About Beth Am Israel
located in the heart of the western suburbs (Main Line) of Philadelphia.
Our address is: 1301 Hagys Ford Road, Penn Valley, PA 19072
Our phone number is: 610.667.1651
Our FAX is: 610.667.7860
You can email us at: info@BethAmIsrael.org
Our Mission
We, at Beth Am Israel, seek to integrate Torah (learning and practice), Avodah (prayer or worship) and Gemilut Hasadim (acts of caring) within an engaged, Shabbat-centered community. We strive to support all of our members and to build a connection to Klal Ysrael (the entire Jewish community) through lifelong Jewish learning and action.
Our mission is to develop a community that supports each member’s ability to relate to the world in a way that infuses life with sacred purpose.
Guiding Principles
- Beth Am Israel strives to be a home to Jews who want to create a sacred community, where meaningful Jewish experiences integrate our heritage, teachings, and history.
- Beth Am Israel strives for the active engagement of each member in a spiritual, moral, learning and socially responsible community.
- Shabbat is the center of our community. We come together as an intergenerational community in Tefillah and Jewish learning to incorporate the experience of Shabbat into other aspects of life.
- Beth Am Israel is an intimate community sharing with members in their times of joy and supporting them in their times of sorrow within the rhythms of the Jewish calendar and throughout the life cycle.
- Beth Am Israel blends a pluralistic approach to Jewish thought and practice and an obligation to engage seriously in Judaism together, as part of a single community. Our ritual practices reflect both the Congregation’s commitment to the Conservative Jewish traditions and a focus on renewal and openness to innovation. It is our obligation to continue to engage in self-reflection and renewal through informed dialogues led by our Rabbi and lay leadership.
- As befitting our name, Beth Am Israel strives to deepen our connections to Klal Ysrael, to the unity of the Jewish people, here, in Israel and around the world.
- Beth Am Israel integrates both our devotion to our personal spiritual and social needs with commitment to the problems of the broader Jewish community and our universal obligations as human beings.
| Professional Leadership | |
|---|---|
| Rabbi | |
| Hazzan | Harold Messinger [Bio] |
| Executive Director | Grace Gershkoff |
| Educational Director | Robin Kahn [Bio] |
| Synagogue Educator/Education Assistant | Diana Wilson [Bio] |
| Founding Rabbi | Morris S. Goodblatt z"l |
| Officers and Directors | |
| President | Mitch Wienick |
| Treasurer | Adam Cutler |
| Financial Secretary | Michelle Narin |
| Recording Secretary | Sandy Friedlander |
| Vice Presidents | Andrea Weiss, Elisa Abeloff, Noah Charlson, Ray Solomon, Spencer Rand, Carol Orenstein |
| Directors | Marci Wilf, Kevin Sultanik, Shelley White, Steve Sittenfield, Pnina Siegler, Mona Safarty, Jackie Needleman, Leslie Solin, Gaby Lipkin, Craig Lichtman, Phyllis Kosherick, Andrea Kahn-Kothman, Margolit Hillsberg, Linda Heller, Suzy Dayanim, Barbara Cooper, Deborah Aaronson, Randi Grimes |
| Committees and Chairs | |
| Art | Hope Friewald |
| Bar/Bat Mitzvah Liaison | Deb Aronson |
| BAI Chai (Israel Affairs) | Maurice Schweitzer |
| Communications |
Elisa Abeloff (Co Chair) Sandy Friedlander (Co Chair) Nick Fiekowsky(Listservs) Marc Slovak (Website) |
| Programming/Calendar | Shelley White Pam Manlin |
| Compensation | Rick Horowitz |
| Education | Spencer Rand Corinne Hackman |
| Empty Nesters/54+ | Linda Heller Natalie Landro |
| Environmental Action | Fred Baurer Mona Sarfaty |
| Facilities Rental/Use | Lisa Pliskin |
| Finance | Adam Cutler |
| Capital Campaign | Jeanne DeVine Ray Solomon |
| G'milut Hasadim/Tikkun Olam | Jackie Needleman Gaby Lipkin |
| House | Jeff Levine Kevin Sultanik |
| IT Committee | Open |
| Kehillat Lower Merion | Linda Heller |
| Listserv Oversight Committee |
Diane Nissen Ken Podell Eddie Ohlbaum Nick Fiekowsky |
| Learning Council | Andrew Cohn |
| Membership |
Ed Siebert Ken Podell |
| Religious Life | David Cohen Steve Sittenfield |
| Rosh Chodesh | Pnina Siegler |
| Security | Charlie Ehrlich |
| Tot Shabbat | Jennifer Fried Sam Apple |
| Please Touch Shabbat | Leah Charlson Kes Messinger |
| Ushering | Nick Fiekowsky |
