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Growing up attending Jewish summer camp in Wisconsin, I remember we all kept these little journals called "Nothing Books," which contained some meaningful, but mostly silly quotes we jotted down about life, friendship, love, and everything in between. Every once in awhile, a quote snuck in that really resonated with me as a young counselor, as I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. My favorite job in the world was being a camp counselor and providing Jewish teens with a safe space to explore their Judaism, and helping them make sense of their Jewish identity and where they fit in in this world. I may have decided to get my Master’s degree in Jewish Education because I wanted to help raise, teach, and inspire young Jews, but more likely, I pursued it because it was the closest thing to being a professional camp counselor that I could find.

The quote that I perpetually internalize, and that continues to redefine itself in my professional life, is found in Pirkei Avot, "The Teachings of our Fathers." Ben Zoma says, "Who is wise? One who learns from every person.” As I step into the role of Director of Family Education at Temple Israel, I hope to forever be inspired by this quote and to have it weave its way through my work. As an educator, I have always valued my role as teacher and leader, but have equally valued my role as learner. The bulk of my career so far has been spent running a Religious & Hebrew school — for 13 years in New York City and for 2 years here in St. Louis. Children in this age group have so much to teach me about responsibility, friendship, and how to deal with change both gracefully and responsibly. One of the keys to my own growth is opening myself up to learning from my own students. The students here at Temple Israel continue to help me grow into a stronger educator and have helped me navigate life during a pandemic through their resiliency.

Ben Zoma’s quote can also be taken a step further and is something I’ve internalized through my work as a preschool teacher for three years, too. At my synagogue in NYC, I started a program called Gan Katan, which was an afterschool class for preschool children to experience the Jewish holidays in real time, not just through a book. It was one of the most eye opening experiences I’ve had in Jewish education because for many of these children, they were hearing about and celebrating Jewish holidays for the very first time. These children reminded me that I cannot just rely on my professors and Rabbis to teach me; they solidified the need to learn from them and with them to lead to the most meaningful and profound Jewish experiences.

I would be remiss in not mentioning the learning I experience on a daily basis from my own family (pictured on the right). When we light the Shabbat candles on Friday night, my nine-year-old son, Joey, asks almost every week, if God can hear us when we say these prayers, and also asks why we say the same prayer every Friday and why we can’t make up our own words. I tell him, "good question, and we can make up our own words!" My 4.5 year old daughter, Rosie, has a lot of questions about the “bad guys." We frequently discuss what would happen if Pharaoh or Haman showed up at our front door and what we would say to them. (My husband Matt and I have no clue how to answer this one.)

Your children, the future leaders of the Jewish community, have taught me so much in my four years at Temple Israel. I feel honored and humbled to be carrying TI's Education Center into the future, and I am eager and excited to work with our incredible teachers and school staff to build upon the brilliance, tightknit community, and success that Leslie Wolf has created over the years. If there’s one thing Leslie taught me, it’s to always listen to the community and be inspired by those around us.

L’shalom,
Lesley Goldenberg

lgoldenberg@ti-stl.org 
314-432-8076