Meet The Staff
Henry is the Educational Director of the Aish Center. Having “graduated” from Judaism at his Bar Mitzvah, he went on to study history at Columbia University, freelance for the Washington Post, and teach inner city youth in New York. Traveling in Israel before grad school, he unexpectedly fell in love with Judaism, traded a PhD program for the rabbinate, met his wife Tzipora, and a year later joined the Aish Center in Manhattan where they live and entertain with their children.
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Tzipora Harris is a wife and mother who is committed to sharing wisdom, tools and insights that foster inner peace, clarity, and powerful goals. Originally from Israel, she completed a BA in psychology in NY, then spent five years learning from exceptional teachers of Jewish self-development in Jerusalem. She married Rabbi Henry Harris in 1998 and with him, joined Aish in NY one year later, where she continues to learn from both mentors as well as the students of her live classes and teleconference workshops for women.
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Rabbi Adam Jacobs is the Managing Director of the Aish Center in Manhattan. He was born and raised in New York and has lived in Boston and Jerusalem, where he received his rabbinic ordination. He completed his B.A. in music from Brandeis University and has a Masters of Jazz Performance from the New England Conservatory. He is a blogger for the Huffington Post’s religion section and has a penchant for writing and teaching about the uplifting, beautiful and unexpected aspects of the Jewish tradition. Rabbi Jacobs now lives in “the burbs” with his wife Penina and their five children.
Chaim was born and bred in London, England, and still speaks the Queen’s English even after several years of living in the States. Chaim spent 10 years of his life in the magical Old City of Jerusalem, where he received his rabbinical ordination, as well as running the introductory and intermediate programs at Aish Jerusalem. He also had the good fortune to study under the tutelage of Rabbi Yaakov Weinberg at Ner Israel Rabbinical College in Baltimore, Maryland, one of the great Torah luminaries of our generation. Chaim returned to the UK and spent 7 years as the educational director of Aish London, running programs to Israel and teaching in their dynamic Center.
Chaim now lives in Passaic, NJ with his wife Yocheved who is a practicing psychotherapist and loving mother of their son Shmuel.
Stuart was born in the Bronx but grew up in scenic, rural Connecticut where he lived a very sheltered life. After graduating from SUNY Purchase with a BS in Biology and Chemistry, and working as a research associate at Rockefeller University, Stu studied at Aish Jerusalem for over 5 years where he received his rabbinic ordination, not to mention the fame he garnered after playing Queen Esther in several Purim skits.
Rabbi Shiff was formerly the rabbi of Congregation Beth Israel in New Orleans, LA until August 29, 2005, the day Hurricane Katrina swamped New Orleans. At present, Stu, his wife Amy, and their children live in not-so-scenic New Jersey, but are ecstatic about being involved with the Aish Center.
See Associated Press Special Feature on Rabbi Shiff and Aish (1:47min).
Click to hear Rabbi Shiff’s WFUV inteview.
Bernd Brecher has been a consultant, administrator and volunteer for a larger number of not-for-profit institutions locally, nationally, and overseas. He approaches his responsibilities from strategic, marketing, and long range planning perspectives, and aims for his institutional administrators and volunteer leaders to work in partnership towards mutual goals.
He has helped his organizations raise hundreds of millions of dollars through major and planned giving operations as well as direct mail and special events. He is a recipient of the Genesis Award as a founder of the Alzheimers Association.
He holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science degrees from Columbia University.
Esther is from Queens, New York. She graduated from Queens College with a Bachelor of Science in Graphic Design and a minor in Business and Liberal Arts. She designs all of the advertising and marketing materials for the Aish Center as well as maintaining the website.
