The past 12 months have been an incredibly trying time for Jewish individuals across the World. Now, more than ever, we need to be encouraging love and deeper relationships within our community, and with your help…we can do that.
Isodate is a virtual speed dating platform designed to bring Jewish singles together, regardless of the obstacles of pandemics, distance, or finances. Over the past year, the Isodate team has worked tirelessly to provide these opportunities, financially backing our concept and growing our event offerings every month.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks Z”L told us that “Love transforms us. It makes us beautiful in the eyes of those who love us. It makes us real.” – and Isodate believes that every Jewish person should be given the best opportunity to find their bashert(e).
We believe that our unique platform, which promotes meeting people, not profiles, is key to our success, and our results prove that: in just ten months of events, we’ve celebrated two engagements and countless new Jewish relationships, both across North America and Israel.
Our Journey So Far
At Isodate, we understand the intricacies of dating within the Jewish community. To best serve our community, we’ve worked with Rabbis, Matchmakers, Event Organisations and Community leaders to run events that offer something for everyone.
Users have been able to join events based on location (from Tri-State and Florida to Los Angeles & Miami, and even special events for Israel and Europe), religious observance (such as Modern Orthodox, Conservative and Reform), or even heretical background (such as Sephardi or Ashkenazi), searching for their soulmate amongst other like-minded individuals.
What’s more, we think people of all age should be able to find someone special, so have put events on for those from 18 right through to 80! All the need is a big smile, open attitude (and decent WiFi) and they can take part from home.
Testimonials
Jodi Beal: I had been speaking to my cousin about my lack of luck dating, and how fed up I’d been feeling with it all. With Covid sweeping the World too, I had no idea how I would even go about meeting someone.
To be honest, I had kind of given up. Trying to meet someone that I really connected with seemed less and less likely.
Thankfully, the same cousin told me to try the Tri-State event Isodate run. I’m based in Chicago, but am regularly in NYC and have family there. Well, i am so glad I did: six months later, and I’m really on cloud 9.
For me, being face-to-face from the start made a huge difference and just made the overall process that much easier. Time has flown by, and I’m happier than ever.
Rebecca Tenenbein : After trying many online dating websites and apps, a friend suggested I try virtual speed dating.
I came across Isodate and decided to give it a try. The caliber of the men on the website is so much better than other websites I’ve tried, and both sets (men & women) are serious about meeting their match. But more importantly, its the attention to detail – and care the Isodate team have for the Jewish community – which stands out for me.
I truly believe the team are doing incredible work, and deserve any and all support the community can give them. The Isodate platform is easy to use and has a fantastic rate of success for matching couples.
Leora Goldstein: Trying to find a good Jewish man, that aligns with my values, has been really difficult. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I attended Isodate’s Tri-State 25-39 event, but honestly: it was probably the most enjoyable dating experience I had in years. The guys were really friendly, equally happy to just chat straight away, and i had a number of great conversations.
I’m currently dating someone I met at the event, and while it’s only been four months, we’re both really happy and are making plans for the future.
Oh, and the fact I didn’t have to leave my house for the event was so great.
Now, we need your help.
For us to continue connecting Jewish singles across the globe, we need to reach more communities. To do this, we need to bring on additional resources, spend on advertising, and finish the creation of our iOS and Android devices. Your donations, or Mitzvahs of love, will allow us to continue to build deeper partnerships and reach a bigger community, thus helping connect single Jewish souls across the World.
Where the money will go
Why $80,000?
In short: running a web-based platform such as Isodate is an expensive process. Our server costs, marketing, outreach, community activations and paying developers mean that we need to raise this money to continue our work.
The options available to Jewish singles are not good enough. Old technology, no human interaction, and a growing swipe-culture has presented so many obstacles for the community. People are losing hope of finding love, not because they want to, but because they don’t know where to turn.
In the last year, our numbers have proven the benefits to the community:
• 92% of Isodaters get at least one match
• 63% say they are still talking to someone they met on our platform three months later
• 82% of our users said that meeting face-to-face made the process easier
So: what will the money go towards?
$40,000 – our main amount will go towards a better service/product for our community.
It will pay for host servers, the final builds of our Isodate Apps (both iOS and Android) and the creation of a new algorithm that will allow us to match our users even better.$30,000 – will be used to partner with more Jewish organizations
The most successful way of establishing more Jewish relationships is through a deeper network, so Isodate will look to run more sponsored events for our community with Jewish organisations and communities across the World. This will include a number of free events, workshops, and relationship panels, all of which will focus around our main cause: bringing our Jewish singles together.$10,000 – Advertising and promotions
The Jewish community, more than ever, needs positive press. The World needs to see that Jewish individuals across the World are united in all that they do, and what better way to show that unity that through love.
Being able to run some advertising and promotions will allow Isodate to reach a far bigger audience, meaning better connections, better relationships, and a more bonded Judaism.
Isodate will also continue to raise money ourselves, and our team will continue to work tirelessly to produce a service that Jewish singles, across the World, can use to find a strong and committed relationship!
Who we are/Meet the team
Greg Wheeler: Greg is the doer. He’s the driving force behind many of Isodate’s new ideas, bringing a tenacity for entrepreneurship that’s only equalled by his love of Rugelach.
Born into humble beginnings in the UK, Greg has since graduated with both Economics and Law degrees, lived in five different countries, and believes strongly in the concept of Tzedakah.
He’s always pushing, always driving, and always focused on what can be done to better the dating experience for Jewish singles Worldwide.
Luke Connolly: Luke is the dreamer. The talker. The marketer. He believes that customer service should be at the forefront of any business, either emerging or structured, and that a blind eye to this is a blind eye to success.
Of Irish and European background, Luke grew tired of the dating scene and Co-Founded Isodate to do something good: to offer the Mitzvah of love.
He believes that a business should be measured by the impact it leaves on the World; and as such holds the two engagements and countless relationships that Isodate has helped from close to his heart.
Rafael Morosov: Isodate’s main advisor, Rafael has helped us shape our business and focus on the future. As an advisor & investor, Rafael aligns himself (where possible) with companies that he feels will benefit the Jewish community, hence his affiliation with Isodate.
His advice and guidance, specifically within the Modern Orthodox community, has played a key role in our two engagements in just over 11 months.
When asked why he chose to work with Isodate, Russell referenced a quote he holds dear from Sifre: “All that you do, do only out of love!”
Final thoughts, and reason to support
Too often technology has divided us, pushing us apart. Now, we have the opportunity to see it bring us together, to bring love into the lives of Jewish singles no matter where they find themselves.
Judaism is much more than a religion: it instead represents a single soul radiating into many bodies, bonding them as one. The Baal Shem Tov told us that “A soul enters this world for seventy or eighty years just to do a favor for another” – so why not make that Mitzvah one of love?
For further information, or to discuss further opportunities, please feel free to contact us at info@isodate.co. We value the feedback of our community, and thank you deeply for any support you are able to offer.
