It seems that, in 2025, there should be one easy place online to see all events happening in the greater Ann Arbor Jewish community. Those events should be easily filtered by interest, including social activities, young families, and educational opportunities, or by sponsoring organization.
Enter: JLive.
JLive is the greater Ann Arbor Jewish community’s new, free online hub to discover and register for community events. Launched in August, JLive was brought to Ann Arbor by a collaboration of the JCC and the Jewish Federation. It is made possible financially by the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Ann Arbor.
Ann Arbor is among the first six Jewish communities across the US and Canada to implement JLive, following cities like Miami, Cincinnati, Montreal, and Detroit.
“We’re really excited about the opportunities for connection that will come from JLive,” says Eileen Freed, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor. “It’s an incredible tool that showcases the breadth of what this community has to offer. We hope it will make Jewish Ann Arbor feel even more engaged and connected.”
JLive has both app and web browser interfaces to enable registration for events across all Jewish organizations, streamlining the registration and payment processes regardless of what organization is hosting the event. Using JLive is completely free. Users also have the option to create a profile, which enables even easier registrations, as well as more personalized event recommendations while browsing.
In late July, representatives from a variety of local Jewish organizations attended an orientation session at the JCC to learn how to begin posting their events on JLive. Thanks to the Jewish Community Foundation, there is no cost to organizations to use the platform. Any group that hasn’t yet joined is encouraged to contact Drew Coel (drewcoel@jccannarbor.org), the JCC’s Marketing and Program Associate.
“JLive is for the way people engage with community and with technology in their real lives,” says Dave Stone, Executive Director of the JCC of Greater Ann Arbor. “With JLive, you don’t need to be a member of a congregation or on a particular email list to find events that fit your interests. It’s all right there for you. It’s going to change what’s possible for our community.”