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Interim Senior Rabbi
Richard
Shapiro D.D.
Rabbi
Richard Shapiro began his tenure as the Interim Senior Rabbi of Temple Beth-El
of Great Neck on Beth-El of Great Neck on July 1,
2007. Prior to coming
to Great Neck, Rabbi Shapiro has served congregations in Denver, Colorado, and
in Stockton, Santa Barbara, and Palm Desert, California.
Rabbi
Shapiro also served for four months as the Rabbi-in-Residence
of the First United Methodist Church of Santa Barbara.
Rabbi Shapiro is an
active participant, on both the local and national levels, in the pursuit of
religious and social justice, including advocating for reproductive rights, fair
and just treatment for agricultural workers, the elimination of racial and
religious discrimination, and the promotion of equity in all areas of life for
gays and lesbians. In March of 2001 he was honored as the John Chadbourne
Humanitarian of the Year by the Santa Barbara Gay & Lesbian Business
Association. Throughout his career, Rabbi Shapiro has also been deeply involved
in interfaith issues. He has served on the Executive Board of the Denver Area
Interfaith Clergy Conference, the Steering Committee for the Denver Interfaith
Consortium for Pluralism in American Life, and the Board of the Greater Santa
Barbara Clergy Association, including two years as President.
Rabbi Shapiro
was raised in Southern California. Upon completion of his military service in
1974, Rabbi Shapiro completed his B.A. in Jewish Studies at UCLA and began his
rabbinic studies at Hebrew Union College -
Jewish Institute of Religion,
where he received
his Rabbinic ordination in 1981and his Doctor Of Divinity (Honorus Causa) in
2006. He is married and he and his wife, Lynn, are the parents of two children:
Ari, an attorney living in Washington, DC, and Aaron, a Legislative Aide for
Congresswoman Lois Capps of Santa Barbara, CA.

Assistant Rabbi Sara Sapadin
Sara
Sapadin is delighted to be working at Temple Beth-El. As the former Rabbinic
Intern of the congregation, she feels tremendously fortunate to begin her
official rabbinic career in this historic community. Throughout her years in
Rabbinical School, Sara served congregations in Kent, OH, Woodstock, VT and
Cincinnati. She also spent time training as a chaplain at New York-Presbyterian
Hospital. Sara graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard College in 2000. A San
Diego native, Sara now calls Manhattan home. She, her husband Danny, and her
pup Dubi just welcomed a new addition to the family: Baby Ezra Seymour Sapadin
was born on April 12, 2007.
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Cantor Lisa R. Hest
Temple Beth-El's cantor, Lisa R. Hest, is a 1988 graduate of the School
of Sacred Music of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, where
she received many honors and awards. Cantor Hest also studied at the New England Conservatory, Manhattan College of Music and Queens College. She has performed with The New York
Lyric Opera, Bronx Opera Company and the Bel Canto Opera Company as well as
Music Sacra, the Sine Nomine Singers and the New York Chamber Singers. She
recently sang the Soprano solo in Robert Starer's "Ariel" at Carnegie Hall and premiered Samuel
Adler's "Ever Since Babylon" at Central Synagogue in New York.
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Rabbi Educator Lisa Rubin
Rabbi
Lisa Rubin joined Temple Beth-El in July of 2007 after being ordained by Hebrew
Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in May of 2007. As a Rabbinical
student, Rabbi Rubin served congregations in Brookhaven, MS, Worcester, MA and
New York, NY. She trained as a chaplain at the Jewish Healthcare Chaplaincy and
participated in a training course for Compassionate Jewish Leadership. Rabbi
Rubin co-edited the student publication of her school, and served as the Social
Action Representative of the New York campus as well as the student
representative on her school’s recruiting taskforce. Prior to rabbinical school,
Rabbi Rubin worked corporately in youth marketing and advertising at Leo Burnett
in Chicago. She graduated from the University of Michigan with honors. Rabbi
Rubin currently sits on the Board of Elem, a nonprofit organization that aids
youth in distress in Israel. She resides in Manhattan. 
Rabbi Emeritus Jerome K. Davidson, D.D.
Rabbi Jerome K. Davidson is Rabbi
Emeritus of Temple Beth-El of Great Neck. He
serves on the faculty of the Hebrew Union
College-Jewish Institute of Religion, of which he is both president of the
Rabbinic Alumni Association and member of the Board of Governors. Rabbi Davidson
is past president of the Synagogue Council of America and in his youth was
national president of NFTY. In
1994 he was chosen by the New York Board of Rabbis as "Rabbi of the
Year", the first Reform rabbi to receive this award.
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Nina Koppelman

Nina Koppelman assumes the position as the
15th President of Temple Beth-El following what has been almost lifelong
membership in the congregation. Nina, daughter of Dorothy and Dr.
Morton Fleischman, began her involvement at Temple Beth-El as a child,
attending Religious School and becoming a Confirmand. Her
parents were Temple members for over 50 years, during which time Dorothy was
a member of Sisterhood and Chair of the Religious School Committee.
Morton continues to be an active member and regular attendee at services,
adult education programs and Club Chai activities. Nina and her
husband, Bill, joined Temple Beth-El 26 years ago. Nina has served in
numerous leadership positions in the Temple, most recently as Executive
Vice-President and Treasurer. Nina’s commitment to life-long Jewish
learning is demonstrated by her regular attendance at Torah study,
completion of the two year Meah program and involvement in the Adult
Education Committee, which she chaired. She has also served on
the Finance Committee and as Trustee.
Nina is a Partner
and Chief Financial Officer of Deutsch, Inc., a large advertising agency
with offices in New York and Los Angeles. She was honored in 2004 by
Working Mother Magazine and Advertising Women of New York as one of the 25
top working mothers in the advertising industry. Nina and Bill have four
children and ten grandchildren.
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Leon Silverberg
Leon
Silverberg was born, raised and educated in New York City. He earned a
Bachelors Degree in
Psychology from the
City College of New York
and a Masters Degree in Health Care Administration from the
Bernard Baruch
College-Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Mr. Silverberg’s career
in healthcare administration
included positions at several major medical centers in New York, management
consulting with an international firm, and five years in municipal
government. He became the Executive Director of Temple Beth-El in 1990. Mr.
Silverberg, a Senior Member of the
National Association of Temple Administrators (NATA) serves as
the Treasurer on NATA's Board. He is a Past President of the Metropolitan
Chapter of NATA and is also a Regional Management Consultant for NATA. He
has two daughters; Sarah, a para-legal in the Special Victim’s Bureau of the
Queens County District Attorney’s Office, and Julia, a student at the
University of Buffalo.
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Vicki Held Perler
Vicki
Perler has been the Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Beth-El of
Great Neck, New York, since July, 1994. Her background includes positions as the
founding director of the nursery school at Temple Beth-El in Huntington, New
York, Director of Young Child Services at the Jewish Community Center of Greater
Washington, kindergarten teacher in Prince Georges County, Maryland, Music
Director of Gaithersburg Hebrew Congregation Hebrew School in Maryland, and
preschool teacher in the federal Project Growing Together. Vicki holds a
Masters Degree from Adelphi University in Early Childhood and Special Education,
a postgraduate certificate in Educational Leadership and Administration as a
School Administrator Supervisor (SAS) from the New York State Education
Department and Long Island University, and a B.S. in Early Childhood Education
from the University of Maryland. She is the current President of the National
Jewish Early Childhood Network, and serves as an officer on the Executive Board
of the Jewish Early Childhood Association of the Board of Jewish Education of
Greater New York. Vicki is the proud mother of four sons, and resides in
Syosset, New York with her husband, Arthur, where they are active in their
synagogue and in Jewish education on Long Island.
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Barry Shainker
Barry
Shainker, the temple’s Youth Director and Assistant Director of Education, is
originally from New Rochelle, New York. In high school, he was an active member
of his synagogue's youth group and NFTY. He graduated from the University of
Delaware in 2006 with a degree in history and minors in Jewish Studies and
Leadership. At Delaware, Barry worked in the Undergraduate Admissions office
and gave campus tours to prospective students and families. As a member of the
campus spirit group, he could usually be seen cheering on the Fightin’ Blue Hens
in almost every collegiate sport. As an upperclassman, Barry was a peer mentor
for students through the LIFE program, a first-year experience for freshmen. A
member of several honor societies, he was also an active participant in the
activities of the UD Jewish community, serving as Religious Chair, President,
and Ex-Officio of KESHER, the Reform on campus.
Barry spent the past summer in New Jersey as an RA with Urban Mitzvah Corps,
a program organized by the URJ and NFTY-GER. He worked with a group of students
from around the nation who volunteered to play with children with special needs,
sit and listen to the stories of a nursing home resident, and prepare for food
for soup kitchen patrons. After a wonderful experience, Barry is eager to share
his stories with everyone and impart the lessons he learned to the students at
TBE.
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Marie Mularczyk
In
1992, Marie joined the Beth-El staff to produce and edit the Temple Bulletin. In addition to the Bulletin, Marie produces many other publications. Marie is
also the Music and Movement Teacher in the Early Childhood Education Center of
our Temple. A graduate of Queens College where she earned combined degrees in
business/literature and Irish folklore and music, Marie brings skill and
expertise to her position. A former Manager of Desktop Publishing Operations in
Manhattan, she also uses her business acumen and desktop/network computer skills
to supervise the Temple-wide computer system. Marie’s musical background has
been shared with the Beth-El Early Childhood Education Center and during Temple
music festivals and holidays.
Marie is completely acclimated to Temple life, and even though she is not of
Jewish heritage, feels she is "part" Jewish, participating in many
services and Temple events. She particularly loves singing in the Black/Jewish
Choir. She is also an accomplished singer and guitarist who is equally
proficient on the mandolin, banjo, dulcimer and Tof (middle eastern drum). Marie
has taught Early Childhood music classes at Buckley Country Day School,
performed in local venues and parties and teaches musical performance. She is
Co-P.T.S.A. President of P.S. 94 in Little Neck and Cub master of Troop 153 in
Douglaston. Marie resides in Little Neck Hills, Queens, with her husband Richard
O'Connell, a
U.S. Customs Director and classical music aficionado and history buff, and her
two sons, Brian O'Connell (a super athlete and trumpet player) and Kevin
O'Connell (a junior
zoologist and drummer).
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Eric B. Mohr - Webmaster
A
long time resident and member of Temple Beth El, Eric earned his Bachelor's
Degree from Hofstra University in History and English. He was awarded a
Masters of Secondary Education, also at Hofstra. Although a certified
teacher, Eric's career has been in direct and internet marketing. He
has been involved in this field for over 25 years. He has held positions with
companies that were in the financial services, business-to-business industrial
tool supply, Asian American database services and as a supplier of mailing
lists, computer and mailing services. Eric has been an Assistant Adjunct
Professor of Marketing, Pace University-Pleasantville Campus teachingourses on Direct and Database Marketing.
More recently, Eric formed, EBM Direct Marketing Services
LLC. Some of his clients include Levitz Furniture and SAAGNY.
He brings all the direct and internet marketing expertise from his
past, his company provides small to mid size business web hosting/development
services, search marketing and direct mail.
Eric's connection with Temple Beth El goes back to its
origins. Eric has been a member for over 17 years. In 2004, Eric
married Nancy Larick Mohr. Nancy's great grandfather, Abram Wolf, was the
first Jewish settler in Great Neck. His son, I.G. Wolf, Nancy's
grandfather, donated the land on which Temple Beth El is situated as well as
being the 2 nd
President of Temple Beth El.
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