North American Federation of Temple Youth
The NFTY logo. This basic form has been in use for decades.
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| Abbreviation | NFTY |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1939 |
| Type | Youth Organization |
| Purpose | Religious |
| Headquarters | New York, NY |
| Location |
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Region served
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North America |
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Membership
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8,500 |
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Parent organization
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Union for Reform Judaism |
| Affiliations | Netzer Olami (snif) |
| Website | http://www.nfty.org/ |
The North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) is the organized youth movement of Reform Judaism in North America. Funded and supported by the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), NFTY exists to supplement and support Reform youth groups at the synagogue level. About 750 local youth groups affiliate themselves with the organization, comprising over 8,500 youth members.
NFTY is the North American branch of Netzer Olami, the worldwide Progressive Zionist Youth movement. This relationship was formalized at the biennial NFTY Convention in Los Angeles, California in February 2005.
Founded on January 15, 1939 by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now called the Union for Reform Judaism), the then-titled National Federation of Temple Youth was a program to encourage college students to engage in synagogue life. NFTY was originally focused in three regions - New York City, Chicago, and Pennsylvania; it soon expanded to all areas of the UAHC. The first national officers were: Richard Bluestein, president; Bernard Sang, first vice president; Lewis Held, second vice president; Daniel Miller, third vice president; Lenore Cohn, secretary. The executive committee of NFTY met in June 1939 in New York and discussed college activities, publications and social justice while also confirming cooperation with the UAHC as an affiliate and to cooperate with the National Conference for Community and Justice in interfaith work.
Rabbi Sam Cook organized one of the first regional Labor Day Conclaves of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) Pennsylvania State Federation, held at Pinemere Camp in 1939. The next convention was February 1940 in Chicago with former President Hoover as a Speaker. National conventions continued every two years until 1948 and the organization began to focus on High School aged students.
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