A warm, sweet noodle kugel makes a wonderful goodwill ambassador. Throw in bagels and lox and apple cake alongside breakfast staples such as boiled eggs and oatmeal, and you’ve got yourself a satisfied and receptive crowd. That’s what Nancy Ludin, CEO of the Jewish Pavilion, aims for when she hosts breakfasts at the Maitland Chamber of Commerce with the help of staff and volunteers.

“The Jewish Pavilion is an important public relations force for Jewish culture in the wider community,” said Ludin. “Anything we can do to make people feel positively about the Jewish community can only be a tremendous help.”

Just after Rosh Hashanah, the Pavilion brought the High Holidays experience to the monthly Maitland Chamber Coffee Connections networking breakfast. Chamber members come before work to mix and mingle over breakfast and learn about upcoming events and initiatives. The breakfasts are sponsored each month by a different Chamber member who is given a forum to share information. Ludin uses her sponsored breakfasts to make Jewish religion and culture more familiar.

“Many people have never had a chance to talk to Jewish people or understand their holidays,” Ludin explained. “This is a great opportunity for them to understand our culture more fully and appreciate its richness.”

To make the messages more memorable, Ludin said, “Every year, I always try to have the best breakfast that the Maitland Chamber has. We always decorate beautifully and have homemade food. It’s delicious and it’s gorgeous.” At the recent breakfast, Ludin explained the High Holidays and some of their customs and symbols such as dipping apples in honey. Susie Stone demonstrated the shofar sounds as her husband, Mark, called each of them. They were sounds many of the people in the room had never before heard.

Said Ludin, “We want them to have fond memories of the experience, so if anyone ever asks them whether they know anything about Rosh Hashanah, the answer is yes—they eat apples and honey on that holiday and they wish everyone a sweet new year.”

Several years of High Holidays breakfasts and other Pavilion-sponsored Chamber events have helped win the Pavilion a number of donations, sponsorships and volunteers, and of course such contributions are always welcomed and appreciated. But just as valuable is the increased understanding of Judaism and the positive feelings that promotes.

“Judaism is a very wonderful culture with nice people—that’s what I want them to remember,” said Ludin. “I want them to feel really good about it.”