know they have read their Torah parsha phonetically, or they can chant without the recording because they’ve learned the trope.
What do you like to do completely unrelated to your cantorate?
In my version of “midlife renewal” these past couple of years, I have taken up (in all my free time!) figure drawing at the 92nd Street Y, tennis in Central Park, and jewelry making. I also love to read and go to yoga classes. At the end of the day, my favorite part is collapsing on the bed with my daughters Mirit and Lila and reading a good novel together.