Raritan Valley sounds like a bucolic oasis nestled deep inside a mountainous area, and indeed it is. It is the home to the communities of Edison-Highland Park and East Brunswick. Three vibrant Orthodox Jewish communities located in Middlesex County, the epicenter of New Jersey.
It is also to become the first region in a newly created network that will share names and resumes (held in the strictest confidence) with shadchanim nationwide in an effort to expand the potential pool of men and women seeking to find their Bashert.
Shidduch Initiative groups from across the USA and Toronto have agreed to work with our single population (again, in the strictest confidence) as potential Shidduch possibilities for singles in their communities, and vice-versa.
Creating this working affiliation would give Shadchanim increased access to many more eligible men and women, and with Hashem’s blessings lead to more successful matches.
Becoming the pilot to drive this project will be the newly established Shidduch Initiative of Raritan Valley (SIRV), a new project of The ROC of New Jersey, advocating with Shadchanim on behalf of the single men and women of the Edison-Highland Park and East Brunswick communities.
“I have had many discussions during the past three months with the dedicated leaders of the various Shidduch Initiatives nationwide,” says Josh Pruzansky, President and CEO of The ROC of New Jersey, and co-Director together with his wife Adina, of SIRV. “Becoming acquainted with the services they provide and the excitement they exude at the possibility of increasing the amount of successful Shidduchim by accessing many more names from beyond their local communities has inspired us to move forward with this project as soon as possible”.
Amongst the Shidduch Initiatives that have agreed to participate so far are Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Silver Spring, and Toronto. Also, SIRV will work with a Shidduch database, and with any Shadchan, Shidduch Initiative and Shidduch group that would like to collaborate with SIRV. The ROC appreciates receiving the advice and guidance of Rabbi Shlomo Goldberger of The Shidduch Center of Baltimore, Rabbi Yossi Fuerst of the Simcha Link of Chicago, and Mrs. Chana Liza Myers of Detroit’s Shidduch Initiative, which has helped us move this project forward.
“We have one goal in mind, and that is trying to help singles in our community find their Zivugim. We are starting with singles age 26-49 since that is the age group that has the most need at this time. We will do whatever we can to help them succeed. It makes no difference to us who their Shadchan will be, we just want to make sure that each of our local singles has ample opportunities to find their spouse, and together build a Bayis Neeman B’Yisroel”, says Josh Pruzansky. “At the end it is all up to Hashem. But we will do our Hishtadlus and Daven for success,” he continued, “and hope that we will, with G-d’s help, be blessed to dance at their weddings in the near future.”
For more information or to schedule a meeting with our team, please send us an email to SIRV4U@gmail.com. We look forward to speaking with you.