
Outstanding Jewish Communal Professional Award
This award recognizes mid-level professionals with exceptional promise and commitment to a career in Jewish communal service with at least five years of experience. The recipient, a Jewish communal professional employed in the field of Jewish communal service at least 20 hours per week at the time of nomination and whose organization serves the greater Baltimore community, will be awarded a $1,500 grant to subsidize his/her participation in a professional development opportunity.
Click here to view previous winners of the Outstanding Jewish Communal Professional Award.
Anne Shimanovich
CHAI
Annie joined CHAI in 2016, and has grown as a trusted team member. She is thoughtful and brings a unique perspective to our community-facing work, including serving on the agency’s Diversity, Equity, Racial Justice and Inclusion Committee, her work with One Park Heights and her outreach to other Villages across the state and nation. Annie is also building a partnership with the Jewish Library and is working with the Last Chance Collection Initiative.
Annie routinely works closely with others in our agency who serve older adults. She was instrumental in bringing together a group of colleagues to discuss pressing issues facing older community members. The group included representatives from intake, data, programming, and counseling staff. She has also made numerous successful attempts at integrating her work with CHAI’s Community Development team.
Annie provides oversight and support to Northwest Neighbors Connecting (NNC). This includes organizing classes, planning events and educational opportunities, and developing grant reports for her program. She also supports the board of directors and executive committee in a unique way that allows them to successfully lead the Village as they see fit.
Annie was part of Leading Age Maryland’s Emerging Leaders cohort a few years ago and has since looked for more public speaking opportunities. She has presented about her programs to several of CHAI’s Committees, participated in community events and expanded her connections to other villages across the state and nation. Annie is also part of a collaborative Village effort to meet with the newly appointed Secretary of Aging in a few weeks! NNC members have expressed their desire to do some advocacy work and Annie has helped to make that happen.
Annie continually looks for opportunities to grow and develop her leadership skills. She is also active in pursing continued Jewish education. Annie frequently participates in Na’aleh courses and workshop offerings and consistently looks for other areas of growth within The Associated network.
Past Award Winners
Hannah Shapiro
Jewish Family Services, 2005
Allison Baumwald
THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, 2006
Alison Wielechowski
Goucher Hillel, 2007
Leah Berry
THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, 2008
Mary Drey Haar
THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, 2009
D.J. Schneider-Jensen
Macks Center for Jewish Education, 2010
Ashley Pressman
Jewish Volunteer Connection, 2011
Renée Dain
THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, 2012
Paul Lurie
Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore, 2013
Gila Haor
Shemesh, 2014
Erica Bloom
Jewish Volunteer Connection, 2015
Chana Siff
The ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, 2016
Meghann Schwartz
Jewish Federation of Howard County, 2017
Lauren Shaivitz
CHANA, 2018
Sarah Mersky
Baltimore Jewish Council, 2019
Abigail Malischostak
Jewish Volunteer Connection, 2021
Reut Friedman
Friends of Israel Defense Forces (FIDF), 2022
Anne Shimanovich
CHAI, 2023