Committees at Congregation Habonim
Lay-lead committees are the lifeblood of any synagogue. Habonim has many wonderful committees who plan events, reach out to members, do acts of kindness (chesed) and help with many of the synagogue’s functions.
We’re always looking for volunteers! If you want to join a committee or volunteer your time, please contact the committee chair.
Committees/Committee Heads 2025/2026
Adult Education Committee
Chair: Deborah Winokur deb@winokur.com
Caring Committee
Chair: Melissa Paretsky mparetsky@msppsychology.com
Chesed Committee
Habonim’s Chesed Committee formally offers comfort and support to members who have lost a loved one and to the family of a member who has passed away. This outreach includes taking turns organizing a meal for mourners and attending shiva.
Chairs: Susan Grant, Ruth Murphy susangrant@aol.com, ruthmurphy212@gmail.com
Volunteers: Ellen Goldman, Nita Gottesman, Sherrill Mane, Marcia Nadel, Kori Rehfield, Susan Schwam
Finance Committee
The Finance Committee provides overall financial oversight of Congregation Habonim. This includes preparing the overall annual budget, monitoring monthly financial statements, and making recommendations for setting fees, tuition, and membership rates.
Chair: Michael Malbin (Treasurer) mmalbin@gmail.com
Fundraising Committee
The Fundraising Committee is responsible for soliciting donations (through appeals and events) to help balance our budget. Dues and tuition do not cover our operating expenses and the synagogue is reliant on fundraising to help create a vibrant and meaningful synagogue experience.
Chair: Dan Hamermesh hamermes@eco.utexas.edu
Ad Hoc Committee on Funeral Practices and Bereavement
Chairs: Frances Hamermesh, Michael Malbin frances@hamermesh.com, mmalbin@gmail.com
Investment Committee
Chair: Jeffrey Moelis jmoelis@yahoo.com
Membership and Marketing Committee
The Membership and Marketing Committee is focused on its commitment of “self care” of Habonim’s existing members as well as marketing ourselves to new members through our website, email communications, social media platforms and other avenues to highlight Habonim in the community. Our engaging activities are geared toward strengthening relationships within our community and inviting all members to participate. We also use each event to promote other opportunities for both new and veteran members to meet.
Member Retention Chairs: Rachel Berger, Jessica Boar, Danielle Kaufman rlb200@hotmail.com, jessicaboar@gmail.com, dodigila@gmail.com
Marketing Chair: Debra Karlstein dkarlstein@gmail.com
Nursery School Committee
Chair: Jennifer North jennifer.north@regeneron.com
Real Estate Committee
The Habonim Real Estate Committee oversees Habonim's plans for our new home on 65th Street. More info on our activity can be found at habonim.net/newbuilding
Chair: Michael Harwayne mharwayne@yahoo.com
Members: Neil Goldstein, Susan Grant, Wendy Halperin, Debra Karlstein, Lew Krulwich, Marc Mehl, Deborah Moelis, Abigail Schlaff, Rich Verner
Religious School/Youth & Family Programming Committee
The RSYFP committee meets monthly to discuss how we can support the Religious School Director, improve upon and assist programming, and discuss and implement feedback received from the Religious School family community. We also discuss how we can support and improve upon the Youth and Family programming of the synagogue and assist in crafting and volunteering at various programming opportunities throughout the year.
Chairs: Beth Bornstein, Meredith Thompson bethjbornstein@gmail.com, nycmlr@yahoo.com
Ritual Committee
The Ritual Committee's responsibilities are as follows: 1) Advising on all matters of content in all services; 2) Helping to ensure that congregants are available to perform various functions in shabbat services; and 3) Consulting on this second activity for the High Holiday services.
Chair: Amy Cook amycookuws@gmail.com
Young Adult Committee
Plans young professional (20s and 30s) programming at Habonim. The hope is to foster more of a community within this cohort at Habonim, to participate in larger Habonim events and programming together, and plan programming for this group specifically. We’re looking for anyone who is interested in helping to lead or plan things, as well as those who are just interested in participating.
Chair: Noah Halperin noah.halperin@gmail.com
