Leadership is a partnership between our inspiring clergy, our friendly and helpful staff and our dedicated lay leaders.
Rabbi David K. Holtz
rabbi@tba-ny.org
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Rabbi David Holtz was ordained at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1987. After serving six years as the Associate Rabbi at Har Sinai Congregation in Baltimore, he was called to the pulpit of Temple Beth Abraham in 1993, where he continues to serve as spiritual leader.
In addition to his many congregational responsibilities, Rabbi Holtz is very involved in the local community. He is a past-president of the Westchester Board of Rabbis, made up of rabbis of every denomination. He has chaired the Rivertowns Clergy Association, which works to improve interfaith relations, and which serves as an important moral voice in the community. He has twice served as president of the Rotary Club of the Tarrytowns, a service organization which helps fund local and international non-profits. He also teaches community-wide Adult Education courses, and is a guest-speaker on a variety of subjects. Rabbi Holtz lives in White Plains with his wife, Renée. They have three children, Holly, Avi and Shira.
Cantor Lauren Phillips Fogelman
cantor@tba-ny.org
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Praised for her “blithe, welcoming voice,” (Chicago Classical Review), Cantor Lauren Phillips Fogelman began her tenure at Temple Beth Abraham in July 2023. She was ordained by the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 2013 and holds degrees from Tufts University and The Boston Conservatory.
Highlights from Cantor Fogelman’s career include singing the National Anthem at a Milwaukee Brewers game, performing at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center as a member of Hazamir: The International Teen Choir, and serving on faculty at the North American Jewish Choral Festival. Cantor Fogelman is a proud member of the American Conference of Cantors and serves on the Executive Committee for Transcontinental Music Publications (TMP), the world’s leading publisher of Jewish music. Her compositions are included in TMP’s Shabbat Anthology IX and Manginot: The Complete Jewish Songbook for Children, Volume III. A lifelong New Yorker, Cantor Fogelman lives on Croton-on-Hudson, NY with her husband, Dan, and sons, Alex and Evan. For more information, please visit www.cantorlauren.com.
Erica Newman, Director of Operations and Engagement
enewman@tba-ny.org
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From the moment she walked into TBA, Erica and her husband Rob knew they belonged, so it was easy for them to understand the TBA tagline, “Join us, You already belong.” Now she is thrilled to join again as Director of Operations and Engagement.
She is a wife of 23 years to her husband, Rob; mother to two beautiful college-aged daughters, Samantha and Nicole; an adoptee of two adorable dogs, Lucy and Rascal, and let’s not forget the 8 chickens in her yard. When not at TBA she can be found in the kitchen cooking up a storm as she jams out to tunes from the 60’s and 70’s or in the garden harvesting herbs, fruits and vegetables. She is an avid pro-Israel activist who fights for a strong US/Israel relationship in our congressional landscape, and she is 100% committed to the future of the TBA community.
Please stop by anytime to say hi, maybe get a dozen eggs, or some berries that she is happy to share from their garden and kibbitz about initiatives at TBA or the latest pro-Israel candidate for congress.
Stessa Peers, Director of Education and Youth Engagement
speers@tba-ny.org
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Stessa Peers has a passion for Judaic History with a focus on “minority within minority” history (Jewish women, Jews of the Mediterranean and Middle East, and Jews of Color) that was solidified during her years of study at Binghamton University, where she received a double degree in History and Judaic Studies.
Stessa loves teaching at TBA and helping our children cultivate a lifelong passion for Judaism, leadership, social justice and tikkun olam. She is also a lifelong member of TBA and is proud to give back to the community in which she grew up.
Irene Metz, Clergy Coordinator
clergyassistant@tba-ny.org
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Irene Metz has been the Clergy Coordinator at Temple Beth Abraham since 2014. She is a long-standing member at Community Synagogue of Rye where her personal volunteer involvement has grown over the years. She has served on several committees, participated on search committees, was on the Board of Trustees, and most recently served as Congregational President. Her professional career of 35 years was in supply chain management at Scholastic, Inc. (publisher of children’s books, including Harry Potter and Hunger Games). When that concluded, the logical step for the next phase of her career was to combine her prior work experience with her commitment to the Jewish community – Temple Beth Abraham is that perfect workplace. She feels particularly lucky to have two synagogues to call home!
She and her husband Jonathan live in Rye Brook. They have 2 adult children who are married and scattered across the country – and 2 adorable grandchildren. Irene enjoys attending theater, reading, gardening, learning in Torah classes, and spending time with family and friends.
Melissa Baer, Administrative Assistant
tbaoffice@tba-ny.org
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Kira Gleit, Religious School Assistant
hebrewschool@tba-ny.org
Jaime Valencia, Facilities Supervisor
facilities@tba-ny.org
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Lay Leadership At Temple Beth Abraham
Volunteer leaders guide many Temple Beth Abraham activities as members of our Board of Trustees, and committee chairs.
The Board of Trustees is elected at the Annual Congregational Meeting.
| OFFICERS | ||||
| Co-Presidents | Herb Baer Brian Schneider |
President@tba-ny.org | ||
| First Vice President | Amy Zerman | ExecutiveVP@tba-ny.org | ||
| Second Vice President | Liz Ross | VP@tba-ny.org | ||
| Recording Secretary | Mark Polisar | RecordingSecretary@tba-ny.org | ||
| Treasurer/Finance Chair | David Greenspoon | Treasurer@tba-ny.org | ||
| COMMITTEE CHAIRS | ||||
| Adult Education | Claire Zucker | AdultEd@tba-ny.org | ||
| Board of Education | Amy Shapiro-Kessler | BoardofEd@tba-ny.org | ||
| Fundraising & Development | Jenny Libien | Fundraising@tba-ny.org | ||
| House, Health & Security | Neil Bruckner Jamie Wilson |
House@tba-ny.org | ||
| Member Services | Jennifer Povman Loretta London |
MemberServices@tba-ny.org | ||
| Early Education Center | Cindy Collins Jamie Lefkowitz |
VPNursery@tba-ny.org | ||
| Ritual | Melissa Stein | Ritual@tba-ny.org | ||
| Tikkun Olam | Lisa Piedimonte Bergman Jennifer Lewin |
TikkunOlam@tba-ny.org | ||
| Israel | Marla Peers | IsraelCommittee@tba-ny.org | ||
| TRUSTEES | ||||
| Term Expiring 2025 | Lee Lefkowitz | |||
| Tracy Ostroff | ||||
| Bernice Rogowitz | ||||
| Harry Stein | ||||
| Term Expiring 2026 | Emily Chazen | |||
| Steve Gosset | ||||
| Jon Strom | ||||
| Risa Swersey | ||||
| Term Expiring 2027 | Judith Balsan | |||
| Audrey Gelfand | ||||
| Marc Solomon | ||||
| Sarah Winston | ||||
| Honorary Trustees | ||||
| Barry S. Agdern | Dr. Stephen Gerstman | Farron Roboff | ||
| Herb Baer | Robert Harris | Pearl Ann Schwartz | ||
| Ruth Biloon | Liza Karsten | Dr. Richard Weiner | ||
| Allison Fine | Jennifer Povman | Jamie Wilson | ||
| Audrey Gelfand | Loren Ratner |
