Alan S. Yoffie is a former president of Temple Emanuel in Worcester, MA and a regular participant in Outreach Training Institute programs of the Union for Reform Judaism–Reform Jewish Outreach Boston. Mr. Yoffie wrote Sharing the Journey - The Haggadah for the Contemporary Family and its Seder Leader’s Guide to enable all family members, wherever they are in their religious commitment or observances, to enjoy a welcoming Passover celebration and to truly experience the power of the Seder and the story of the Exodus: A shared Jewish experience that has historical and contemporary significance to persons of all faiths. Mr. Yoffie has actively served Temple Emanuel and the Jewish Community in Worcester for over 35 years. In addition to serving as President, Vice President of Education, and Treasurer of Temple Emanuel, Mr. Yoffie chaired a Rabbinic Search Committee, and the School, Finance and Sanctuary and Sanctuary Renovation Committees. He also served on the Worship Committee and co-chaired the Building and Location Committee of Temple Emanuel Sinai, the successor congregation to Temple Emanuel and Temple Sinai, Worcester, MA. In addition to his congregational service, Mr. Yoffie has served on the Board of Directors and the Strategic Planning Committee of the Worcester Jewish Community Center and on the Board of Directors and the Strategic Planning and Quality Assurance Committees of the Jewish Healthcare Center. Since 2010, Mr. Yoffie has conducted monthly Shabbat services on Friday afternoon for residents in the Alzheimer’s Unit of the Healthcare Center and members of their families. Mr. Yoffie is a graduate of Brandeis University and The George Washington University Law School and is a member of the Bar of the State of Delaware and the District of Columbia. A retired CEO of a family business, Mr. Yoffie’s professional career has also included government service, the private practice of law, and management consulting. He is married to Johanna D. Drooz Yoffie, an attorney. They have four children and three grandchildren who look forward each year to Passover Seders with their parents, grandparents, and friends of all faiths who are welcomed to their home. Mark Podwal, perhaps initially best known for his drawings in The New York Times Op-Ed, is the author and illustrator of numerous books (with a typical focus on Jewish legend, history, and tradition). His work appears in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Fogg Art Museum, and the Library of Congress. He is represented by the Forum Gallery in New York and has exhibited there since 1977. Podwal's artistry has been employed in an array of diverse projects, including the design of a series of decorative plates for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His work has been engraved on a Congressional Gold Medal and woven into an Aubusson tapestry for the ark in the main sanctuary of Temple Emanu-El in New York. He also designed sixteen kiln cast glass panels for the United Jewish Appeal Federation Headquarters. In 2011, Podwal received commissions to design new embroidered textiles for Prague's seven hundred year old Altneuschul; to create a limited edition print for The Metropolitan Opera's production of Nabucco; to design Hanukkah cards for The Metropolitan Museum and The Metropolitan Opera; and to illustrate Sharing The Journey: The Haggadah for the Contemporary Family, published by CCAR Press in 2012. His illustrations also appear in Mishkan T’filah for Youth, published by CCAR Press in 2014. Among Podwal’s many accomplishments are a National Jewish Book Award, a Silver Medal from the Society of Illustrators, and a Jewish Cultural Achievement Award from the Foundation for Jewish Culture. He has been named an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government and was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters honoris causa by Hebrew College (Newton Centre, MA) in 2003. Rabbi Mary L. Zamore is the editor of and a contributing author to two acclaimed CCAR Press Challenge and Change anthologies, The Sacred Exchange: Creating A Jewish Money Ethic (2019) and The Sacred Table: Creating a Jewish Food Ethic (2011). The Sacred Table was designated a finalist by the National Jewish Book Awards. Rabbi Zamore served as consulting editor for Sharing the Journey: The Haggadah for the Contemporary Family (CCAR Press, 2012) and contributed toLights in the Forest: Rabbis Respond to Twelve Essential Jewish Questions (CCAR Press, 2014), and The Sacred Calling: Four Decades of Women in the Rabbinate (CCAR Press, 2016), winner of the 2017 National Jewish Book Award in Women's Studies. Rabbi Zamore was ordained by Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1997 and serves as the Executive Director of the Women's Rabbinic Network, an affiliate of the CCAR. She is the co-leader of the Reform Pay Equity Initiative. Having visited numerous communities, Rabbi Zamore is available for lectures and scholar-in-residence programs. She will work with your community to customize any program. Her presentations explore topics like, but are not limited to: Tithing, Tzedaka and Other Ways of Creating a Just World, Judaism's View of Wealth: Good or Bad?, The Moral and Spiritual Challenge of Wealth, We should and Can Talk about Money Three Money, Texts Every Jew Should Know Your Sacred Table: Jewish Food Ethics, Coveting vs. Contentment, Learn to Build a Mishkan, not a Golden Calf, The Power of the Fork: Eating with Ethics, Liberal Jews & Kashrut: Really!?, Creating Communal Food Policies, The Bitter Side of Chocolate and Other Fair Trade Issues, What Chameitz, Matzah, & Manna Can Teach Us for TodayKosher Wine and Its Challenges – The Spirituality of Fasting, Queen Esther and Her Quest for Empowerment through Food Rabbi Zamore's presentations can include sermons, in-depth text study, wine or food tastings, as well as adult, religious school, or family programs. She can also help communities design yearlong study programs, multi-session classes, or multifaceted single events, modeled around the themes of The Sacred Table or The Sacred Exchange.
