Myriam Ackermann-Sommer, BA, MA, was born and raised in Southern France and has been living in Paris for four years with her husband Emile. She earned a B.A. in English in 2016, majoring in English and minoring in Hebrew at the Sorbonne while completing an undergraduate degree in Humanities at the École Normale Supérieure, a selective French college. In the course of her master’s degree in English literature, Myriam focused mainly on Jewish American authors and Jewish philosophy, writing essays on Nobelist I.B. Singer (main thesis: “Broken Shards: Vulnerability in the Works of Isaac Bashevis Singer”) and Bernard Malamud (“Am I My Brother’s Keeper? The Ethical Imperative in the Short Stories of Bernard Malamud. A Dialogue With Emmanuel Levinas”, an essay at the intersection with contemporary French Jewish philosophy). She has also been inquiring into the representation of the sacred in Judaism in articles like “The Holy of Holies; or, the Architecture of Absence”. Myriam has had an extensive training in teaching and translation, and regularly gives talks in Jewish as well as academic contexts, starting a co-ed study group (“Ayeka”) with her husband in 2017 for Parisian students and young professionals. Her favourite subjects are gender representations and notably the challenge of egalitarianism in Orthodox Judaism, the exchange of ideas and insights between Judaism and contemporary critical theory, and Jewish ethics. A dedicated musician, Myriam has also earned a diploma in transverse flute in 2015 and loves to enhance the spiritual dimension of Judaism by singing her heart out in prayer groups.

Stefanie Adler is a Holistic Nutritionist, Women’s Health Expert, Birth Doula, Hormone Guru and Nourishing Experience Creator. She is a womanprenuer through and through.

She is an avid community builder, and she is constantly inspired by her community to create an open space for individuals to explore their connection to the Jewish world.

She is passionate about the intersection of physical and spiritual wellness, believing that nourishing the body and soul through whole foods, self-love, and community, and is essential to wellness. She absolutely loves making Jewish wisdom, applicable to everyone and digestible to those who are not as familiar with Jewish Learning. She believes that by breaking down texts and ideas collectively, and using engaging and creative modalities, the group gets to wrestle with the universe, history and our culture, in a meaningful and productive way!

She has been the educator or chef-educator at several retreats, among them: Judaism and Self Care, Techless Adulting, Return of the Wild Woman, Garden of Eden, while additionally having planned her own retreat, Ancient Wisdom: Modern Wellness. Cooking, yoga, educating, reading/book club, running and walking barefoot are her passions!

Ask me about meal planning to maximize your retreat experience, creative hosting, all things women’s health and how to make rituals your own and meaningful to your community!

Sophia is a passionate yogi who spends most of her time in Jewish spaces, as a Jewish teen educator and a resident at Moishe House! She graduated with a degree in Psychology from Macaulay Honor’s College at Queens College before heading into the Jewish Education field. She is heavily involved in her own Jewish community in Boston, including completing a fellowship with Serve the Moment Boston, volunteering in community engagement as a resident of Moishe House Cambridge, and chairing a committee of the Young Adult task force at Boston’s CJP Federation. She is passionate about mindfulness, sustainable living, good reads, and is a long-term beginner guitar player.

Matthew has worked with many different age groups and had multiple experiences leading jewish experiences in a retreat type setting. During his time on staff at Kivunim, Matthew led programing centered around unplugging for shabbat, and adding mindfulness and intention framework for the participants. From his time at Ramah Matthew planned lessons incorporating nature into campers’ shabbat experience. Matthew is also skilled in content creation, travel, photography/video production, community engagement, social media marketing, the Adobe Suite, event planning, and more.

Liz Alpern is co-founder of The Gefilteria and co-author of The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Foods. She is passionate about the ways in which food creates meaningful gatherings, builds identity and strengthens community. In 2017, she created the international party and fundraising series, Queer Soup Night. She is also a food systems consultant for national non-profit Fair Food Network. Liz has spent the pandemic leading dozens of virtual workshops and is shocked by the power of food to leap through the screen.

Shalom, my name is Yonatan Arnon.

I am a social entrepreneur, community organizer, educator, dialogue facilitator dancer and rabbinical student.

I hold a M.B.A from the Morton Mandel Social Leadership program and am I lead workshops about Jewish Entrepreneurship, Design thinking, narrative writing, branding & marketing, community organizing. For more information please visit my Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/yonatanarnon/

As an LGBTQ+ activist in Israel I have worked to empower and share my personal coming out of the closet story in order to empower and grant tools for others to feel more comfortable with their sexual identity.

I founded and currently co-direct “Mabad-Mibad” an emerging young adult community of Arabs and Jews from East and West Jerusalem. I worked for the past five years in conflict resolution and dialogue facilitation between Arabs and Jews.

I am also currently a rabbinical student and a Weitzman-JDC Jewish Peoplehood fellow at JIR-HUC.

For the past three years of my rabbinic journey I have integrated my spiritual practice with my years of facilitating movement experiences, founding my signature MoveMeant-Embodying Sacred Texts workshop.

In these workshops we embody Jewish rituals such as Kabbalat Shabbat, Havdalah, Torah Services that integrate movement, live singing (musicians singing in Heb, Eng, Yiddish and more), Jewish texts, and mindfulness practices. We also lead workshops in a variety of uniquely-tailored and time-specific adaptations. Over the past 10 months, we’ve offered over 35 workshops so far to different communities (including Limmud UK, City Shul Toronto, Romemu, JCC Manhattan, BBYO, JNF, Nava Tehila, Lab/Shul, Moishe House PLR & Moishe House Israel and more) all over the globe over zoom.

For more information about MoveMeant please visit our website https://www.embodymovemeant.com/

Hoping to co-create with you!

Yours,
Yonatan

Spiritual Mentor integrating sound, BioAcoustics, NLP/HiTea to reclaim your power.
Artist, Radio Host

iLan is a certified Sound Therapist who embraces the divine power of words and Kabbalistic meditation in the healing process and certified in Reiki, Solution Focused Coaching and NLP and BioAcoustics.

Through heart guided Kabbalistic meditation, sacred names, musical instruments, Tibetan bowls, and HiTea™ custom tea mix, (www.facebook.com/hiteamix), you will be guided on a journey inwards, cultivating healing to your body, clearing energy blocks, releasing toxins.

I grew up between the fields and orchards of a Kibbutz
Singing since I remember myself
Loving music and people of all flavors
Looking for experiences with supporting frameworks that are loose enough to step out of
Full of contradictions and harmony, loving to fill what is lacking
Creating musical garden gatherings in all seasons
Preferring a little darkness with gentle lighting
I feel most at home inside the complexity of Jerusalem
Intuitive exploration of the world of prayer
Active member of an innovative, bourgeois and egalitarian Jewish community
Producing cultural events, singing in ensembles
Shy Baal Tefillah with a yet developing voice
Student of movement, mountain runner and practicing Yogi
Israeli-Palestinian peace activist dreaming of shared land and life
Stares at cats with wonder and scatters solar street pianos around that world that bring happiness to people’s lives

Meir Berman, Baka, Jerusalem, Married with two daughters, a garden and two cats

Ezra Bookman is a ritual designer, artist, educator, and facilitator exploring the transformational power of ritual. He is the founder of Ritualist, a creative studio designing rituals to help build more conscious companies and connected communities; the former Artistic Director for Lab/Shul, an experimental, artist-driven, God-optional community for sacred Jewish gatherings in NYC; and the youngest member on the Board of Directors of The Secret City, an Obie Award-winning arts organization.

Working alongside Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie, Shira Kline, and Naomi Less, Ezra spent 6 years helping grow Lab/Shul from a small startup to a robust community. He has taught workshops, designed rituals, and co-created events with prominent organizations such as Moishe House, Union of Reform Judaism, Hebrew Union College, BASE Hillel, UJA-Federation of NYC, Slingshot, The Institute for Experiential Jewish Education, The Museum of Jewish Heritage, Schusterman Foundation, Honeymoon Israel, United Nations Church Center, New York Mayor’s Office, Reboot, Jewish Emergent Network, IKAR, Judson Memorial Church, New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care, Death Over Dinner, and The Darrell D. Friedman Institute for Professional Development.

Cherie Brown is the founder and executive director of the National Coalition Building Institute, an anti oppression leadership training organization. She leads workshops on antisemitism, the intersection of anti semitism and racism, Jews and Climate justice. She is the author of: Taking on antisemitism while staying in Coalition: A Leadership Initiative for College Campuses.

Melanie Catan is an ​Uruguayan actress​, writer, director, producer and educator. She graduated from the Multidisciplinary Drama Art School (EMAD, ​Uruguay,​ 2015) and has a ​BA​ in Visual Communication​s​ (ORT University, ​Uruguay, ​2016).
She was nominated ​twice​ ​for ​“best actress” by the Florencios ​A​wards (Montevideo, Uruguay)​ and ​the ​play she ​co-w​rote​, “El mundo de Juan”, won the first prize in the category of “Best Multidisciplinary Play” (Florencios Awards, 2017). As a writer and director Catan has several other works in development. In 2020 she won a mention in the Onettis awards (Uruguay). Nowadays she lives in Barcelona and she is currently Studying Master degree in Theatrical Studies.

From a young age Melanie have experienced her Jewish identity as a part of her life. Both, her way of seeing the world and her personality, are influenced by Judaism: its philosophy, values and education. This is traduced naturally in her art, which tries to be as faithful as possible to her feeling and thinking. In fact, it was her involvement with the Jewish community that triggered her interest in creative writing. When she started her undergraduate studies in acting, she was already writing and directing plays for the Jewish movement that she was part of, as well as getting involved in the theatre plays that were produced in Jewish schools. Moreover, her first play, a children´s play called “Juan’s World”, emerged as a response to fundraising for one of the most important institutions of the Uruguayan Jewish community: The Jewish Elderly home. That is why she has always seen the influence of Judaism together with her art as an opportunity for growth and progress. The dialogue and intersection, has been constant and fruitful, and has always driven her to more.

She is currently involved in projects which are strongly committed to generating a social impact through theatre. She is deeply interested in exploring how artistic events have the potential to open doors, generate dialogue and mold our worldviews. She is currently directing and producing a project entitled “The Black Box”, which was created by Helen Marcos in Mexico. This project employs improvisation, representation and interaction to cover a wide array of social issues.

During her adolescence and youth, she volunteered at the Tnuá Betar for a 15 year period. During this period, she held different positions, such as: Madrija of young people of 9 and 10 years old, young people between 15 and 16 years old and people between 19 and 20 as well as a member of the hanagá (directory) of Betar fulfilling the position of external relations and also of preparing activities, seminars, talks, majanot etc. for the bogrim and the madrijim. She was also in charge of the educational area for all the bogrim of the Tnua advising, training and helping with any doubt or issue they might have with the young people they could be in charge of. On the other hand, she was also in charge specifically of the madrijim of young people between 12 and 13 years old meeting them each week in order to make a plan for all the year. Once she finished her stage as a volunteer, she continued participating in the different activities such as a speaker and teacher of: The Shoa project doing hasbara referred to the Shoa in non-Jewish schools and also coordinating it, as well as The institute of “Nativ” the training center for the madrijim of the tnuot.

Having told all of the above, she feels that she is qualified to be the mentor due to different reasons: her experience in all aspects of the community, both artistic and institutional. Since she was a girl, she knew very closely and deeply, all aspects of the Jewish community and she has trained throughout her life both artistically and educationally to be able to transmit all of her knowledge and reach the people who are in positions to exploit everything to their potential. Being part of different areas and institutions, made her know the community and its problems so closely, as well as Uruguayan problems in general, she has carried out many activities outside the community, She believes that she is able to demonstrate her knowledge and make people grow both personally and artistically, understanding the reason of everything we do and what the person who is listening needs from us.

Sarah Chandler aka Kohenet Shamirah Bechirah is a Brooklyn-based Jewish educator, ritualist, artist, activist, and poet. Currently, she serves as the director of Romemu Yeshiva and the CEO of Shamir Collective. She teaches, writes, and consults on issues related to Jewish earth-based spiritual practice, farming, and mindfulness. Ordained as a Kohenet (Hebrew Priestess) in 2015, she is studying as a shamanic healer apprentice at The Wisdom School of S.O.P.H.I.A and Kabbalistic imaginal dream work at The School of Images.

Natalie is a native New Yorker, speaks six languages, and has traveled and lived across the world serving different communities through dance, teaching, and environmental work. Primarily a dancer, she has spent her life investigating and expressing movement and has recently been certified as a teacher of The Axis Syllabus. She also launched her food pop-up called “IMA” (mother in Hebrew) that represents the culinary traditions of her Israeli/Middle Eastern/North African roots. She now resides in New Orleans and is moving to Tallahassee with her partner Russell and one-year-old daughter Ruelle for Russell’s graduate school.

My highest values are connection & growth.

The workplace is rife with distraction, confusion, and destructive conflict. I help individuals and teams transform that into focus, clarity, and constructive conflict.

As a consultant, I apply evidence-based principles & practices to help values-driven organizations infuse growth, learning, & excellence into everything they do. Working on the individual, team, and organizational levels, I integrate system design with personal transformation.

As a coach, I help individuals shift back into clarity and connection so they can act the way they choose to, not just the way they’re used to. This “choicefulness” helps folks experience an immense sense of freedom and energy and align their lives with their values.

I have consulted, facilitated, and coached individuals and teams at both startups (e.g. Rippling, First Round, Blend Labs, Truework, Galvanize, Imperfect Produce) and established organizations (e.g. Microsoft, World Economic Forum, Johns Hopkins University).

Hadar is a Mizrahi feminist multi-media artist, healer and educator. She is the founder of Feminism All Night, a project that designs communal immersive learning experiences about feminism and spirituality. Hadar is a Jewish mystic who works to build decolonial frameworks for worshiping God. She teaches Jewish scripture and embodied practices through various platforms, including At The Well. Her artistic mediums include performance, movement, writing, weaving, sound and ritual. hadarcohen.me.

Rabbi Atara Cohen is passionate about Torah which speaks to our social, intellectual, and emotional realities. She was ordained by Yeshivat Maharat and currently teaches Torah She’beal Peh at The Heschel Middle School. She has studied Torah in a variety of settings, including Midreshet Nishmat, Hadar, Drisha and a BA in religion at Princeton University. During rabbinical school, Atara focused on human rights and social change through various fellowships. She served as a rabbinic intern at the Columbia-Barnard Hillel and as a Cooperberg-Rittmaster Pastoral and Educational Intern at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah. Atara lives in Manhattan, where she runs, knits, and experiments with Persian cooking.

Rabbi Stephanie Crawley is a rabbi at Temple Micah in Washington D.C., and one of the founders of The Micah Storefront Project, which creates new, accessible Jewish spaces all around DC. She has served as a Jewish educator and musician across the US (from NYC to Ohio to Cali) and in Jerusalem, the Czech Republic, and Belarus. Stephanie has worked as a Spiritual Counselor at Beit T’Shuvah, a Jewish addiction treatment center; an education fellow at the Brandeis Collegiate Institute; and a tour educator with NFTY in Israel. Current passions are having conversations about sticky issues like addiction, class, and conflict with dignity and openness, and finding bridges between the explosion of rituals in secular society (think self-care and mindfulness) and Jewish wisdom. She loves tacos almost as much as she loves Torah, and believes that the search for hidden voices in sacred texts helps us find our own.

Andrew Davies is an improviser and facilitator based in South Philly where he lives with his wife Molly Wernick and tiny dog Ducky. Andrew received a B.A. in English Literature from Brandeis University, went on to study Improvisation at The Magnet Theater, and received a certificate of Facilitation from Georgetown University.

In 2011 Andrew Co-Founded The Bible Players, a comedy team which is Improv-ing Jewish Lives. The Bible Players have toured to 25 states, visiting hundreds of camps, schools, and synagogues teaching Jewish Values with a sense of humor. He walks softly and carries a big Shtick!

In 2016 Andrew Co-Founded the Non-profit CharacTours, an interactive theatrical walking experience where the past visits you. He is the Executive Director of both The Bible Players and CharacTours. Andrew can be reached at Andrew@TheBiblePlayers.com

Julie Dean specializes in Mussar/Middot learning, Mindfulness and Facilitator Development. She has over 25 years experience as a facilitator and combines her background in experiential education with a passion for Jewish spirituality. Julie’s workshops and retreats are dynamic, engaging and meaningful. She seeks to help people connect with Jewish spirituality in ways that are relevant, uplifting and community building. LGBTQIA+ sensitive.

Maximiliano Diel has a Masters degree in Education, and a degree in Psychology, focused in Psychoanalysis.

Since 2008 he has taught the History of Zionism, Jewish Culture, Theory of Knowledge and Shoah at the baccalaureate in the Escuela Integral Hebreo Uruguaya, which examines issues of Shoah, Antisemitism, the history of the Jewish state, and major Jewish thinkers, philosophers and writers. He has designed and imparted an online course named “Moses: between psychoanalysis, archeology and jewish tradition”, at the Universidad Hebraica from Mexico, and has been invited to teach at several universities in Uruguay.

He has collaborated in different Jewish publications and radio programs like Radio Sefarad from Spain and the monthly Relaciones.

Languages spoken: Spanish, English, Hebrew.

Rabbi Aderet is an innovative spiritual leader, inspired educator, social entrepreneur, relationship-based community organizer, and serves as the Den’s Executive Director. Since her adolescence she has expressed a love of meeting new people as well as an interest and instinct for gathering people together in sacred community to learn, connect, celebrate, heal, and to create impactful change in our world.

After receiving her rabbinic ordination and a concentration in pastoral care from the Jewish Theological Seminary, Rabbi Aderet served as senior rabbi for a congregation in Northern California. She has also served as the Campus Rabbi for Hillel at the University of Maryland, where she was part of UMD’s Interfaith Campus Chaplaincy and a co-founder of UMD’s first Interfaith Student Fellowship.

Rabbi Aderet holds a certificate in Mindful Leadership in Higher Education from NYU’s Of Many Institute For Multifaith Leadership, is an AJWS Global Justice Fellow, and a fellow of RRC’s Campus Chaplaincy for a Multifaith World. She is an alumnus of the Gladstein Fellowship in Entrepreneurial Leadership, the Rabbis Without Borders Fellowship, and the Clergy Leadership Incubator. Rabbi Aderet loves traveling to different places, spending time by the water, cooking and coming up with new recipes, and having spontaneous dance parties with her husband, Brett, and two incredible daughters.

Rebekah Erev ha Kohenet is an artist, teacher, feminist, queer, dream worker, and healer living with disabilities. They are of Ashkenazi and Celtic Isles ancestry, living on the occupied lands of the Squaxin, Chehalis, and Nisqually people in Olympia, WA. In 2014 they self published the Moon Angels/ Malakh Halevanah Oracle Deck. They are joyfully working on Queer Mikveh Project – collaborating with the transformative power of water towards healing, liberation and justice from settler colonialism, assimilation and white supremacy and, The School of Letters – a class, oracle deck and book using the Hebrew letters and connections to plants, animals, the stars and hidden stories of diaspora. Their activist work includes leadership as a core member of SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice) and nationally they work with JVP (Jewish Voice for Peace). Learn more at: www.RebekahErevStudio.com

Mazal/Maz Etedgi (they/them/theirs), is a trans/non-binary artist, arab/mizrahi/amazigh jew, spoonie/chronically ill person, Drama Therapist, community facilitator, clown, poet, and herbal medicine maker living on Ohlone land in Huichin Village (Berkeley, CA). Maz utilizes imagination, play, and ritual as tools for liberation, healing and connection. They honor, study and practice the plant medicines, liturgy, piyutim (sacred songs) and rituals of their mizrahi, arab jewish and amazigh lineages. Their plantcestral herbal practice and apothecary (B’samim Apothecary) offers community herbal support through consultations, custom formulations and herbal ritual. They graduated with a Masters in Counseling Psychology and Drama Therapy in December 2020 from the California Institute of Integral Studies.

Gabriel currently works at the experience Documentation and Information Centre on Argentine Jewry, “Marc Turkow” Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA) since 2016. He provides administration of the different collections and attention to scholars and students from Argentina and abroad. He also coordinates 10 volunteers and oversees the assignment of tasks and monitoring and evaluation of results. Gabriel is also involved in interdisciplinary work with other areas for the creation of multimedia content. He has experience in the assistance in strategic planning with management positions as well as the generation of reports and presentations, budget management and relationship with suppliers. He has helped with the implementation of the “Creando Memoria” contest, aimed at high school students where they have contact with educational institutions and teachers and the development of activities (communication, selection of winners, awards).

Hindy Finman is a rabbinical student at Hebrew College and loves fusing her passion for Torah and commitment to normalizing mental health into her teachings. She enjoys challenging our traditions and texts to align with the here and now in nature’s classroom- the great outdoors. She is an avid dirt lover, be it ceramics, gardening, creating composting systems, or trying to understand the Earth’s messages.

Ash (they/them) is an East Coast-based, nonbinary, queer performance artist and storyteller specializing in drama education in Jewish spaces. They have over a decade of experience teaching in the arts, and have a special interest in examining and queering Jewish stories and Torah. Ash is a multimodal creator with a background in a variety of visual art forms, they are a passionate creative with a love for communication and personal growth.

Yael Flusberg is a yoga therapist, writer and coach who helps people find resiliency, relief and creativity in the midst of transition and loss, and in the aftermath of trauma. In her individual sessions, classes and training, Yael helps students assess their physical, psychological and spiritual health; learn evidence-based techniques that help them with their particular issues and conditions; and ultimately engage in sustainable yoga and other healing practices that helps them experience every season and stage of life as meaningful. The daughter of Holocaust-surviving immigrants and the first in her family to earn a college degree, Yael’s spiritual journey began as a small child attending an orthodox yeshiva, mesmerized with the rich storytelling and re-imagining that goes into every single sentence in the Bible. Her 19-poem collection, The Last of My Village, won Poetica Magazine’s 2010 Chapbook Contest; other work has appeared in Lilith, The Poetry of Yoga, on NPR’s Latino USA, and in many anthologies. In her 20s while working as a community organizer and social justice advocate for immigrant and refugee communities, she pursued studies in a range of mindfulness technologies, ranging from Kabbalah to Q’ero Andean to Terevada to Tibetan Buddhism to Yoga. Yael is affiliated with the GW Center for Integrative Medicine, and is the Board chair of Circle Yoga Cooperative in DC, and of Antidote, the nation’s only nonprofit that takes a public health approach to the issue of psychological manipulation of extremist organizations. More info at www.yaelflusberg.com

Alice Frank is creator of Silence Retreat at home retreat- ZEROBOX and teacher of silence. A Poet, Performance Artist, and Filmmaker, she was named one of the Top 100 Creatives Creating Change by ORIGIN Magazine. She has taught Shal(om) Yoga, which she created, for the past 18 years. Her short film, “Open,” (coming soon) defines her concept of Uniamory and navigates how to optimally spread love around the world. She is the creator of OnesiesForOneness.com and is a lover and teacher of Kabbalah. She is a dynamic speaker who has taught Public Speaking to Fortune-500 companies and Gubernatorial officials around the globe.

Rav Natan is a native of São Paulo, Brazil, currently serving as the rabbi of Congregation Etz Hayim in Arlington, VA. Ordained by the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, where he received the prize for Academic Excellence in Rabbinic Literature. He has served as a rabbinic intern at congregations in Marietta, Georgia; Los Angeles, California; and São Paulo, having experience teaching children and adults, staffing youth groups and summer camps, creating innovative family-oriented services, providing pastoral care, and leading large and small lifecycle events.

While studying in Israel, Rav Natan studied to become a shochet (ritual slaughterer) and later became the head mashgiach (Kashrut supervisor) for the American Jewish University and Camp Ramah in California. His rabbinic work also is informed by his background in business administration, marketing, entrepreneurship, and nonprofit management.

In his spare time, Rav Natan loves watching football, cooking, biking, studying Talmud, and talking about current events.

Kendra Fried is the founder of Neshamah Yoga & Wellness.™ She is a yoga therapist, educator, and facilitator of embodied Jewish devotion.

She is a board-certified holistic health counselor, and a graduate of the Yoga and Jewish Wisdom Teacher Training offered by Jewish Learning Works in San Francisco.

Kendra has been a specialist in the field of mind/body/spirit for 25 years. She leads Jewishly inspired classes and wellness retreats, independently and through organizations such as Moishe House, Camp Nai Nai Nai, and the Grief and Growing™ retreats offered by the Bay Area Jewish Healing Center. She has provided ECE courses for the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, to support self-regulation for teachers and their students. Kendra has also established a staff and clergy wellness initiative at Temple Isaiah in Lafayette, California, and has extended that to the Women’s Rabbinic Network.

Her soul’s passion and calling are to guide people inward on a journey toward healing, transformation, and a deeper connection to themselves and the Divine.

I am interested in the universal values that come through Judaism, such as truth, love, celebration, kindness, and beauty. I believe it is irrelevant how much someone ‘knows’.

Contemplative, honest, experiential, natural, free, & creative Judaism are phrases that relate to my orientation. ‘You are more important’ is a tenet of my approach.

My translation of the beginning of Genesis into English is currently in manuscript form. You can find me on both youtube and bandcamp. Based in Santa Fe, NM, I am sometimes available to travel.

Habla español. Thank you for your interest and inquiry.

Aaron Friedman, a stand-up comedian who performs for shuls and university Hillels, was recently named “Funniest Jew in New York” by The Jewish Week. He is a graduate of List College (JTS/Columbia) and in 2018 earned a Masters in Jewish Education from the Davidson School (Jewish Theological Seminary). He is currently leading the B’nei Mitzvah program at The Brotherhood Synagogue in New York City.

Originally from Toronto, Canada, Olivia spent 13 years as a student in the Jewish education system. Olivia was a head staff member at Camp Massad Manitoba, a pluralistic Hebrew immersion overnight camp where she lead programs on inclusion, Jewish identity, Jewish religion, and leadership. Over the past 3 years in Boston, she spent a great deal of time with the Moishe House, developing friendships and connections with the Jewish community. Olivia currently works as a Speech-Language Pathologist.

Olivia feels strongly connected to Judaism through art, film, comedy, food, and holiday customs. Her undergraduate thesis was on Jewish ritual objects of the Venetian Ghetto. Her most prized possessions are her great-great grandfather’s siddurim.

As the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor, Olivia attends as many survivor speakers as she can during Holocaust education week.

In her spare time, Olivia enjoys watching Hebrew movies and TV with English subtitles, hosting Shabbats, putting modern spins on her bubbie’s recipes, practicing mindfulness and yoga, and reading about modern Israeli politics. She was a participant of the March of the Living and Birthright, and volunteered with Jewish organizations in Toronto.

Talya Gillman develops resources and experiences that spark and support community-building and social justice, rooted in Thich Nhat Hanh’s teaching that “We are here to awaken from the illusion of our separateness.” Many experiences and relationships have fueled her commitment to building ecosystems of connection, dignity, equity and belonging: designing and leading experiential learning initiatives with organizations including Citizen University, Jewish Family Service (Seattle), University of Washington, and Repair the World; receiving a Covenant Foundation Pomegranate Prize for emerging Jewish educators; completing an M.A. in Transformational Leadership through Seattle University; organizing with anti-racist and immigrant justice networks in WA state, and nationally through Tzedek Lab; and serving as an AJWS World Partners Fellow doing harm reduction work with Sankalp Rehabilitation Trust in Mumbai. She loves music from all corners of the world, relishes a good novel, and makes a mean chocolate chip cookie.

Simona Gilman is a Cambridge, MA based Jewish educator. Focusing on the historical and cultural experiences of Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants, Simona has been leading Jewish history tours of greater Boston for the past several years and engaging the young Jewish professional community in the city. She has also led several series of learning workshops with Moishe House Cambridge, including a series on Jewish approaches to Health and Wellness. Other seminars include sessions during Shavout, Tisha B’av, and Pesach. In addition, Simona is an active member of the Russian Jewish Moishe House of Boston, leading several Shabbat and holiday events. Simona has also joined the Jewish Arts Collaborative as a chair of the Food Think Tank, crafting a history of Boston’s Jews through food.

Rabbi Megan is the new Executive Director at Tribe 12 and cannot wait to return to Philly with her family this spring!  Megan grew up in the Chicago suburbs where she found her voice as a Jewish leader at her Conservative youth group and Reform summer camp.  She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 with a B.A. in Psychology and Women’s Studies. Megan then went to work for the Hillel at Yale University where she discovered her passion for working with young people, and realized that rather than pursuing a PhD in Clinical psychology she wanted to use the Jewish tradition as a source of meaning to empower young adults to create their own rich Jewish identities and communities. Megan was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2014 and also received an MA in Jewish Gender and Women’s Studies and a certificate in Pastoral Care and Counseling.

Megan is an alumna of the Wexner graduate fellowship. Prior to joining Tribe 12, Megan served as Senior Base Rabbi at Metro Chicago Hillel where she spent six years leading and building the thriving Base network for Jews in their 20s and 30s. She also has a passion for travel and outdoor adventure- which has currently led her to forty-eight of the fifty states in the US.

Megan and her wife Paige, and their daughters Bri and Rori, are thrilled to join the Philly Jewish community and hope to meet you soon!

Rishe Groner is the creator of The Gene-Sis, a post-Hasidic movement toward embodied experience and personal growth through Jewish mystical texts. Rishe has over 20 years of experience in Jewish education, specializing in informal environments such as festivals, retreat centers and immersive experiences. Born in Australia, Rishe graduated from Monash University in Melbourne, Australia specializing in marketing and writing. She worked for over a decade as a senior marketing strategist across a variety of non-profits and corporate clients. In 2019, Rishe was named to the Forward’s “36 Under 36” for her work bringing Jewish ceremonies and workshops to the arts and nightlife scene. As a freelance writer, her work has appeared in Lilith, Tablet, Alma, The Times of Israel, and on www.thegene-sis.com. Her meditation and ritual series “Soulhacks” based on the practice of Sefirat Haomer and her weekly emails on Parshat Hashavua reach a diverse audience around the globe. Rishe is an experienced prayer leader and focuses on creating unique immersive ceremonies utilizing dance, music and meditation. She carries the lineage of the Chabad-Chassidic tradition of meditative music and prayer and is a teacher and songleader in the Israeli-based sacred song circle community as well as for a global online community. She has been featured educator at Jewish retreats including Moishe House, Isabella Freedman, Pearlstone Center and Limmud NYC. Rishe is a leader and teacher in the Jewish psychedelic movement and is pioneering a method of mystical text study, “Braided”. Rishe is currently studying for Rabbinic ordination at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City and a songleader at Nava Tehila in Jerusalem.

Independent researcher, professional guide, lecturer, museum curator & communications specialist. Research interests: Russian-Jewish literature, heritage of Jewish artists of Ukraine, history of the Jewish community of Odessa. Gera is the co-founder of the Odessa Jewish Film Festival, manager of the J-Camp (Jewish camp for children).

Sarah is a passionate and opinionated leader. She currently runs a social media platform where she combines fashion, food, and Judaism together. She often hosts educational lives where she interacts directly with her audience and has open ended conversation about life, mental health and Judaism. The online community she formed has given her the ability to host live events with an array of different companies. Sarah is known for her natural ability to socialize, and is a great communicator. She also hosts Challah bakes in her home for a group of local girls. Sarah and her husband Yoni host Shabbat meals for students and young adults that come from a variety of Jewish affiliation. Sarah is a York University graduate of B.A. in Humanities. During her undergraduate years, Sarah was a Hebrew Sunday school teacher for kids who attended public schools during the week. She also did a year of Community leadership at Chabad of York Mills in Toronto upon completion of her studies. She then moved to New York where she studied Theater Acting during the day and was a dorm counselor for seminary girls at night. After getting married, she taught at Brooklyn Heights Jewish Academy as a full time Hebrew and English studies teacher. Sarah’s passion for education continues to grow as she constantly questions and learns with herself and the people around her. She loves to share her knowledge and listen to other people’s opinions and thoughts on complex issues within Judaism and Philosophy. Sarah has done and continues to volunteer work in Jewish and non-Jewish environments (old age homes, soup kitchens, volunteering etc). Sarah is known for her inclusivity and work she does as her Tikkum Olam.

Ophir Haberer is a Men’s Retreat Facilitator and MenschUp Facilitator/coordinator for the Jewish Center for Domestic Abuse. Ophir, along with his brother Dor, has facilitated over 7 retreats and numerous workshops focused on creating immersive experiences for men to intimately relate to one another, claim more authentic expressions of themselves, and position themselves as better allies. Ophir has facilitated and consulted with numerous Jewish organizations around masculinity, Earth-based Judaism, and Sephardi/Mizrahi culture.

He is also a permaculture, culinary, rites-of-passage, and wilderness enthusiast/educator, self-published poet, and Esalen Massage practitioner. He is teaching currently an online series on ReWilding Judaism.

Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife (she/they) sprinkles sparkles, disrupts expectations, and offers blessings wherever she goes. She serves as Oreget Kehilah (Executive Director) of the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute, Founding Kohenet of Kesher Pittsburgh, and Program Director of the ALEPH Kesher Fellowship. She also enjoys working with Keshet and Beloved Builders, and serving on the board of Kavod v’Nichum. Additionally, she delights in serving as a shlichat tzibbur, life spiral ceremony/ritual creatrix, teacher, facilitator, liturgist and songstress. Her work in these realms is informed by her lived experience as a queer, bi-racial, Jewish Woman, her belief that Book, Body and Earth are equal sources of wisdom, and the quandries she encounters as a scholar of the Orphan Wisdom School. Keshira received Kohenet smicha in 2017 and earned her BS 2000 and MS 2001 at Carnegie Mellon University. After many years of traveling and living in Australia, she and her beloved once again make their home on Osage and Haudenosaunee land, also called Pittsburgh, PA. www.keshirahalev.com

Avigayil Halpern is studying toward rabbinic ordination as a member of Hadar’s Advanced Kollel. She holds a BA in Judaic Studies from Yale University, where she completed a senior thesis exploring Talmudic narratives of women engaged in Torah discourse and the implications of such stories for feminists committed to the study of Talmud today. Avigayil is trained as a Mikveh Guide through Rising Tide, the national network of community mikvaot, and is an alumna of the Drisha Institute and Midreshet Ein HaNatziv. She has written on issues of Judaism, gender, and the left in Jewish and other media, and has been an opinion columnist for the Yale Daily News. Currently, Avigayil is writing a weekly dvar Torah on the parsha incorporating queer and feminist insights through her newsletter, Approaching (avigayil.substack.com).

Heela lives and works in Florentine, Tel Aviv. Coming from an orthodox background in Jerusalem, Heela is a graphic designer (working at Eretz Nehedert tv show, among others), a cultural creator of colorful events around the city (notably, through collaborations with TEDER.FM and others), a member of Onya collective, the Florentine community garden, and a managing partner in CTLV urban tours. Heela is an urban activist and community organiser, taking part in most of the significant community struggles of recent years against the municipality’s unbalanced development plans for south Tel Aviv. In the past few years she’s been studying local edible flora and botanicals and leads seasonal urban foraging tours.

CTLV.org.il
Florentine Community Garden: https://www.facebook.com/Florentin2012/
Onya Collective: http://onyacity.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nomi.berg

Emma Howitt is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor and a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor. Originally from Houston, Emma earned her Bachelor’s in Psychology at Texas State University and her Master’s in Mental Health Counseling at Yeshiva University. Prior to working at Shalom Austin Jewish Family Service (JFS), Emma was a therapist at several non-profit behavioral health and substance abuse agencies in the Austin area. Emma brings more than ten years’ experience as a professional in non-profit organizations. Her counseling and therapeutic focus covers a range of needs, including individuals, couples and families dealing with issues such as depression, anxiety, self-esteem, substance abuse, relationships, and life transitions.

As a therapist and community educator with Shalom Austin JFS, Emma has facilitated many psychoeducation workshops and group therapy sessions that incorporate Judaism in mental health and substance abuse treatment. She has created programming specifically at the intersection of mental health and Judaism, including a community storytelling event which highlighted Austin Jews in recovery, an ongoing Mood and Mindfulness workshop, and Shalom Village, a supportive social group for new Jewish parents. Emma is also a Gottman Institute-trained facilitator for the renowned couples’ workshop, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work.

https://shalomaustin.org/jfs-staff/#howitt

Miriam Kanani, M.A. is a singer, educator, storyteller, and Jewish ritual leader and would love to support you in your next Moishe House Retreat. Miriam cna be found leading prayers, running teen programs, running summer camp, leading text studies, and playing Jewish music. She has supported two Moishe House Retreats and is able to support in the Jewish component and in the overall planning of the retreat.

Miriam attained her Master’s Degree from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. She holds a Multi-Subject California Teaching Credential, as well a certificate in Jewish Education from Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles. She has taught children of all ages around the Bay Area and has been a Hebrew teacher at Congregation Beth El in Berkeley for the past 6 years. She is an educator with over 17 years experience in the Jewish education world, and has taught in both preschools, elementary schools, synagogues, Jewish summer camps, and informal Jewish education programs. Miriam’s Area of Expertise is Jewish music, storytelling, ritual leadership, and teaching.

Jewish educator specializing in History, Holocaust and gender issues in the Jewish world. I have a long history in the hadrajati field and working as a teacher in different academic fields (secondary and Jewish institutions).

Dmitry is a Cantor with ROOPI (Religious Association of Communities of Progressive Judaism), a professional musician, and he conducts training courses for Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Being the only cantor for the progressive Judaism communities in the former USSR, Dmitry regularly participates in seminars, conducts services and master classes in the communities of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states. The music for prayers is the music of his heart and in his work, the motives of Jewish, Ukrainian and Russian folklore were combined.

Pippi Kessler is a nationally-recognized organizational psychologist, facilitator, trainer, and leadership coach, and has trained thousands of people at nonprofits, universities, schools, and activist groups across the country. Her coaching approach draws on ethical leadership techniques, systems theory, and social psychological research to help people translate their principles into concrete practices and behaviors, and work towards building a life and work life that they love and feel proud of. She is the New York Coordinator of the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable and received her M.A. in Social-Organizational Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. To book a workshop or coaching session with Pippi, visit pippikessler.org.

An Endless Passion for Music, for Voices, for Connection, Community & Healing.

Charlie Kramer is song & spirit.

Legally blind and with an acoustic guitar, Charlie Kramer unites, magnetizes and elevates the communities around him. A touring songleader, artist, spiritual leader and communal healer, Charlie has sung with communities throughout North America, Israel and Australia.

Founder and Creative Director of the blindfolded singing and healing experience, ​Singing in the Dark​,​ Charlie shares the story of his blindness across the world through music and meditation, helping others to face their challenges and uncover the many blessings within their lives.

In addition to his work leading, recording, healing and facilitating Singing in the Dark, Charlie serves as the Musician in Residence for Wilshire Boulevard Temple and the Music Director of Wilshire Boulevard Temple Camps, Camp Hess Kramer and Gindling Hilltop Camp (clap clap!).

Charlie is the host of two Podcasts, ​The Charlie Kramer Podcast ​and Jewish Rock Radio’s ​JRR Artist Feature. ​You can listen to Charlie’s podcasts​ ​here. Charlie is recognized as a Featured Artist on Jewish Rock Radio and serves as a Core Educator at the Songleader Bootcamp National Conference.

Charlie is set to release his debut album in the Spring of 2021, titled ​Blind. Charlie’s EP, ​We Will Overcome​ and singles ​Bring it Down (Oseh Shalom) ​& We Will Rise​ are available for streaming on​ ​Spotify​ and​ ​Apple Music.​

Want to know more about Charlie? Learn more at www.charliekramermusic.com

Arielle Krule works at Hillel’s Office of Innovation. In her role, she supports and trains Jewish educators to build cohort-based Jewish learning experiences for young adults. Arielle is a student in the Yeshivat Maharat Beit Midrash Program. Arielle is also a social worker at a clinic in Brooklyn and the founder and Director of the CUNY Hillel Social Work Fellowship for MSW candidates across the New York City area. She and her husband Jackson live in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where they are community conveners, Burning Man alumni, Prospect Heights Shul members, dance party enthusiasts, and artisanal challah bakers. Previously, Arielle was a birth doula, yoga teacher, and women’s health educator.

Nature is a tremendous well-spring of Jewish spirituality as well as a source of many of our Jewish traditions and Mitzvoth. Josh brings nature and Judaism alive on walks, hikes, canoe trips and multi-day adventures. Creation is at the Beginning of the Torah because nature and all its elements are the building blocks that Abraham, Sara, Miriam, Moses and all our ancestors used to experience God and spirituality. Nature connects us to our true inner neshamas, as well as our friends and community. Josh uses nature to build connections to our traditions, ancestors and descendants as well as create bridges to having a good time outdoors! From building forts, making one-match fires and general bushcraft activities, Creation comes alive in fun and meaningful ways for participants in Josh’s programs.

Nechama Shaina is an expressive arts therapist that utilizes dance, visual arts and drama in her therapy practice with both groups and individuals. Nechama also has a strong background as a Jewish educator, inspired by mystical teachings and traditions. Nechama is an artist and Hebrew scribe. She is passionate about integrating spirituality and personal, trans personal and interpersonal growth. Nechama also has training in dream work, meditation, mindfulness and “Avodat haLev’ song/prayer leading.

She has worked with organizations as an educator such as Hazon the contemporary Jewish museum of San Francisco and local synagogues and schools.

Sarah Langer currently lives in Chicago, IL where she works in real estate, while balancing her work life with mindfulness practices. She is a Certified Mindfulness & Wellbeing Strategist through the United Nations University for Peace and received a Certificate in Jewish Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She specializes in leading mindfulness workshops and retreats focused on meditation and journaling. She serves in various leadership roles throughout the Jewish community including staffing Birthright, as a coach for OneTable, Moishe House Without Walls host, and Jewish United Fund committee member.

Yoni Levinger is an active Jewish community member and educator in San Diego. He holds a B.A. in Business Communications from F.D.U. in Teaneck, NJ and had also spent four years studying Torah and Judaism in Jerusalem and Connecticut. Shortly after arriving in San Diego in 2014, Yoni was invited to be the Education Committee Board Chair for Jewish Federation’s NextGen board. With their support, he has spearheaded a very successful Jewish learning program called Torah on Tap which invites local Rabbis to connect and learn with young adults at different breweries and bars across the city. Yoni has also created another new NextGen program called Chavurah Learning Space which is an in-depth Torah text study discussion that focuses on a variety of Jewish principles and themes. He is the lead educator for this Chavurah event.

Yoni has been the co-creator and main educator for two peer-lead Moishe House retreats and has utilized several different styles of learning including 1-on-1 Chavrusa, small group break-out sessions and leading the large group discussion. He has covered both traditional Jewish topics such as Pirkei Avot, Sinai Experience, and Women in the Torah as well as more modern themes like Gratitude, Love, Pleasure, and Kindness.

In addition to teaching, Yoni has also led other sessions including Friday night prayer services, Hebrew chanting/singing, Yin Yoga and Mindfulness Meditation. In his free time, you can probably find him jamming away in a drum circle or enjoying some beach-front yoga.

Piero studied at Beit Hamechanech Hahieudi (The House of the Jewish Educator) in Argentina and at Yad Vashem in Israel. He is an expert in Jewish values and has experience working in huge and small communities. He has expertise in combining traditions and new meanings.

Kiki Lipsett is a musician, educator, performer, and prayer leader. Her work meets at the intersection of social justice and music. She is a professionally trained vocalist, pianist, and guitar player and has a background in musical theater performance. Kiki uses her music and arts training to support youth experiencing homelessness to develop their unique voices and to elevate their songs and stories. She also regularly leads music for Shabbat and High Holiday services and is involved in musical projects for community-building and for individuals who are ill or grieving.

Kiki is known in the Bay Area for writing, directing, producing, and performing in “Irreverently Yours, The Shushan Queens,” an annual, politically satirical, feminist, musical comedy for Purim all in rhyme. She and her cast have performed to sold out Bay Area audiences each year for the past 3 years. While on a fellowship in Israel/Palestine, she created and performed an original one-woman show called, “The Land is Shaking,” exploring the relationship between land and identity.

Kiki is also a creative consultant and musical content creator. She works with individuals, organizations, and companies to create original or parody songs for events, marketing, or just for fun.

Cantor Abbe Lyons is dedicated to enhancing the spiritual and emotional power of music and Jewish learning in everyday life as well as in sacred spaces. She is on the faculty at ALEPH Ordination Programs, where she received smicha as Hazzan (Cantor) in 2010. She is Jewish Chaplain at Ithaca College, where she received a B.Mus. in voice performance in 1987, and also works for Hillel at Binghamton.

Cantor Lyons is an innovative liturgist and composer whose published work includes poetry, alternative social justice haftarot, and original music on the album Listen! with her multifaith band, Resonate, and solo album Household Chores. She is a dynamic SpeakChorus Torah group midrash facilitator, and offers Contemplative Torah groups and presentations/performances on Jewish Communities Around the World Through Music. Current projects include multigender and nonbinary liturgy and Torah translations.

If you want to explore your identity, values, beliefs or want to think about where you fit in a larger community – be it Jewish or secular – David Manchester brings the background and materials you need.

David is the Associate Director of Impact Assessment and Learning at the Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP), Greater Boston’s Jewish Federation. In his role he supports efforts to measure the impact generated through communal giving. Additionally, he is a Ph.D. candidate in social policy at Brandies University and a Berman Fellow in Jewish Socio-Demographic Studies.

He previously lived in Washington, DC where he began his career as a legislative assistant for Hadassah’s Washington Action Office. He then became an operations analyst at Blackboard, Inc., where he honed his skills in quantitative metrics and evaluation. Growing up in Scarsdale, NY, he was active at Westchester Reform Temple. David recently completed 12 years of service on the Board of Directors of American University Hillel. During that time, he was instrumental in reinvigorating the organization leading a reorganization and recruiting a new, executive director.

Dr. C. Tova Markenson is a writer and theatre artist currently based in Berlin, Germany. As a scholar-artist, she weaves together story, humor, and song to offer gentle pathways into healing intergenerational trauma.

After receiving her doctorate from the Interdisciplinary PhD in Theatre and Drama at Northwestern University in 2020, Tova moved to Germany to begin a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Research on Antisemitism (TU Berlin). She is currently working on a book about gender, performance, and Jewish migration from Germany to Argentina entitled “Present to the Past: Making Sense of Shame in Yiddish Theatre History.” Her writing also appears in Modern Drama, Theatre Topics, Theatre Journal, Theatre Research International, and In geveb: A Journal of Yiddish Studies. Her work has been recognized by the Latin American Jewish Studies Association, the American Society for Theatre Research, The Sexualities Project at Northwestern, the Chicago YIVO Society, among other institutions. Dr. Markenson is also a member of the Digital Yiddish Theatre Project (https://web.uwm.edu/yiddish-stage/).

Jewish mindfulness practices nourish Tova’s creative praxis. Since 2013 she has participated in twice-yearly meditation retreats in Jewish and Buddhist settings. She completed a Jewish Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Training through the Institute for Jewish Spirituality in 2019 and also has been trained in a trauma-healing modality called Somatic Experiencing. As a meditation guide, Tova has had the privilege of sharing in the mystery of the present moment with individuals and groups through her leadership in Mishkan Chicago, Moishe House, and Orot: Center for New Jewish Learning. She currently serves as a co-teacher for The Compassion Project, a six-week Jewish mindfulness course for social service providers.

Tova brings a deep commitment to anti-oppression work to her creative praxis. Her devotion to co-creating spaces that rehearse a better world is informed by her experience advocating for survivors of intimate-partner violence during Avodah: The Jewish Service Corps (2012-2013) and returning to land-based Jewish practices during Adamah: The Jewish Environmental Fellowship (Fall 2013). She loves singing harmony, making mosaics, and learning new ‘90s pop songs on the ukulele.

Jake Marmer is a poet, performer, and educator. He is the author of three poetry collections: Cosmic Diaspora (Station Hill Press, 2020), as well as The Neighbor Out of Sound (2018) and Jazz Talmud (2012), both from The Sheep Meadow Press. He also released two klez-jazz-poetry records: Purple Tentacles of Thought and Desire (2020, with Cosmic Diaspora Trio), and Hermeneutic Stomp (Blue Fringe Music, 2013). Jake is the poetry critic for Tablet Magazine. Born in the provincial steppes of Ukraine, in a city that was renamed four times in the past 100 years, Jake lives in the Bay Area. For more information, see HTTP://www.jakemarmer.com

Arya Marvazy, Managing Director, JQ International
Arya is a first-generation American born to Iranian-Jewish immigrants. Raised in Los Angeles, and driven by human connection, Arya earned his B.A. in psychology at UC San Diego, and completed an M.A. in organizational behavior at NYU. Raised as a cultural Jew with less formal Jewish education, involvement with his undergraduate Hillel shaped the trajectory of his adult life and career. In 2015, he returned to LA after ten years between San Diego, Tel Aviv, and D.C., encouraged by his ability to fully come out as a gay man to his family. Soon after, Arya began a body of work he had dreamt of advocating for the full equality of LGBTQ+ people and community. Arya has advanced from consultant to assistant director to managing director of JQ, an LGBTQ+ Jewish non-profit that transforms Jewish communities by ensuring inclusion through education, support, and identity-enrichment. His dedication to the Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities earned him a spot on LA Jewish Journal’s 30 Under 30 list, IranWire’s 50 Iranian-Americans You Should Know, and most recently the 2019 JPro Young Professional Award.

David Maxa is a young, smart and very accessible rabbi. He serves at the Progressive Jewish Community Ec chajim in Prague, which he co-founded in 2019, as well as at the Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic. In addition to it, he serves as Convenor of the Central European Beit Din, a Progressive rabbinic court for the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. He focuses on making Judaism accessible in post-Shoah Europe and educating people about finding answers to the issues of the modern world in traditional Jewish texts. He speaks English, German, Hebrew, and Czech. David is married to Judita Bergmann and they have the two year old son Rafael.

Shalom has been serving his community for over 10 years. He helps people to relax, heal, find overall balance, and deepen their connection to Spirit in order to live a healthier, more meaningful life. After living, learning, and teaching in Asia, India, and Israel for almost four years, Shalom returned home with a Rabbinical certificate, two separate 200-hour YTTC (yoga teacher training certifications) in Hatha and Vinyasa yoga, and a certification in Levels 1, 2, and Master Level Reiki. Shalom is also a well-known sound healer in Portland OR, offering monthly group sound healing, trainings, and wellness retreats.

https://www.facebook.com/Shalom360/

Instagram: omshalom.pdx

Shua Mermelstein is an ordained rabbi (Yeshiva University – 2020) and a Yale educated Lawyer. Shua holds a B.A. in economics from Yeshiva University. Between high school and college, he studied for three years at Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh in Israel. Shua has taught Torah at synagogues in Israel, Nashville, Washington D.C. and New York City. At YU, he has completed a full course load on Jewish Law, including laws of Kosher, Shabbat, and Family. Previously, he worked as a rabbinic intern at the Manhattan Jewish Experience, and he is now the Covering Rabbi at Congregation Adereth El in Manhattan.

Rabbi Mintz is the current Rabbi of B’nai Israel The Downtown Synagogue. Rabbi Mintz lectures widely throughout the Baltimore community. He is active in community affairs, serving on the Executive Committee of Historic Jonestown, Inc., and various Associated Jewish Federation’s foundations and commissions.

Rabbi Mintz served for five years as Associate Rabbi at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale. He also taught Jewish thought, text and practice at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Maryland, and has served as a summer rabbi at The Hampton Synagogue in Westhampton Beach, NY.

He received his pastoral counseling training through a year-long chaplain residency program at the University of Virginia Health System, where he counseled individuals of all faiths in times of crisis. Rabbi Mintz is a senior rabbinic fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute, and a long time group leader with the American Jewish World Service. Some of his fondest and earliest rabbinical experiences have included leading Passover seders in the Former Soviet Union and High Holiday services at Rashi’s shul in Worms, Germany.

He studied for two years at Yeshivat Sha’alvim in Israel, and received rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. He also holds a Masters Degree in Jewish Philosophy and Mysticism from the Bernard Revel Graduate School, and an M.P.A. from the Kennedy School at Harvard University.