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Make Room For What Matters: The Campaign For Campus East

Our Future Begins with Community

Community doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built through shared values, purposeful leadership, and a collective commitment to investing in one another. The future of the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades is something we build together.

Where Life Happens 

The faces change throughout the day, but the feeling does not.

Thousands of individual moments become something much larger: a community where generations connect, new friendships begin, and lifelong traditions continue. People don’t simply come to the Kaplen JCC—they build their lives here. For 75 years, the Kaplen JCC has been more than a community center. It is a place where Jewish joy is experienced every day—a place where children discover confidence, families grow stronger, friendships flourish, and people of every generation find connection, purpose, and belonging. 

Growing Demand, Growing Opportunity 

More people than ever want to be part of the Kaplen JCC community.

Today, approximately 12,000 members call the Kaplen JCC home, more than at any other time in our history. Membership has grown nearly 30% since the pandemic, reflecting a powerful desire for what the JCC offers: connection, belonging, and a place to grow together.

Families are looking for community. Older adults are seeking meaningful connection. Parents want a place where their children can thrive. In a world where genuine human connection can be harder to find, the Kaplen JCC has become more essential than ever. This extraordinary growth is something to celebrate. But it also presents a critical opportunity: our community is growing—and we must grow with it.

Building the Future Together: A Vision for the Next 75 Years 

After years of thoughtful planning, the Kaplen JCC Board and leadership have embraced a bold vision: the complete renovation and expansion of Campus East to meet the needs of a growing community.

This expansion is about more than bricks and mortar. It’s about creating welcoming, flexible spaces where more children can learn and grow, more families can bond, more older adults can find friendship and purpose, and more people of every ability can belong.

The expanded Campus East will become a vibrant, year-round destination, seamlessly connected to our main Leonard Rubin Building. At its heart, this campaign is an investment in people. Together, we will ensure the Kaplen JCC remains a home for connection, support and belonging for everyone who needs it today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.

Campus East Gallery:  

Multi-Purpose Spaces — reimagined and flexible, ready for year-round programs, classes, and lectures for every age group.
Multi-Purpose Space — a multi-functional, dynamic space including a teaching kitchen for camp cooking classes, year-round<br /> programming for the ECC, Adult Special Services and our seniors, sunrise yoga, as well as special events and celebrations.
Connecting Hallway — a new enclosed walkway through the Kurtz Family New Jersey Jewish Sports Hall of Fame will connect<br /> Campus East to the main building, providing year-round programming and access to the entire Kaplen JCC.
Sensory Room — a state-of-the-art space built for sensory-seeking needs with swings, climbing structures and other equipment for vestibular and proprioceptive input.
Apparatus Gym — built to inspire and spark athleticism, confidence, and friendly competition and the new home of our Ninja Course.
Multi-Purpose Space — a multi-functional, dynamic space including a teaching kitchen for camp cooking classes, year-round<br /> programming for the ECC, Adult Special Services and our seniors, sunrise yoga, as well as special events and celebrations.
Enclosed Pavilion / Makerspace — a year-round space with retractable garage doors and a creative Makerspace equipped with 3D printers, laser cutters, woodworking tools, sewing machines, crafts, and electronics, empowering people to bring ideas to life.
Art and Ceramics Studio — a new welcoming space for creativity, craftsmanship, and connection. Whether you’re a curious beginner or an experienced ceramicist, discover the tactile beauty of clay and the joy of making.
Gymnasium — a new half-court gym will expand access to year-round sports and recreation, giving members and leagues more space to play, practice, compete, and build community.
Amphitheater — a stage for camper performances and JCC events alike.

Please Join Us 

For 75 years, the Kaplen JCC has been more than a building. It has been a home—a place where children take their first steps, families gather, older adults find friendship and purpose, and every person, regardless of ability, knows they belong. Generations of community members have invested in the Kaplen JCC because they understood that strong communities do not happen by accident. They are built deliberately by people who believe in what is possible and have the vision, generosity, and courage to make it real.

Now, we are at a defining moment: the opportunity to create a vibrant, new campus to serve our community for generations to come. With a campus transformation of this scale, we will build the spaces and infrastructure to support our community in new and more meaningful ways—expanding year-round programming, strengthening Jewish identity and joy, and welcoming all who seek our services and a sense of belonging.

The vision is clear. Now is the moment to turn that vision into reality. What remains is the leadership and generosity to carry it forward: people willing to see further, invest more deeply, and help build what comes next. We invite you to make a lasting investment in our shared future. Your gift will help transform our campus and create a Kaplen JCC equipped to meet the evolving needs of our community—for today and for generations to come. Because a capital campaign is about more than bricks, spaces, and buildings. It is about creating the future of our community and building the place that makes that future possible.

We have always risen to meet our community’s needs—nimbly, proactively, wholeheartedly. That is who we are. And our next chapter is already taking shape.

Together, we can create the future: a Kaplen JCC where connection, belonging, Jewish life, and opportunity are expanded for everyone who comes through our doors—today, tomorrow, and for the next 75 years.

When you walk through the door you feel a tremendous sense of community. There are great things going on at the JCC.

Daniel Wohlfarth

The Kaplen JCC is better than ever! But we need to do more to keep up with our growing membership. This campaign is about the future of our Jewish community and ensuring we are here for generations to come.

Campaign leader whose family has lived in the area for four generations

The members and the atmosphere all make you want to keep coming back. It is a very warm and friendly place to be. Every day I learn something new from a member I meet. It is my home away from home.

Paula Schwartz

Our JCC has strengthened the core of the Jewish community. We now need new dollars to keep our buildings and programs first-rate. and to continue to provide a place for our kids and grandkids to meet one another – and make connections for years to come.

Campaign leader who is firmly invested in the future of our JCC

Incredible services to our community, from the youngest to the oldest. Programs that are educational, cultural and fun. And the best Pilates studio anywhere!

Nancy Epstein

It is the family spirit and fitness-oriented classes that are open to all ages along with different other activities that nourishes not only the physical aspect but also the social and emotional well-being of every member.

Maria Scanlon