2015 Annual Dinner Honorees

Barry Love & Ann Goldhirsch 
Ann first came to Ramath  Orah while at Barnard. In 2005, she and Barry rediscovered CRO on the suggestion of Susie and Steve Feldman. They were immediately drawn to the “heimish” atmosphere, making it their shul, and it soon was a second home for their sons Aaron and Ezra. Aaron took his very first steps angling for the dessert table at a shul dinner and now is a regular in junior congregation and weekly ping-pong matches. Ezra is an active participant in Morah Valerie’s class and Shabbat chess games. Barry, a reformed Canadian, is a pediatric cardiologist at Mount Sinai Medical Center. He is a regular at daily minyan with leading stats as the tenth man. Ann, an architect with a master’s from the University of Pennsylvania, has been secretary of the Ramath Orah board since 2013, and her committee work has focused on the nuts and bolts of the shul’s most critical issues—building maintenance and kiddush. Her oversight ensures we get the best value for both our construction and cholent dollar.

Jamie & Rachel Hirsch, Young Professionals Honorees
Jamie and Rachel started attending Ramath Orah about seven years ago when they were dating. Their children’s very first synagogue rituals—Eleanor’s simchat bat and Harry’s bris—were held at Ramath Orah. Rachel, a graduate of the Wharton School and the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania, is the principal and founder of Hirsch Insights, a strategy consulting practice. Jamie is a practicing clinical nephrologist and researcher in biomedical informatics at Columbia University Medical Center. Rachel has been on the Ramath Orah board since 2012. As the chair of the Programming Committee, Rachel has brought new life to our calendar through events like the (now annual) Young Professionals Shabbat Dinner, the CommUNITY Shabbat, and the Hurricane Sandy Relief A Capella Concert. Rachel also produced the first ever year-end video. Jamie says that he prefers to stay under the radar at shul, but he can often be found downstairs at the children’s groups, or with Eleanor in the sanctuary after shul giving her obligate goodbye kisses to the Torah. 

Valerie Mast, Distinguished Service Award
A life-long wandering Jew, Valerie has lived in six countries and ten states. After living in Israel for more than ten years, she came to Ramath Orah on her very first Shabbat in New York in 2004. Although it was several years before she made New York her permanent home, Valerie had already decided that Ramath Orah felt like “her” shul. Valerie is a historian and teaches at the high school level, as well as does research, writes, and speaks at conferences. At Ramath Orah, Valerie officially teaches the “middle” children’s group on Shabbat mornings and runs the weekly toddler group. Unofficially, she curates the children’s library, arranges and cleans up toys and games for Shabbat, photographs events and displays pictures of the children, helps make cholent, serves whiskey at kiddush, and much more.