STAFF MEMBER BOBBY LAYMAN MEET YOUR NEW BOARD ...

center STORY
Tunnel Vision
By Andrea Kronzek
Building Superintendent Bobby Layman, second from right, appreciates the support he receives from
his hard-working team, including (left to right) Jean Claude Moncada, Milagro Guardado, Jaime
Chavez, Carlos Arze, Bobby, and Gaston Garcia.
When he was in elementary school,
the JCCGW was a second home for
Alexandria, Virginia native Bobby
Layman whose mother worked in the Center’s
accounting department at the time. He took
judo and swim lessons here, and spent not
an insignificant amount of time with his
friends sneaking down the “spooky” (as
they perceived it with their 10-year-old eyes)
tunnel that connects the JCCGW and the
Hebrew Home.
CENTER SCENE EDITORIAL STAFF
Amanda M. Goldstein
Communications & Marketing Director
Mauricio Garcia
Production Artist/Design
Andrea Kronzek
Editor
Molly Rosenberg
Advertising Manager
1 June 2011 • jccgw.org • 301.881.0100
As a teen in the 1970s, Bobby worked in the
JCCGW building services department. After
high school, he enlisted in the army as a
combat medic stationed in Germany. In 1987,
after his stint with the military had ended and
he worked at some odd jobs, Bobby rejoined
the building services staff as “low man on
the totem pole.” Now 24 years later, the
Center is so fortunate that this gregarious,
dedicated employee with a warm smile and
positive attitude has remained on staff.
Center Scene, the magazine of the Jewish
Community Center of Greater Washington,
is issued monthly from September through
June.
The Center is a member of the Jewish
Community Centers Association of North
America, a beneficiary agency of The Jewish
Federation of Greater Washington, and
As building superintendent, Bobby enjoys
the diversity of his position, a combination
of office work and hands-on jobs around
the facility. “Every day presents new
opportunities, making the time seem to fly
by,” he asserts.
Bobby compares some of his department’s
responsibilities to fitting the pieces of
a puzzle together. “It’s interesting and
challenging to look at things in different
ways, then rewarding and satisfying when
you find a solution,” he reflects.
If Bobby is successful at his job, he maintains,
it’s because of the support he receives from
the other members of the building services
staff. “They are a wonderful and diverse
group of individuals who offer unique and
constructive perspectives on how to handle
any given situation,” he relates.
What goes around, as it is said, often comes
around. Bobby’s 8-year-old daughter Valerie,
a JCCGW preschool graduate who attends
Camp JCC each summer, is growing up at the
Center much like her father did. She has not,
however, displayed as keen an interest in that
spooky tunnel.
Bobby is often behind the scenes but plays a key role in so much of what happens at the Center. He gives
our staff, members and guests 120%, always finding a way to say yes and always with a smile.
—Chief Executive Officer Michael Feinstein
receives support from the United Way and
Combined Federal Campaigns.
For advertising information, contact
Molly Rosenberg at 301.348.3725 or
mrosenberg@jccgw.org.
Center Scene assumes no responsibility for
the kashrut status of products advertised.