Staff and Board

Education Director — Zehava Dahan
Contact educator@orshalom.org

“For me," she says, "the most exciting aspect of working in a congregational school is the creation of a warm environment through a wide partnership of teachers, parents Zehava Dehan has worked as a Jewish educator in the Bay Area for 25 years, both as a classroom teacher and as an administrator. and students." Her goal is to use that partnership to develop inquisitive, engaged, caring and happy children who will become lifelong learners and compassionate human beings. This, she says, is "essential and central to the mission and vision of Or Shalom.”

Zehava has worked as department head of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at Brandeis Hillel Day School in San Francisco and as a preschool teacher, as well as a classroom teacher to first- through eighth-graders.

"I learned much from my teachers, more from my colleagues, and most from my pupils." (Yehuda haNasi, in Ta’anit 7a)

Music Director — David Cohen-Tzedek
Contact music@orshalom.org

David Cohen-Tzedek grew up in the wheat fields and orange groves of the Judean Israeli born Foothills and spent his teens and early twenties in the rock clubs, concert halls and art galleries of Tel Aviv, where he was a bandleader, songwriter and choral singer. His band, The Fluorescents (in Hebrew: Lahakat Hazoharim), is hailed by many as among the most important contributors to the Israeli underground scene of the 1990s.  Music Director at Or Shalom since 2004, David was trained in composition and improvisation at Mills College, where he studied with Zeena Parkins, Roscoe Mitchell, Fred Frith and Maggi Payne.  His recent appearances as vocalist include Xavier Veilhan’s Studio Venezia (2017 Venice Biennale), Brett Carson’s Mysterious Descent (Center for New Music SF), Naomi Rincon Gallardo’s Formaldehyde Trip (SFMOMA, The Broad LA) and Tectonics Festival (Tel Aviv).

By reintroducing dream, spontaneity, and risk into contemporary Jewish ritual, David upsets conventional worship formats and provokes spiritual freedom-taking.  He is dedicated to communal musical creativity and takes continual pleasure in deepening Jewish practice through music-making.

Administrator — Lillian Markind

Contact admin@orshalom.org

Originally from the Philadelphia area, Lillian has lived in a variety of places including Los Angeles, Pittsburgh PA, Manhattan, San Francisco, and rural Wisconsin. She returned to the Bay Area in 2014 and landed in Brisbane, just a few miles down the road. Formerly in biotech, she took many years off from the professional workforce and became heavily involved in school volunteering, teaching Zumba, and becoming a substitute teacher. She is currently on the boards of Brisbane Dance Workshop, BEST/PTO, and successfully ran for public office in 2016 to be a Trustee of the Brisbane School District.

She shares her home with her husband Mike Lelivelt, who works for a start-up Biotech company.  Together, they have David who became a Bar Mitzvah in May of 2017 and is a Freshman in high school.  Naomi, their youngest, is 12 and in 7th grade. She is busy in dance, gymnastics, and attending Bet Sefer at Or Shalom!

Administrative Assistant/Social Action Fellow — Ezra Leventhal

Contact assistant@orshalom.org

Ezra Leventhal is originally from San Jose. She graduated from UC Davis in 2015 with degrees in Political Science and Religious Studies. After college, she worked in the corporate world while taking volunteer positions furthering her true passion for Judaism and social justice. In her time as a Jeremiah Fellow with Bend the Arc, she met Ben Cohn, who recommended her as his replacement when he left Or Shalom. Ezra was thrilled to leave the cubicle life and make her passion her profession.

In addition to her position at Or Shalom, Ezra teaches Hebrew School and serves as Clergy Assistant at Congregation Beth El in Berkeley. In her spare time, she enjoys listening to too many musical soundtracks and queer and feminist text study (everything from Torah to bad TV!). She is proud to announce that she has, at long last, become a Bat Mitzvah at Kehilla Community Synagogue, and she is overjoyed that so many Or Shalomers joined her for this Simcha!

Board of Directors

To place an item on the board's agenda, contact a member of the executive committee. The executive committee is comprised of the president, vice president, immediate past president, secretary
The board meets monthly to make the decisions that guide our community.and treasurer.

2018-2019 Board of Directors

President – Janet Jacobs

Past President – Judy Olasov

Secretary – Sue Schechter

Treasurer - Debbie Benrubi

Chairs and Board Representatives

Adult Ed & Music – Jurate Raulinaitis

Chesed – Saralie Pennington (rep) & Norisa Berardi

FDC – Seraph White

Member-at-large – Scott Falcone

Membership – Barbara Bernstein (rep) & Rori Reber

Minhag – Joel Rubinstein

Personnel – Leslie Roffman (rep) & Stacey Leyton

Religious School – Matt Rudoff

Tikkun Olam – Wendy Thurm