Board Members
Board Members
Darkhei Noam is led entirely by a group of lay leaders including its co-chairs, board members, gabbaim, laining and davening coordinators. We strive to make Darkhei Noam a warm and inclusive spiritual home and encourage everyone to introduce themselves to our lay leaders at Kiddush on Shabbat.
DARKHEI NOAM BOARD OF DIRECTORS (6/2024)
Isaac Altman
Wendy Amsellem
Alistair Gatoff* (Treasurer)
Michael Grunfeld
Naomi Kadish
Eric Kaplan
Michelle Kraus*
Nehama Libman
Ayelet Lobel
Sharon Samet* (Co-chair)
Mikey Stein*
Naomi Steinberger
Sara Timen
Chaim Trachtman
Paul Wachtel* (Co-chair)
* Executive Committee
Get to know our Darkhei Noam Board of Directors:
Rabba Wendy Amsellem is a long-time member of Darkkhei Noam and joined the Board in 2020. She teaches Talmud and Halakha at Maharat, is the Director of the Beit Midrash Program, and is the Editor of Yehivat Maharat’s Keren Journal. She is the former Director of the Dr. Beth Samuels Drisha High School Program, was the Rosh Kollel of the Drisha July Kollel, and is an alumna of the Drisha Scholars Circle. She has been a Wexner Graduate Fellow and a Mandel Jerusalem Fellow.
Naomi Kadish joined Darkhei Noam in 2018, joined the board in 2022, and is the current gabbai coordinator. She currently works at Palantir Technologies as a Privacy Engineer.
Alistair Gatoff (Treasurer) is a long time member of Darkhei Noam, who joined the Board and took on responsibilities as Treasurer in 2023. He also leins and serves as gabbai from time to time. He has worked at Berlitz Corporation since 1992 where he heads up Taxation and Pensions functions. He is married to Lisa Radetsky and has three married daughters, all of whom live on the Upper West Side and are members of Darkhei Noam.
Eric Kaplan has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2013. In 2023-2024 Eric chaired Darkhei Noam's Twentieth Anniversary Campaign, raising over $300,000 for the community. He previously served as the Friday night coordinator, and serves on the Development and Scholar-in-Residence Committees. He works as a project manager at Weill Cornell Medicine. Eric is married to Renee Stern Kaplan and they have a beautiful baby boy, Bernard Dov.
Michelle Kraus has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2015, joined the Board in 2020, and is serving as the chair of the Bikkur Cholim committee. Michelle is a social worker who provides advocacy services for children and adults with disabilities in a public interest law firm.
Michael Grunfeld has attended Darkhei Noam for many years and joined the Board in 2024. He works as a lawyer at Pomerantz, primarily in the field of securities litigation.
Ayelet (Yelli) Lobel has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2019. She became the women’s davening coordinator in 2022, and joined the board in 2023. When she is not avidly recruiting new daveners, Yelli works at Goldman Sachs as an algorithmic trader. She is married to Ari Allen, and has a wonderful baby daughter.
Isaac Altman has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2021, and is on the Pride Committee in addition to being a regular Davener and Gabbai. Isaac works for the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County as a Staff Attorney in Family Court. He lives on the Upper West Side with his husband Bennett.
Nehama Libman has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2014, and is a regular participant as a leiner and a davener. She teaches elementary school Judaic Studies, and also coaches teachers and leads professional development on Tanakh instruction.
Sharon Samet (Co-chair) has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2013 when she moved to the UWS. She is a member of the hospitality and shiva committees. Sharon is a social worker who spent most of her career researching the relationships between substance abuse to other psychiatric disorders. She currently teaches in a social work graduate program. Sharon is married to Yaakov Stern, and they have three children and several grandchildren.
Rabbi Mikey Stein joined the Board in 2020. He is a faculty member at the Abraham Joshua Heschel High School and received ordination from YCT. He and his wife, Shevy Baskin, are parents of Ezra and Asher.
Naomi Steinberger has been a board member since 2020. She has been a member since the inception of Darkhei Noam. Naomi is co-chair of the mix and match lunches/dinners, is a member of the scholars in residence committee and the COVID-19 planning committee. Naomi is Director of Library Services at The Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary. She is married to Chaim, who served on the board and was co-chair in 2009-2011. They have two grown children and two grandchildren.
Sara Timen has been a member of Darkhei Noam since 2014 and joined the Board in 2019. Sara is a middle school teacher at the Abraham Joshua Heschel School. She and her husband, Seth Wolfman, are proud parents of two amazing daughters. Sara coordinates children's programming for the shul.
Chaim Trachtman is a pediatric nephrologist with a faculty appointment at the University of Michigan. He is a consultant for clinical trial designs and implementation. He is the editor of the book, Women and Men in Communal Prayer: Halakhic Perspectives (KTAV,JOFA) and contributes to Lehrhaus and Times of Israel. He is a member of the board of Yeshivat Maharat. He is married to the president of AMIT and has five children who have given him six fantastic grandchildren.
Paul Wachtel (Co-chair) joined the Board in 2018 and served as Treasurer before becoming co-chair. He recently retired after spending 50 years on the faculty of the Stern School of Business at New York University and now devotes his time to synagogue architecture, history and administration among other things. He is married to Claire, has two grown children and four grandchildren.
Tue, May 20 2025
22 Iyyar 5785
Tonight's Sefirah Count Is 38
היום שמונה ושלשים יום שהם חמשה שבועות ושלשה ימים לעמר |
Today's Calendar
Sefirat HaOmer- Counting the Omer. : 12:00am |
This week's Torah portion is Parshat Behar-Bechukotai
Candle Lighting
Friday, May 23, 7:56pm |
Havdalah
Motzei Shabbat, May 24, 8:56pm |
Shabbat Mevarchim
Shabbat, May 24 |
Upcoming Events
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Sunday ,
AprApril 13 , 2025
Sunday, Apr 13th 9:00p to Sunday, Jun 1st 12:00p
Sefirat haOmer, the counting of the omer/”sheaf,” refers to the commandment to count the 49 days from the second day of Pesach until Shavuot. In biblical times, these 7 weeks comprised the grain harvest, beginning with barley (for which the barley omer offering was brought on Pesach) and concluding with wheat (on Shavuot). Although we no longer bring these offerings at the Temple, we continue to count the 49 days. While the biblical origin of sefirat ha’omer is agricultural, this time period also connects Pesach, the celebration of Israelite liberation from slavery, and Shavuot, the culmination of that liberation process whereby the Israelites became a realized nation with their own Torah. Counting the omer each year can remind us to always elevate ourselves from an enslaved mentality to one of freedom. We perform the counting each evening after sundown. We recite a bracha and then officially count the day of the omer, indicated by weeks and days. If the counting at night is missed, we count in the morning/during the day but without a bracha. If a whole day is missed, we continue counting the rest of the omer but without a bracha. The bracha and formula for counting the omer each night can be found here: Siddur Sim Shalom Sefirat haOmer -
Saturday ,
MayMay 31 , 2025
Shabbat, May 31st 11:00a to 12:45p
Honoring our Darkhei Noam 2025 Graduates! Shabbat May 31 Many Darkhei Noam's families are celebrating school graduations from Pre-K to PhD. The Darkhei Noam community is proud of our graduates' achievements and will be marking this important milestone on Shabbat May 31, when we will be celebrating our graduates with a special ceremony at the end of tefillah, and a Graduates' Dessert Buffet. Honoring our Darkhei Noam 2025 Graduates! Shabbat May 31 Many Darkhei Noam's families are celebrating school graduations from Pre-K to PhD. The Darkhei Noam community is proud of our graduates' achievements and will be marking this important milestone on Shabbat May 31, when we will be celebrating our graduates with a special ceremony at the end of tefillah, and a Graduates' Dessert Buffet. Please click HERE to submit your graduate's name for the listing of graduates, and, if you like, to honor our community graduates by contributing to the Special Graduates' Dessert Buffet at kiddush on May 31. -
Saturday ,
MayMay 31 , 2025
Shabbat, May 31st 4:00p to 6:00p
Join us for a pre-Shavuot family Tikkun on Shabbat afternoon, May 31 at 4PM! Recommended for families with children ages 4 and up, this engaging program will include chevruta learning and a fun, interactive group activity exploring the theme of friendship in Jewish texts and tradition. -
Sunday ,
JunJune 1 , 2025
Sunday, Jun 1st 10:00p to Monday, Jun 2nd 1:00a
Join the Darkhei Noam community for a night of learning to be held at SAJ. Hourly sessions from 10:00 pm - 1:00 am. Cheesecake will, of course, be served. -
Tuesday ,
JunJune 3 , 2025
Tuesday, Jun 3rd 4:30p to 6:30p
All are invited to join the DN Young Professionals group for a Tikkun Yom Shavuot, at 4:30 on the Second day of Shavuot (6/3). We will have snacks and drinks and round robin learning led by our very own YP community members! -
Friday ,
JunJune 13 , 2025
Friday, Jun 13th 7:00p to Shabbat, Jun 14th 8:00p
Sara Tillinger Wolkenfeld is a Rabbinic Fellow of the David Hartman Center in Jerusalem. She serves as Chief Learning Officer at Sefaria, the innovative online database and interface for Jewish texts. This Scholar in Residence is sponsored by Ozzie Haller In memory of Jack O Haller MD and his excitement for Jewish learning. -
Saturday ,
JunJune 21 , 2025
Shabbat, Jun 21st (All day)
Friday Night Mix and Match Dinner, Special D'var Torah Speaker, Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, Pride-Sponsored Kiddush and Pot Luck Shaleshudes- MORE DETAILS TO FOLLOW SOON -
Tuesday ,
JunJune 24 , 2025
Tuesday, Jun 24th 8:00p to 9:00p
Volunteer to Lead Services!
If you would like to volunteer to lead services, read from the Torah or give a D'var Torah, please click here!
Get Involved in Communal Programming
If you would like to volunteer within our community please click here.
Join Darkhei Noam on WhatsApp
DN Chesed will be used to connect the community and alert members to volunteering opportunities.
Need a laugh? You'll find jokes, videos, memes and more at DN Comic Relief.
If you identify as a "Young Professional" in the Darkhei Noam community and are interested in connecting with others, join Darkhei Noam YPs WhatsApp Group!
Are you a Tot Tefillah parent or do you want to start attending? Join the Tot Tefillah WhatsApp group to be in the know.
Pride at Darkhei Noam welcomes all LGBTQ+ members of DN to our WhatsApp group.
Join DN Stands for Israel to share resources and support.
Email info@dnoam.org to request the sign-up links.
Mailing address: c/o Alistair Gatoff, 215 West 91st Street, #122, New York, NY 10024
Meeting address: 150 W 85 St, NY, NY 10024
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