This Light Year 2010-2011 presents a summary of our activities. The first of what we intend as an annual update, Light Year describes how our operations are aligned to effect both our mission and strategic plan; what we have accomplished in that regard; and our plans for the future of the Jewish Light.

Mission and Strategic Plan

The current Strategic Plan of the Jewish Light, a Missouri nonprofit corporation, was adopted in December, 2008 by our Board of Trustees. It is the current intention of the Board that this plan will serve the organization effectively through 2012, with process for a new strategic plan commencing in the second half of 2012 to serve the organization for the following five-year period.

The current plan sets forth the mission of the organization as follows:

The St. Louis Jewish Light informs, connects and inspires the St. Louis Jewish community through objective coverage of topics of interest to Jews.

The plan created six strategy areas organized under three areas: Content, Distribution and Capacity. Following is a description of how we have addressed each.

Content

1. Upgrade the editorial quality of the newspaper and the website to better meet readers’ expectations

The quality of the Light’s content, both in print and online, has improved substantially. The following is a small sampling:

• Winning seven national awards for its coverage in the past three years, including six from the American Jewish Press Association for the Light’s special Hate Crimes section, Fall Arts Guide, Earth Day section and other pieces, and one from the National Newspaper Association for the Light’s Ohr Chadash Teen Page.

• Adding a fourth magazine to our portfolio, the Unsung Heroes publication, that recognizes the quiet volunteers in and around the Jewish community who don’t always get recognition for their efforts. We also rebranded the magazines under a single concept, OY! Magazine, and have devoted a significant focus to a broader and deeper scope of reporting in these issues.

• Making a concerted effort to bring well-regarded, experienced reporters to the Light. This has been accomplished with a variety of writers in a number of coverage areas. Some of the many exceptional writers include David Baugher, Patricia Corrigan, Daniel Durchholz, Susan Fadem, Cliff Froehlich, Repps Hudson, Margi Lena Kahn, Beverly Levitt, Eric Mink, Terry Perkins, Lew Price and Jim Winnerman. The same is true of our visual presentation, as experienced photographers partner with our writers to tell poignant stories.

• Providing regular opportunities for our Light editorial staff and writers to connect with our readers, through outlets such as Editor Ellen Futterman’s News and Schmooze column, Editor-in-Chief Emeritus Bob Cohn’s new and unique Cohnipedia online feature about St. Louis Jewish history, and Lois Caplan’s Kibbitzing with Caplan.

• Introducing new and innovative methods of news outreach, like our quarterly Can We Talk? Series, which combines a monthlong look at an important Jewish topic with a night of lively discussion among experts in the field.

• Expanded cultural and arts coverage of Jewish arts festivals, artists and performers in the broader community, and through our comprehensive, award-winning Fall Arts Guide.

• Combining our weekly coverage in the newspaper with 24/7 online coverage of breaking news stories, such as our recent coverage of the proposed merger of Jewish day schools, which broke online on Tuesday, was in our Wednesday print edition and was followed by a piece about parent reaction online Thursday.

• Reach the Next Generation of Jews through our Teen Page, written and edited by teens for teens, through Jewish journalism workshops at local Jewish day schools, and through our annual College Guide.

• Taking a strong leadership position in our community through editorials on matters pertaining to Israel, Jewish and social issues.

• Presenting a wide variety of social, political and cultural perspectives on the issues of the day pertaining to Jews.

2. Refresh the layout of both the paper and the website to be easier to use and more attractive, especially to younger readers

Our presentation has evolved in many substantial ways, most notably by:

• Creating a total redesign of the Light newspaper, giving graphics, layout and sections a complete overhaul to provide a modern and fresh look

• Introducing a brand new website in 2010, with a clean appearance, far greater search and archive functions, greater speed and easier navigation, and a stonger ability to post content on a 24/7 basis.

• Presenting a totally redesigned and rebranded OY! Magazine, so that our quarterly product presents a sharp, consistent and streamlined look for our readers throughout the year.

• Integrating the newspaper and website, by actively referring readers from one reading platform to the other to emphasize content that appears in each

• Making a strong entry into social media, with a Facebook, Twitter and Linked In presence that grew tremendously in the last year, and by new and exciting ventures, such as using our Facebook page to prompt discussion about our exciting Can We Talk? news and discussion series.

• Strongly utilizing video on the web, with our Hey Hey! Five in Five interview feature and our Kop Talk, lively debate between our Publisher/CEO Larry Levin and our Editor-in- Chief Emeritus Bob Cohn, about poignant issues of the day; and by online interviews with world opinion leaders.

Distribution

1. Finance Committees to evaluate and recommend implementation of most effective business model, considering alternatives including free distribution vs. paid subscription business models, and weekly vs. biweekly vs. monthly distribution models, as well as successful internet business model

The organization performed this analysis, culminating in a substantial change in 2010. After examining a variety of methods of distribution, the Light determined that the value of a paid subscription model exceeded that of others for the following reasons:

• The then-current method did not generate sufficient revenue to continue to provide a top-quality news product to the St. Louis Jewish community.

• With print media organizations suffering from losses in advertising revenue, developing additional sources of revenue was necessary.

• The recessionary climate limited the predictability of fundraised and foundation revenue for the short to mid term.

• The Jewish Federation, a generous contributor to the Jewish Light throughout its existence, was facing a declining revenue base and the Light needed to ensure potential revenue to make up for any reductions in the Federation’s annual campaign.

In summer 2010, the Light announced, in collaboration with the Federation, that it would change to a paid subscription model in 2011. Readers were given a year’s notice prior to implementation of the change, and early subscribers were incentivized with additional time on their subscriptions. The “early bird” stage of the campaign at 2010 year end was highly successful. (See the chart above for the effect subscriptions will have on creating a more diverse revenue model for the Light.)

The Light also implemented a brand-new web platform for its electronic readers in 2010. The new website was highly successful, as pageviews have grown consistently from the site’s introduction in May 2010 through August 2011 (See graph for the growth in pageviews). The Light also introduced a presence on Twitter, LinkedIn and grew a previously dormant Facebook audience by tenfold. The Light believes that its greatly improved electronic presence will ultimately provide a significant amount of revenue for the organization.

Moreover, the Light has introduced copies of the newspaper into the community via racks in retail and service locations. The intention of this move is to increase the visibility of the Light for marketing and advertiser purposes. The number of issues available at these locations is far below the number of home-delivered copies, and the number at each location is monitored to ensure that there are not excess copies being distributed in this fashion.

2. Further develop relationships with community constituents to broaden the distribution of the paper and enhance its standing

The Light has made great strides in building relationships with our constituents. Among these improvements are:

• Growth in our Publisher’s Society, those generous donors who contribute $500 or more to the Light each year to help us provide special sections and who receive recognition, invitations and special seating to a variety of private and public Light events. (Publishers are listed on the facing page)

• Growth in support by local foundations, both within and outside the Jewish community, which has been both for ongoing operations, special reporting and unique programs such as our Can We Talk? news and speaker series (Foundations are listed on the facing page)

• Interaction with our readership and the general community through special programs such as our Unsung Heroes recognition event, our Can We Talk? Series, and participation by our Board and our professional leadership in a number of local events and programs conducted by other organizations.

• Promotion of events which bring businesses and the public together, such as our upcoming PrimeTime Expo for boomers and seniors, and of business to business events such as our Women In Business programs, which allow the advertisers in these special sections to interact with each other in an informal reception setting.

• Collaboration and strategic alliances with other organizations, such as the Jewish Community Center on the LightenUp weight loss competition, and with the JCC and Jewish Community Relations Council on our Can We Talk? Series; and the Touhill Center for the Performing Arts for an evening with Martin Short.

Capacity

1. Reconsider roles and responsibilities of staff – especially in the core areas of editorial, circulation, production and advertising. Confirm the paper has appropriate skills and resources to fulfill its mission and grow

Our staff has been realigned over the past several years to best address our needs pursuant to the Strategic Plan. We have placed substantial emphasis on devoting resources to Capacity, Distribution and Content, the three pillars of our Strategic Plan, wherever possible. Examples of these tactics include:

• Realigning staff and expenditures to focus efforts and positions on providing strong editorial, design, revenue and marketing activities. These efforts have resulted in substantial improvements in editorial and design focus (see the Content section on opposite page) and have allowed us to implement our subscription model and other revenue enhancements (see Distribution on opposite page). One example would be utilizing independent sales consultants to supplement our full and part time sales personnel.

• Ensuring whenever possible that we recruit and retain staff with top quartile performance capabilities, particularly in full time positions.

• Reducing cost expended on secondary activities and on our primary objectives where those reductions do not adversely affect performance. An example would be significant savings in printing both our newspapers and magazines.

• Investing in modern hardware, and state of the art software in editorial, advertising, web and philanthropic functions, to ensure maximum utilization of human resources. Examples include introduction of our Pre1 advertising software; our Town News web platform; and our Donor Perfect software for subscriptions and donations.

2. Recruit and engage highly committed board members that will extend the Light’s relationships further into the community.

The Jewish Light Board of Trustees has made a conscious effort to continually bring new and capable leaders to the organization from a wide variety of professional and cultural backgrounds. Examples of this effort include:

• From 2008-2010 bringing a variety of new Trustees to the organization.

• Adding substantial expertise in the following areas: corporate, philanthropy, financial and marketing.

• Implementing an active and substantial nominating process, conducted by our Nominating Committee. This group utilized the Light newspaper and website, along with email and electronic newsletters, to encourage recommendations for our Board.

• Organizing Board business under three principal committees, Business, Development and Editorial, which meet bimonthly with staff and assist the Board and Executive Committee in critically analyzing our operations.

You can see that we’ve been quite busy at the Light in our efforts to provide you, our readers, with the utmost in Jewish community journalism. We are pleased with our accomplishments, but since we strive for bigger and better things, we constantly challenge ourselves to grow and improve. To that end, we count on you to be our best constructive critics, to maintain a dialogue with us, and to help us serve the St. Louis Jewish community in the best way possible.

We thank you for your continued readership and support of the Light, and wish all a very Happy and Healthy New Year. L’Shana Tovah!

Sincerely,

Jenny Wolkowitz

President

Larry Levin

Publisher/CEO