Spiritual Leader

I come to the Jewish Fellowship with a family connection to Hemlock Farms. My Aunt Donna and Uncle Al Abramson were founding members of the Fellowship when they built a house here in the 1970’s. Family reunions over many summers planted a seed in my soul, and when my husband Freddy and I were needing a respite from New York City, Hemlock Farms was the natural choice. We came for the beauty, community and recreation, and never knew that my calling as a spiritual leader would have the chance to be expressed with this lovely community.

As a graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary, along  with my connections to the Jewish Renewal community, I am grateful to have a spiritual community that wants to explore the edges of what is possible in feeling a spiritual connection to one another, to our tradition and to the Source of All Life. Of course, along with this, we also want to provide traditional pathways for people for whom that is most comfortable.

My vision since I was installed in June of 2023 is to ask each member of  the Fellowship and even those who are not yet members, to be a stakeholder in this 50-year-old community. Our members have ideas of what is meaningful, comfortable and fun for them. We attempt to incorporate these ideas into our programming.

In addition to my connection to Hemlock Farms, I am a Pennsylvania girl. I went to camp nearby and I was raised in a small town in NE Pennsylvania. There we had a small shul that served the needs of 30 Jewish families. I spent a lot of time there as a child and when I come into the Fellowship Sanctuary on a Friday night or Saturday morning, I feel connected to my Jewish heritage.

I hope my love of Jewish tradition, God, prayer, study and the Jewish people is felt by those in this community. In addition, I am grateful for the strong interfaith relationships and collaborations we have in Hemlock. It is my wish that my experience  in chaplaincy, pastoral care and counseling supports the members of this community and can help offer healing, one person at a time.

Our world needs healing now more than ever. May we join together to find our way, one step at a time.