The Council’s Annual Gala was held in person on Saturday, February 1st, 2025 at Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains, NY. We honored Betty Berenson, Richard Spitz and Robert Shasha – The Cotswold Group. Comedian Jon Fisch entertained the crowd.
Enjoy more photos here.
To view the Journal, click here.
To view the honoree ceremony, click here.
The Council’s Annual Gala was held on Saturday, January 27, 2024 at Congregation Kol Ami. We honored Sarene Shanus, Harold Treiber, Michele Gregson and Jeremy Abramson, The Premier Collection. Ben Nemzer, magician and mentalist, provided the entertainment.
The Council’s Annual Gala was held on Saturday, February 4, 2023 at Congregation Kol Ami. WE honored Pam and Bruce Wexler, Steven L. Young and Alan Weissman, Alfred Weissman Real Estate, LLC.
The Council’s Annual Gala was held in person and virtually on Saturday, February 5th, 2022 at Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains, NY. We honored Marc Klee and Jen Sokol, Council Board members and RPW Group, Inc., Robert P. Weisz and Andrew Weisz. Six13 entertained us with their music.
The Council’s Annual Gala was held virtually on January 30, 2021. We honored Council President, Lisa Roberts, Harriet Kaplan Suvall and Marc Suvall. Entertainment included a welcome message from WABC meteorologist Lee Goldberg and music from Broadway actor Bruce Sabbath and Music Director, Dan Micciche.
This event brings together the community for fun and entertainment while raising necessary funds for the ongoing work of the Council including coordinating our community wide effort to fight hate, build bridges and secure Jewish Westchester.
To view the Gala video in its entirety, please click here.
To view the 2021 Online Gala Journal, please click here.
To view the entire Gala Journal 2020, click WJC 44th Anniversary Journal Final Lo-Res
To listen to the honorees speeches, click here.
| Debra Abrahams Weiner |
| Lisa Roberts |
| Sue Baer, Sheila Friedland, Stuart Kolbert |
| Joyce Claar and Marty Rogowsky |
| Ron Burton |
| Nancy Zaro/Martine Fleischman |
| Elliot Forchheimer |
| William Schrag/Harriet Schleifer |
| Paul Warhit/Jeff Kohn |
| Betsy Bernstein/Michael Karnes/Gary Trachten |
| Tracy Bilski/Elizabeth Lampert/Harry Mamaysky |
| Singers/David Alpert/Arlene Kleinberg |
| Lisa Roberts/Suvall |
This biennial program brings together emerging volunteer leaders from various member synagogues and organizations with a goal of developing future leaders. It provides access to established leaders who present on a range of topics and it creates a network of peers who can exchange ideas about common issues. The current cohort includes 18 participants who began their training in January 2022. These emerging volunteer leaders meet monthly to learn about a variety of leadership topics including “Introductions and Getting to know Westchester” by David Eppinger and Elliot Forchheimer, “Engagement” presented by Rachel Klein and “Marketing” presented by Stu Seltzer. The Institute was recently named in memory and of the 3rd president of the Westchester Jewish Council, the Hon. Samuel G. Fredman.
How do we thank our community volunteers?
Every spring, the Westchester Jewish Council honors deserving member organizations and their leaders with the Julian Y. Bernstein Distinguished Service Award (DSA). Julian Y. Bernstein was a former Westchester Jewish Council board member, who was a visionary communal leader. Julian believed that doing tzedakah was just as important as giving tzedakah. In tribute to his passion and devotion to the Jewish community, we honor those who follow in his footsteps. Member organizations are invited to nominate an honoree from within their organization whose dedication and leadership has enriched our Westchester community.
2022 Honorees:
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) ……………………………………… Adam Waldman
Bet Am Shalom Synagogue ………………………………Elizabeth Haas Edersheim
Chavurat Tikvah …………………………………………………………….. Peter Schlactus
CSS – Community Security Service ………………………………………..Guy Shmuel
Congregation B’nai Yisrael……………………………………………………Lisa Mazure
Congregation Kneses Tifereth Israel (KTI) …………………………. Margot Metzger
Hebrew Congregation of Somers …………………………………………….Irene Herz
Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center……………………….Bette Sparago
Jewish National Fund ……………………………………………….. Caren Hammerman
Lincoln Park Jewish Center ………………………………………………..Jack Schweizer
Scarsdale Synagogue – Temples Tremont and Emanu-El ………… David Goldman
Shames JCC on the Hudson ………………………………………….. Charles Friedman
Sinai Free Synagogue …………………………………………………. Elizabeth G. Spiro
Temple Beth Abraham ……………………………………………………Jennifer Povman
UJA Federation of NY / Westchester Region ……………………. Michele Gregson
United Hebrew of New Rochelle ……………………………………………..Jim Staudt
Westchester Jewish Council ………………………………………………. Darren Peister
Young Israel of Scarsdale …………………………………………………….. Marie Miller
To read the bios of each honoree, please click – FINAL DSA Booklet 2022 V11
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| AJC Westchester/Fairfield | Richard W. Cohen |
| Bet Torah | Dr. Jill Ratner |
| Beth El Synagogue Center | Brian P. Bosworth |
| Community Synaogue of Rye | Dr. Bruce Reidenberg |
| Congregation Emanu-El of Westchester | Hedy Cardozo |
| Congregation Kol Ami | Elizabeth Ilberg |
| Dorot | Monica Aboodi |
| Greenburgh Hebrew Center | Andrew Michael Goldstein |
| Hadar | David J. Gilberg |
| Hebrew Free Burial | Wendy Linderman |
| Hebrew Home of Riverdale | Isaac Ohrenstein |
| Hebrew Institute of White Plains | Rena Fredman |
| JCCA | Wendy Kleinman |
| Jewish Education Project | Karen Everett |
| Larchmont Temple | Michele Metsch |
| The Leffell School | Jerry Goldman |
| Mount Kisco Hebrew Congregation | Robin Tanzman |
| Rosh Pinah Chavurah of the Rivertowns | Rabbi Halina Rubinstein |
| Shaarei Tikvah | Judith L. Spanier |
| StandWithUs | Paula Blumenfeld |
| Temple Beth Shalom – Mahopac | Andy Milkis |
| Temple Israel Center of White Plains | Judah Aber |
| UJA Federation of NY/Westchester | Lily Deitelzweig |
| Westchester Jewish Center | Cindy Heller |
| Westchester Jewish Council | Irwin S. Davison |
| Young Israel of New Rochelle | Tamar Weinberg |
Click here for the 2019 DSA honorees.
Click here to view photos from the 2019 Awards ceremony.
Click here to view the list of 2018 honorees.
Click here to view photos
For a history of past Julian Y. Bernstein Award Recipients, please click here.
The Biennial Night of Jewish Learning and Celebration took place virtually on Saturday, November 20th, 2021. There were 20 different class offerings from 20 different Rabbis with over 350 registrants taking part in this community learning experience. We would like to thank the Westchester Board of Rabbis and the following Rabbis who made this a meaningful and successful event:
The 2019 Night of Learning took place on November 23, 2019 at Beth El Synagogue Center, presented by the Westchester Board of Rabbis and Westchester Jewish Council. With 31 Rabbis and hundreds of community members in attendance, the night was a wonderful way for the community to connect through learning and celebrating. Thank you to the Westchester Board of Rabbis for presenting this biennial program along with the Council. Special thanks to Beth El Synagogue Center for hosting and to Rabbi Ethan Tucker of Council member Hadar for presenting the community lecture to conclude the evening.
The biennial Night of Music and Joy took place virtually on Saturday, November 21, 2020 and was attended by over 600 people. Presented by the Westchester Jewish Council and the talented Cantors of Kol Hazzanim – the Cantors of Westchester, the theme of the evening’s music was “Together at Home”. The night began with a lovely Havdalah service and then transitioned into the concert which showcased a beautiful mix of Broadway tunes, spiritual, and traditional music.
Click here to view photos from the 2016 event.
Click here to view 2014 event photos
Click here to view 2012 event photos
The Westchester Jewish Council celebrates Jewish History & Heritage Month at an annual event hosted by the Westchester County Board of Legislators.
In 2025, we celebrated Jewish American Heritage Month with a special ceremony honoring The Community Thanksgiving Dinner Program of Temple Shaaray Tefila and the Community Security Services (CSS). The Council was honored to be part of the event honoring our member organizations.
We also celebrated JAHM with our partners at AJC Westchester/Fairfield at an event held at the White Plains Public Library.
The Council is proud to co-sponsor the annual County-Wide Holocaust Commemoration, along with the Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center. The commemoration took place virtually on Tuesday, April 21st. We had an overwhelming response to this event with over 418 virtual attendees. This year’s guest speaker was Peter Somogyi, a Holocaust survivor.
Here is a link to view the ceremony – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQMGUSAfl1E&t=10s
