H EADLINES
Kaiserman JCC to Eliminate All Fitness Classes
L OCA L
JARRAD SAFFREN | JE STAFF
THE KAISERMAN JCC
hasn’t yet decided whether to
eliminate fi tness as part of its
business model entirely.

But it is getting rid of
personal training and all 11 of
its fi tness classes.

All but two of those
programs have been virtual
since the pandemic broke out
in March 2020. Only a Sunday
boot camp workout, focused on
cardio and strength training,
and a Saturday dance party
were running in person.

Kaiserman’s summer off er-
ings will fi nish their season,
ending Sept. 4.

Th e fi tness programs have
been losing money, according
to CEO Alan Scher. Last week,
he saw two people in a class.

He acknowledged that number
is pretty standard at this point.

“We’re ending this virtual
suite of programs that started
with the pandemic,” Scher
said. “Th ere’s an opportunity
to refresh.”
But for the new leader, who
started July 1, the question
remains: Refresh to what?
Pre-pa ndemic,
t he
Wynnewood facility off ered
50 fi tness classes, youth sports
programs, personal training,
a gym, basketball courts and
a pool. Aft er Sept. 4, though,
only some youth programs,
the courts and the pool will
remain available.

“As a non-profi t organiza-
tion, we make decisions about
where our resources go based
on how much impact we can
make with them,” Scher wrote
A boomers boot camp class in 2017
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Pre-pandemic, numerous fitness classes were held inside the JCC.

in a weekly newsletter to JCC
members. “Our fitness offer-
ings have not been healthy, and
our current attendance levels
do not support the costs to
continue to run this program.”
Scher said the fate of the
fitness center is yet to be
determined. “This is not a decision about
the Fitness Center. This is only
a decision about our current
fitness classes and personal
training,” he wrote. “We will be
sharing more about the future of
our fitness and aquatics center
after the Jewish Holidays.”
Dorilona Rose of Ardmore is
in her sixth year in Kaiserman’s
yoga class. She is disappointed
to see it go. But she also under-
stands that Scher needs to come
up with a new, modern vision
for the aging JCC concept.

“The history of why JCCs
started is that Jews couldn’t
work out in another location,”
Rose said. “But that has shifted.”
Scher believes that a JCC
needs three business models
to thrive, and Kaiserman has
two. Its day camp, Camp Kef,
served between 450 and 465
campers this past summer.

And the facility’s Robert J. Wilf
Preschool will be at capacity
this fall with 140 students.

But in 2021, fitness is hard,
according to the CEO. It
requires annual investments to
update equipment and retain
instructors. Offering virtual fitness is
just as difficult, if not more. To
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM do it well, Kaiserman needs to
make the same investments,
just in technology instead of
equipment. “We’re
not Peloton,”
Scher said. “The JCC is not
a tech behemoth with endless
amounts of money.”
But it can still be a commu-
nity sports institution, he said.

This fall, Kaiserman will
start a new girls basketball
league for kids in grades 8-12.

The girls league will join an
existing boys basketball league,
a gymnastics program and
several other youth offerings.

Kaiserman is also bringing
back its after-school program
for the first time since the
pandemic began.

For now, Scher wants a
variety of programs to fill the
fitness void. At the same time,
he knows he still needs to find
that third business model.

“We’ll use the next several
months to consider and expand
our program,” the CEO said.

Even without her yoga class,
Rose plans on continuing
to use the JCC. She has two
daughters, ages 12 and 9, who
enjoy Camp Kef each summer.

But Rose is hoping that
Kaiserman can align fitness
with the rest of its vision.

“Looking at fitness as a
standalone doesn’t make
sense,” Rose said. “You have to
look at the JCC as a whole.” l
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