Hello. I'm Arnold Hanna-Fein and I'm filling in for our Editor-in-Chief who is temporarily laid up in hospital with an e-coli blood infection. I want to thank everyone who has contacted us with your best wishes for a speedy recovery. Both Michael and I are deeply touched by your concern.

Although I never can think of an opportune time for illness, Michael was particularly hard hit by this episode. He was busy putting together this edition of the Gantseh Megillah when his temperature suddenly spiked to 104°. He was very concerned, as I drove him to the hospital, about how his illness would interfere with the publication dates for both this, and Being Jewish, magazine.

After he was stabilized with intravenous antibiotics, I was able to concentrate on where things stood for this month's publication dates. I was delighted to find that Michael had already assembled all the material for the Gantseh Megillah, so it was relatively easy to put out this publication.

Being Jewish magazine, on the other hand, is not in quite as healthy a condition. With Rosh Hashanah right around the corner, we need to put a full court press on building our subscriber base, and quite frankly, we could use your help. Here is the situation:

Over the past year, we have lost one third of our clientele. Sadly, some of our former subscribers were organizations who had put their trust in Bernie Madoff, and were forced to make brutal cutbacks in their expenses.

Another factor which cut deeply into our client base is the “aging-out” of congregations, and community groups. Subscribers who used to get hundreds of copies now only require a few dozen.

Our community is in flux, so we are looking for new places where Jews come together. This is where we need your help. Often our subscribers rely on a single member to purchase Being Jewish magazine, and donate it to the group.

Being Jewish magazine is published three times a year at Rosh Hashanah, Chanukah and Passover, and we are offering a 10 copy special for $69 a year. What we are asking you to do is keep one for yourself, and distribute the other nine copies to friends and neighbors at your gym, coffee shop, health spa, deli, book club or other place where you get together with fellow Jews.

We have a quality product you will enjoy, and we also know that if you get it in the hands of other members of the tribe, they will enjoy reading it to. Naturally, we will follow up with organizations you made copies available to, and ask them if they would be willing to subscribe in their own right.

It's an old cliché in the publishing business, when someone asks:

"When is it a good time to launch my new magazine?" Because the standard answer is always:

"Not now!"

Being Jewish magazine has been around since the last century, and it is imperative for us to build its subscriber base, or else it will not survive. Michael and I want to preserve this special gem, so we are relying on the generous nature of our readers. We are asking you to help build our community, and this cultural publication. In a sense, your gift of nine copies, three times a year, is a way to reach out to our community or, as we say: A mitzvah.

Two quick codicils; for postal reasons this offer is limited to the U.S., and we do not expect anyone to help out if they really can't afford to.

For those of you who want to help out, please fill out, and submit the form below.

Again, on behalf of Michael, I would like to thank in advance our many loyal readers.

As for myself, I am looking forward to Michael's speedy recovery, and hasty return to my side. I hope you are all having a pleasant summer, and I am looking forward to a healthy new year for all of us.

I extend to you my warm embrace,
Arnold Hanna-Fein

You may get some prompts asking permission to send the above form over the Internet. It is perfectly safe, but if you prefer you can send us your information directly by email to Being Jewish.