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Executive

President – Lee Weisser

Temple Emanu-El, Toronto

Lee Weisser is a proud member of Temple Emanu-El where she has served in a variety of capacities, including co-chair of the Social Action Committee for the past 10 years. Lee studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in her youth and, more recently, participated in the Beutel Leadership Seminar and other events of the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism and the World Zionist Congress. She has been a member of ARZA Canada since 2015. She has also been a volunteer facilitator for the Ve’ahavta Skills Academy, and received a Canada150 Award for Citizenship in 2017.

Lee holds a Master of Adult Education degree from the University of Toronto, and most recently worked as a career coach. She lives with her husband Steven Gauley in Toronto; her daughter Julia lives in Montreal.

Liaison to The Reform Jewish Community of Canada – Len Bates
Temple Har Zion, Thornhill

Len is pleased to be on the executive of ARZA Canada. He is currently President of the Reform Jewish Community of Canada; is a trustee on URJ’s North American Board; and sits on Camp George’s Camp Council, of which he is a past Chair. He and his wife, Sara, are members of Temple Har Zion, Thornhill, where he also serves on the executive. Living in Newmarket, Len originally hails from Montréal, and still pines for their bagels!

Len’s professional background is in Human Resources and he has led several HR departments. He is a Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL), and currently runs his own Human Resources consulting business, KudoHR.

Vice-President, Special Projects – Cheryl Englander
Solel Congregation, Mississauga

Cheryl Englander presently serves as a Vice President of ARZA Canada, having been a member of the Board since 2008. Previously she worked part-time as a staff member for CCRJ and ARZA Canada.

She is active at Solel Congregation, Mississauga and in the local community.

Vice-President, Membership/Fundraising – Dorothy (Dodi) Millman
Temple Sinai, Toronto

In 1972 Dorothy launched DMS Market Services as an Outsource Contact Center service. By 1995, she employed 2000 people, went public in 1995 and in 2001 sold to Minacs Worldwide where she was Vice Chair for over two years. From 2005 to 2019, Dorothy’s company, SBS Communications, specialized in client advocacy, process and contact centre strategies, solutions, outsourcing on a global platform and vendor management. Dorothy is now enjoying retirement.

Dorothy has worked on several for profit and not-for-profit boards over her career. She serves on the ARZA Canada Board of Directors as Vice President Membership/Fundraising and as Co-Lead for the Temple Sinai Israel Connections group.

Vice-President, Communications – Jeff Denaburg
Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Jeff Denaburg is the Vice-President of Communications for ARZA Canada. Jeff has held the position of co-Chair of the Israel Committee at Holy Blossom Temple for several years, where he also serves as Shaliach Tzibur.

When not pursuing his Israel-related interests, Jeff works as a Project Manager in Information Technology at CIBC. Jeff is married and he and his wife Phyllis have two children.

Vice-President Finance/Treasurer – Valerie Whitefield
Temple Sinai, Toronto

Valerie joined the ARZA Canada Board in 2008, soon became the volunteer bookkeeper and is now serving as Treasurer of ARZA Canada. She has been a member of Temple Sinai Congregation of Toronto since 1986 and has served on the Pulpit & Services, Adult Education, Membership and Festivals committees, as well as serving the community as a Shaliach Tzibur.

She currently works as a freelance bookkeeper and a volunteer at Toronto Rehab. Valerie and her husband Brian have two children. They are volunteers and avid supporters of The Toronto Jewish Film Festival. Their shared love of Eretz Israel has taken them there on many missions and personal vacations.

Secretary, Judith Wiley
Temple Israel, London

Judith Wiley joined the ARZA Canada board in 2017 as representative from Temple Israel in London, Ontario, and has recently been appointed as Secretary. Before moving from downtown Toronto to Port Stanley, Ontario Judith was an active member of Holy Blossom Temple. She has worked in the voluntary sector for most of her career, as CEO of various organizations at the national and international level. Known for her knowledge of non-profit governance and community development, Judith is currently vice chair of J Space Canada Foundation and a member of J Space Canada Advisory Committee.

She has been fortunate to have worked in many areas of the world, as consultant for various charities, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Caribbean Development Bank. She tries to spend part of every year in Israel and is a keen observer of the small and large “p” politics of the country. Judith attended the Beutel Leadership Seminar in 2018, and returned home more committed than ever to working to strengthen the Reform movement in Israel. Judith is currently CEO of the Central Community Health Centre in Elgin County and is very honoured to serve on the ARZA Canada board.

Immediate Past President – Miriam Pearlman

Miriam Pearlman is an active lay leader in the Reform Jewish Community. She was elected as President of ARZA Canada for 2015-2020, having served on the ARZA Canada Board from 2004. Miriam serves on several boards including CCRJ, CZF, URJ-NAB, IRZC, ARZENU, and the Executive Council of the WZO. She has represented the Canadian Reform movement in Israel at World Zionist Congresses in Jerusalem, WUPJ Connections Conference, IMPJ Biennial and more.

Miriam is an active member of Temple Sinai Congregation of Toronto, a past Board of Director and past Chair of the vibrant Israel Committee. She and her husband have participated in many Temple Sinai missions to Israel led by their senior rabbi.

Miriam’s professional career was in public education. Starting as a secondary school teacher of mathematics with the North York Board of Education during a time when women teaching mathematics were rare, she moved up the organizational ladder as the first woman to serve as the Coordinator of Mathematics in a large urban school board, to Secondary School Principal to Superintendent of Education with the Toronto District School Board.

Miriam has an Honour B.A. in Mathematics and an M.Ed. in Education Leadership and Administration, both from University of Toronto.

She and her husband Geoff Gooderham enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren.

Officers

Pam Albert – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Naomi Cohen – Temple Kol Ami, Thornhill

Rabbi Larry Englander – Solel Congregation, Mississauga/Temple Sinai, Toronto/ Arzenu

Penny Fine – City Shul, Toronto

Elliot Goldenberg – Temple Emanu–El–Beth Sholom, Montreal

Ellen Gordon – Temple Sholom, Vancouver/Arzenu

Mark Paidra – Temple B’nai Tikvah, Calgary

Board Members-at-Large

August Adelman – Temple Shalom, Kitchener/Waterloo

Mark S. Anshan, Past President – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Tina Azarin – Temple Israel, Ottawa

Arliene Botnick – Solel Congregation, Mississauga

Glenn Cohen – Temple Sinai, Toronto

David Dewitt – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Carl Ehrlich

Gerald Fisher – Temple Anshe Shalom, Hamilton

Joan Garson, Past President – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Shirley Herman – Solel Congregation, Mississauga

Shirley Hyman – Temple Shalom, Vancouver

Rabbi Samuel Kaye – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Ronald King – B’nai Shalom V’Tikvah, Ajax(Durham)

Ruth Livingston – Temple Shalom, Winnipeg

Jesse Primerano – Temple Sinai, Toronto

Les Rothschild, Past President – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto

Andre Sena – Temple Emanu-El, Toronto

Rabbi Michael Stroh, Past President – Rabbi Emeritus, Temple Har Zion, Thornhill

Rabbi Stephen Wise – Shaarei Beth-El Congregation, Oakville (RRGT)

Herman Yeger – Or Hadash, Newmarket

Ex-Officio

Austin Beutel, World Union for Progressive Judaism

Carole Sterling – Holy Blossom Temple, Toronto; World Union of Progressive Judaism