I worked closely with board members, executive director, and clergy staff to found the first Temple Sholom inclusion committee. Together, we designed a community-wide inclusivity needs assessment to facilitate equitable treatment and a welcoming environment for all congregants and staff. We established a gender-neutral bathroom, the addition of matriarchs to daily prayer liturgy, and accessible family services for differentiated learners, diverse families, and congregants with disabilities.

Pictured: interactive sermon from family Rosh Hashanah service based on the synagogue-wide theme of inclusion for High Holidays 2019.

I host scholars-in-residence to model celebrations of diverse Jewish life for congregants of all ages. Past speakers have included Noam Sienna, editor of A Rainbow Thread: An Anthology of Queer Jewish Texts from The First Century to 1969 and Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, the first blind, female Rabbi. I collaborate with Keshet in crafting tailored professional development for senior staff and Hebrew school staff focused on creating a welcoming synagogue and working with diverse populations in the classroom and beyond. Pictured: scholar-in-residence Noam Sienna teaches fifth and six graders about Jewish scribal traditions, modeling an egalitarian approach to sofrut (scribal arts used in Torah scrolls and mezuzah).

I collaborate with many local Jewish organizations and Jewish leaders of all ages to organize intra-faith events to promote unity within the local Jewish community regardless of affiliation. I share the “good news” of my home synagogue through many of these opportunities for outreach. As a member of the Westchester Jewish Council, I co-planned the first Mosaic Pride Passover Seder and co-organized the Westchester Jewish Council’s NYC Pride March delegations in 2019. I also facilitated the 2020 Lag Ba’Omer Zoom Celebration, a pluralistic event led by local Jewish teens.