Some facts about me. First, for those who are not sure, I was born. It happened to be in the Bronx Hospital because that is where my mother (Z”L) was at the time. My father (Z”L) happened to be there as well, but his direct contribution to this event ended 9 months prior.

My father served on Iwo Jima as a fighting Marine during WWII. He became a Conservative Cantor upon his return and ultimately became the president of the Cantors Assembly of the Conservative movement.

I have three younger brothers, two of us are cantors and two of us are rabbis (guess which one I am). We have performed concerts all over the planet (including Israel and, of course, NJ) raising money for different organizations and our own congregations. Our relationship is one that is very close.  Once a week without fail, we get on a joint call to discuss how our services were, Israel, our families, and G*d knows what else. The thing is, the zetzes we give each other are so funny. We never miss our weekly conversation.

During the Vietnam war, being an Airborne Ranger, I served as a captain in the Special Forces. When the Green Beret was sent home, I volunteered to be transferred to the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal). My role was to disarm nuclear weapons. During that time, I was severely burned by radiation, but with the unyielding help of G*d, I survived. The reason I have a limp is because I have one knee, both hips, and one shoulder that had to be replaced (one hip had to be replaced 3 times in one year, four times altogether). I also have one foot fused to my leg due to the loss of my left ankle. Throughout all this, I made over 160 jumps out of perfectly good airplanes.

I am a life member of the Jewish War Veterans and the American Legion. In 2014, the US Government finally erected a monument on Chaplain Hill in Arlington Cemetery to honor the memory of the rabbis who died for our county during war. I was asked to chant the El Molei (the memorial prayer) during that televised event.

For the past 30 years, I have served Congregation Beit Shalom in Monroe Township, NJ. At one time, the congregation had grown to over 2,000 senior citizen members, but the demographics of the community changed as the seniors passed on. During COVID, we had to migrate to a VirJEWal only congregation via ZOOM and YouTube. I still do this on Shabbat mornings and, we often have over 250 screens in attendance.

The past two years, I served the Reform Temple Micah in Lawrenceville, but living in Toms River made that two-hour round trip trek a bit difficult, especially when the weather reared its ugly head.

I have a wife (Lynne), sons and daughters, and the apples of my eyes, my grandchildren (which if I had known, I would have had first).

I would love to meet you, either in person, online, or via telephone any time you want.

I am at Beth Am Shalom almost every Monday and Wednesday morning if you want to drop by. Please call first to make sure I am there.