Rabbi David Adelson has been the spiritual leader of East End Temple since 2000. During his tenure, he has partnered with lay leaders to cultivate a community that is constantly growing in numbers, diversity, and vitality.
A native Brooklynite, Rabbi Adelson graduated from Stuyvesant High School.At Oberlin College, he majored in History and Judaic Studies, and also studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and at Brooklyn College.He was ordained after completing the rabbinic program at Hebrew Union College in 1999.He served as a hospital chaplain resident in 1999-2000 at New York–Presbyterian Hospital, Cornell. He has since trained and serves as a spiritual director, supporting individuals in a counseling setting to explore their inner spiritual experience.He is currently a participant in the rabbinic program of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, learning about modes of Jewish contemplative practice.He has also participated many times in the Rabbinic Torah Seminar of the Hartman Institute in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Adelson serves the members of East End Temple by maintaining a focus on the search for connection and meaning in all that we do.Whether leading services or text study, teaching children, attending pastoral needs or guiding our community-organizing work for social justice, he seeks to help all of us see the spiritual relevance in our lives.As rabbi of the congregation, he helps us articulate and execute a vision of rich, meaningful Jewish life as individuals and as a community.He is committed to a relational model of Temple life, in which members know one another and act to create the community they seek.
Rabbi Adelson lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Lynn Harris.They are very busy raising their daughter, Bess, and son, Sam.
Cantor Shira Ginsburg joyfully joins East EndTemple as Cantor after serving as Student Cantor for the last four years. A graduate of Syracuse University's Drama and Musical Theatre program, Shira spent a number of years in NY working as a professional actress, singer, and songwriter before being invested as Cantor from Hebrew UnionCollege. Shira's focus has been integrating the emotional, inspirational, theatrical, and spiritual elements of music into the totality of Jewish experience.
Music carries us forward, not only in prayer, but in our every day lives. Each of us has a soundtrack uniquely our own, be it a melody from childhood, a song that wakes us up in the morning and infuses us with energy, or a steady rhythm that allows us to ground ourselves when things become overwhelming. When we tap into the wealth of Jewish music and experience that is the shared soundtrack of the Jewish people, an opportunity presents itself to at once connect with our own spirituality, history, and journey as we connect with the individual and collective experiences of those within our community.
With a great passion for music of all kinds, Shira loves to cross musical genres in services, integrating folk with more traditional chazzanut, as well as using components of musical theatre to heighten the effectiveness of solo and congregational melodies. Shira hopes that everyone who walks through the doors of East EndTemple will find something that inspires them to open their mouths and sing. She encourages everyone to think of singing as an opportunity to lift our prayers to a higher level.
V’nomar L’fanav Shira Chadasha…Let us sing before God a new song.
Sara L. Blumstein, RJE
Sara L. Blumstein, RJE joined East End Temple as the Director of Congregational Learning in 2009. She has many years of experience in both religious and secular education. Creating opportunities for individuals of all ages to learn about Judaism is a primary objective that has influenced Sara's career as a Jewish educator. She believes that what is taught should be done so in a way that engages both students’ emotions and intellect. One of the major goals of Jewish education is to help each student, regardless of age, build a strong positive Jewish identity. Personal identity is a foundation which helps address the challenges and opportunities of daily living. Sara hopes that East End Temple will provide an environment where all students can feel comfortable expanding their knowledge, challenging themselves and engaging in dialogue about their faith and assumptions.
Sara received the title of Reform Jewish Educator (RJE) in 2005, her Masters degree in Religious Education from the New York School of Education (NYSOE) at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in May 2003, and her Masters degree in Secondary Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, in 1999. Most recently Sara was the Educational Director of the Bergen Academy of Reform Judaism in New Jersey and the Program Administrator for "A Taste of Judaism: Are You Curious?" a program of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ).
Ben Fink is currently the Operations Manager at the Ukeles Associates Inc Consulting Firm. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa and at the age of 13, moved to Baltimore, MD. Ben holds a BA in Religious Studies and a minor in Dance from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA. In his spare time he can be found singing karaoke or walking around the village parks when the weather is nice, or at least bearable. He has studied at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and has spent significant time volunteering on Kibbutz Ketura, a small egalitarian Kibbutz in the Arava Valley in Southern Israel. Ben currently lives in the West Village and is thrilled to be part of the East End Community.
Sharon Shemesh, Temple Administrator
Sharon Shemesh joined the EET professional staff in 1997. As the Temple Administrator , Sharon facilitates, coordinates and manages administrative matters of the congregation, the office and the facility, working closely with professional staff and the Board of Trustees.
Sharon is a member of NATA (National Association of Temple Administrator) and MASE (Metropolitan Association for Synagogue Executives). She is blessed to call East End Temple her home away from home.
Rabbi David Adelson has been the spiritual leader of East End Temple since 2000. During his tenure, he has partnered with lay leaders to cultivate a community that is constantly growing in numbers, diversity, and vitality.
Cantor Shira Ginsburg joyfully joins 
Sara L. Blumstein, RJE joined East End Temple as the Director of Congregational Learning in 2009. She has many years of experience in both religious and secular education. Creating opportunities for individuals of all ages to learn about Judaism is a primary objective that has influenced Sara's career as a Jewish educator. She believes that what is taught should be done so in a way that engages both students’ emotions and intellect. One of the major goals of Jewish education is to help each student, regardless of age, build a strong positive Jewish identity. Personal identity is a foundation which helps address the challenges and opportunities of daily living. Sara hopes that East End Temple will provide an environment where all students can feel comfortable expanding their knowledge, challenging themselves and engaging in dialogue about their faith and assumptions.
Ben Fink is currently the Operations Manager at the Ukeles Associates Inc Consulting Firm. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa and at the age of 13, moved to Baltimore, MD. Ben holds a BA in Religious Studies and a minor in Dance from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA. In his spare time he can be found singing karaoke or walking around the village parks when the weather is nice, or at least bearable. He has studied at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and has spent significant time volunteering on Kibbutz Ketura, a small egalitarian Kibbutz in the Arava Valley in Southern Israel. Ben currently lives in the West Village and is thrilled to be part of the East End Community.
Sharon Shemesh joined the EET professional staff in 1997. As the Temple Administrator , Sharon facilitates, coordinates and manages administrative matters of the congregation, the office and the facility, working closely with professional staff and the Board of Trustees.
