Rabbi formerly served Temple Beth Israel on Longboat Key
Working as a fellow with The Salvation Army of Sarasota, Rabbi Jonathan R. Katz will focus on the agency’s “innovative homeless behavioral choice model program, Quality of Life (QLife),” The Salvation Army has announced.
In July, Katz completed an eight-year tenure at Temple Beth Israel on Longboat Key, a news release points out. When he previously served on The Salvation Army-Sarasota’s advisory board, he co-chaired its QLife Committee, the release adds. In that capacity, he facilitated the recent series of Salvation Army-sponsored Homelessness in Niceville simulations, the release continues. That is a hands-on community exercise, developed by the Harvard Law School, which calls for participants to play the roles of legislators, philanthropists, academics and citizens “seeking to find common ground on actions to address homelessness,” the release explains. His fellowship will involve evaluating the QLife program, making recommendations for its refinement and discerning QLife’s “potential for scalability to other communities,” the release says.
Katz worked closely with a homeless shelter in Fort Wayne, Ind., prior to coming to Florida, the release notes. “He has long taken an active interest in community development and social justice issues,” the release adds.
“Homelessness is one of the most challenging problems we face today,” said Katz in the release. “The large number of homeless in communities across the nation is a test of our will to authentically assist those who find themselves on the margins of society. How we respond is a reflection of our social virtue and integrity.”