The Temple Concord/Temple Israel Adult Education Program will hold “Reflection on my Life as a Rabbi: A Zoom Conversation with Rabbi Sally J. Priesand” on Sunday, February 13, at 10:30 am. There is no cost to attend. The program is also being sponsored by the Temple Concord Sisterhood and the Solis Cohen Fund. Participants may view the program in Temple Concord’s sanctuary. To attend in person, pre-register by contacting the Temple Concord office at 723-7355 or templeconcordaa@gmail.com.  Proof of vaccine and masks are required for the in-person program. To join via Zoom, use this link, meeting ID 862 7071 9557 and passcode 227843.

Rabbi Barbara Goldman-Wartell will host Priesand from her home in New Jersey. Priesand, America’s first female rabbi, was ordained in June 1972 by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, OH. From 1981-2006, she served as rabbi of Monmouth Reform Temple, becoming rabbi emerita upon her retirement. 

Nationally, she has served on the Executive Board of both the Central Conference of American Rabbis and the Union for Reform Judaism. She also served as a member of the Board of Governors of HUC-JIR, as president of the Rabbinic Alumni Association and as editor of the CCAR Newsletter for three years. In 2007, she invited her female rabbinic colleagues of all denominations to join her in donating their professional and personal papers to the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati, OH, in order to document the history of women in the rabbinate. 
Goldman-Wartell said she has known Priesand for more than 36 years and is looking forward to welcoming her to the local community. If anyone has questions they would like to ask Priesand, they should send them to Goldman-Wartell at rabbigoldmanwartell@gmail.com.

“Since there is no charge for the program, please consider making a donation to Temple Concord’s Solis-Cohen Scholarship-in-Residence Fund to ensure that we can continue to provide quality adult educational programs,” said organizers of the event. “Donations may be sent to the synagogue at 9 Riverside Dr., Binghamton, NY 13905.”