The People Make The Place

Helping children become "great humans" for over 33 years!

Pam Rasband

There are milestones in the life of an ECC parent: Orientation, Coffee Chat and Shabbat, the Purim Parade, classroom Seders (accompanied by soooo much car-talk about the plagues), and the beloved Art Show. Thoughtfully orchestrated by ECC staff, these moments transform our preschool from a program into a village. And within that village, generations of families will tell you that Ms. Pam (Pam Rasband) is a cornerstone.

Her connection to the JCC began long before she entered an ECC classroom. At age ten she was a camper at the J on 1700 South, later working her way up the summer camp staff ladder. Though she once thought she had outgrown the place, the JCC has a way of calling people home. In 1993, at the invitation of Jeff Rappaport, Pam returned to interview with longtime ECC leaders Mary Ogan and Karla Pardini. What followed was a 33-year career nurturing the JCC’s youngest members.

For three decades, Ms. Pam guided preschoolers through the social and emotional terrain of early childhood. In her classroom, kindness, creativity, and confidence mattered most — life skills that shape a meaningful future. As one parent put it simply, “She helped us raise a good human.”

Her classroom ran on a steady rhythm. Parents joked about their spirited “threenagers,” yet Ms. Pam rarely needed to raise her voice. She led with warmth, consistency, and trust, giving children both structure and the freedom to explore through play. When conflicts arose, she resisted the quick “I’m sorry,” instead asking, “What could you do?” A handshake, a hug, a high-five — a repaired relationship rather than a rehearsed apology.  It was a simple shift that introduced accountability in a way a three-year-old could internalize.

Her impact on families has been profound. JCC board member and ECC parent Melina Shiraldi reflects:
“Her outgoing, friendly nature is a true staple of the ECC. She has a way of making everyone feel welcome. She taught our daughter Clara to write her name, enthusiastically sing ‘The Utah Fight Song,’ and perhaps most impressively, to stop crying at drop-off. She is truly special and has an extraordinary gift for connecting with children.”

Beyond the classroom, Pam has been instrumental in shaping many cherished ECC traditions, most notably the annual Art Show, which transforms the JCC into a gallery space celebrating children as creators with perspectives all their own.

After the 2024–2025 school year, Ms. Pam stepped into an administrative role. Asked what she misses most, she smiles: “I miss my group. But now the whole ECC is my group.” The circle has widened, but her purpose remains the same — helping every child feel safe, known, and capable. In that way, Ms. Pam’s classroom never really ended; it simply expanded to embrace the entire village.

Meet Lourdes Cooke
Marathon runner, cancer survivor, proud grandmother, and JCC member for over 35 years!

Lourdes Cooke

To encounter Lourdes is to encounter orgullo, pride, in its truest form. Not arrogance, but authentic vitality shaped by tenacity, scholarship, and a life full of meaningful endeavors. When devastating cancer confronted her, Lourdes met it with the same determination that once guided Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, the seventeenth century Mexican poet who famously disguised herself as a boy to pursue an education. Lourdes did not retreat. She ran forward, emerging from a battle with chemotherapy and a bone marrow transfer to complete eight marathons between ages 55 and 68. When asked what fueled such resolve, she responded with quiet conviction: “I have to take care of my well-being and the way I did it was running, my medicine.”

Lourdes’ roots run deep, to the auspicious Avenida Universidad in Mexico City. Her path meandered through Texas and Massachusetts before carrying her to Utah. Without the blessing of family nearby on whom to rely, Lourdes assembled her own village. She raised her children and granddaughter in the JCC community, and the relationship has been mutually sustaining. Like Sor Juana, who pursued knowledge despite every obstacle, Lourdes demonstrates that education is not a phase of life, but a way of living.

Her devotion to learning is expansive: cultural, formal, physical, and communal. She has served with Artes de México en Utah/FILMéxico, the Hispanic Society of Utah, State of Utah Governor's Health Commission, Wasatch Community Gardens, El Centro Cívico, Guadalupe Schools, Rowland Hall, and of course the JCC. She enrolls in classes at the University of Utah and Salt Lake Community College as readily as some people sign up for newsletters.

On any given day at the J, you might find Lourdes in the pool, in barre class, playing in the new pickleball league, attending a lecture, or offering a thoughtful introduction between two people who had not yet realized they needed to meet. Lourdes illustrates that people give a place its soul, and people like Lourdes make the place.