Board of Directors
Rabbi Greg Wolfe, President
Rabbi Greg Wolfe currently serves as President of the Northern California Board of Rabbis. He is Rabbi Emeritus of Congregation Bet Haverim in Davis, CA.
Rabbi Greg Wolfe grew up in San Francisco, the son of Rhoda and Sheldon Wolfe, who implanted within him his love of Judaism and modeled for him a life dedicated to creating and supporting dynamic Jewish life. His formative Jewish experiences took place at his home congregation, Sherith Israel, where he developed a close relationship with his rabbi, Marty Weiner z”l, and at URJ Camp Swig. Rabbi Wolfe attended UC Berkeley and received his rabbinic ordination at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1989. Before coming to Davis to become the Spiritual Leader of Congregation Bet Haverim in 1995, he served as the Assistant Rabbi in Milwaukee at Congregation Shalom and as the Director of URJ Camp Swig.
Rabbi Wolfe’s passion has been developing opportunities that inspire Jewish creativity, connection and curiosity. In addition, he has dedicated himself to building bridges between our Jewish community and other religious groups and communal organizations.
Rabbi Wolfe became the Rabbi Emeritus of Congregation Bet Haverim in 2022. After serving as the rabbi in Davis for 27 years, he felt that it was more important than ever to find new ways of connecting with colleagues and continuing to serve our Jewish community. The Northern California Board of Rabbis provides me with a wonderful opportunity to accomplish both of these goals. I love the way that the Board of Rabbis offers rabbis who come from many different backgrounds and serve in diverse ways (and who are in different stages of their careers) creative spaces to gather together to learn and support one another.
Rabbi Wolfe is married to Julie Hochman and they have two adult children, Ariella (their son-in-law, Nick) and Noah, and one adorable grandson, Isaac.
Rabbi Idit Solomon, Treasurer & Finance Chair
Rabbi Idit Solomon currently serves as the Treasurer for the Northern California Board of Rabbis. She previously founded and led the Jewish infertility non-profit Hasidah.
Rabbi Idit Solomon earned her Master’s of Jewish Education and ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles. Rabbi Solomon founded and led the Jewish infertility non-profit Hasidah (Hebrew word for stork). She previously led the Jewish Education department at the Columbus Jewish Federation and their Jewish Community Relations Committee (JCRC). Her Jewish professional background includes working at Hillel, summer camps, and elder care facilities. Her first career was as a business systems analyst. Rabbi Solomon is a Rabbis Without Borders Fellow and a graduate of the Institute of Jewish Spirituality’s Clergy Leadership program.
Rabbi Solomon currently serves as the Treasurer for the Northern California Board of Rabbis.
Rabbi Moshe Heyn, Secretary & Chair, Technology Committee
Rabbi Moshe Heyn serves as Board Secretary and Chair of the Technology Committee for the Board of Rabbis. He is a rabbi, musician, chaplain, surfer, and spiritual activist who practices and teaches a synthesis of humanism and mysticism known as neo-Hasidism.
Moshe Heyn is a rabbi, musician, chaplain, surfer and spiritual activist who practices and teaches a synthesis of humanism and mysticism known as Neo-Hasidism. Born and raised in Baltimore, he received his musical training at the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University. He later earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin and his master’s degree, rabbinic ordination, and honorary doctorate from the Hebrew Union College.
In the twenty-five years since his ordination, Rabbi Heyn served congregations, schools and nonprofits, been active in rabbinic associations and interfaith councils, has received numerous awards, and is widely-known as a genuine rabbi, chaplain and friend. In addition to his work as a Hospice Chaplain for VITAS Healthcare, he is proud to serve as the Spiritual Leader of Coastside Jewish Community.
Rabbi Andrew Straus, Past President and Programming Chair
Rabbi Andrew Straus is a Past President of the Board of Rabbis and is Programming Chair.
He has served as a Reform congregational Rabbi in New York and California and as Deputy Regional Director for JStreet in the San Francisco Bay area. He is currently serving as a part-time consultant to JStreet.
Rabbi George Altshuler
Rabbi George Altshuler serves as Assistant Rabbi at Congregation Sherith Israel, where his own Jewish journey began as a child.
Rabbi Altshuler was ordained at Hebrew Union College in 2023, he previously worked as a teacher and journalist, including for JWeekly, the Jewish News of Northern California, and volunteered in San Quentin State Prison, and in Haiti. During rabbinical school, he was a Tisch Fellow and participated in fellowships with the New Israel Fund and Pardes Institute. He loves building connections across all ages and stages of life, and is especially passionate about Jewish learning and justice.
George lives in the Presidio with his wife, Kate, and their two daughters, Selah and Arden.
Rabbi Allan Berkowitz
Rabbi Allan Berkowitz was ordained through the Jewish Theological Seminary. He is the author of “The Psalms: A Guide for the Heart & Soul.”
Allan Berkowitz received his BA from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He holds a master’s degree in education from Columbia University Teachers College.
Allan is the author of, The Psalms: A Guide for the Heart and Soul; and co-author of, Embracing the Covenant: Converts to Judaism Talk about Why & How (Jewish Lights Publishing).
Rabbi Shalom Bochner
Rabbi Shalom Bochner serves as the Spiritual Leader and Education Director for the B’nai Israel Jewish Center in Petaluma, CA.
Rabbi Shalom Bochner serves as the Spiritual Leader and Education Director for the B’nai Israel Jewish Center in Petaluma, California. He has a background in formal and informal Jewish education, including outdoor education and music, with more than 35 years of experience. Rabbi Bochner is a member of Ohalah: the Jewish Renewal rabbinical association.
Rabbi Madeline Budman
Rabbi Budman is relatively new to California and joined the Board of Rabbis in Fall of 2025.
Rabbi Madeline T. Budman is a Rabbi Educator at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco. She originally from Norfolk, Virginia. Rabbi Budman earned her B.A. from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and was ordained from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, Ohio. During her time in rabbinical school, Rabbi Budman served as the student rabbi of Temple Israel in Marion, Ohio, taught as an education fellow through Shelanu: Cincinnati’s Jewish Community High School, and participated in the Nachshon Project Graduate Fellowship. She served as an educator and rabbinic intern at Rockdale Temple in Cincinnati for her entire HUC-JIR tenure.
Rabbi Budman lives in the East Bay with her husband, Rabbi Aaron Torop, and their two cats.
Rabbi Cantor Jennie Chabon
Rabbi Cantor Jennie Chabon serves as the spiritual leader of Congregation B’nai Tikvah in Walnut Creek.
Rabbi Cantor Jennie Chabon is a beloved Bay Area rabbi and cantor who inspires all who know her with her soulful voice and passion for Judaism. She graduated from Columbia University with a degree in Anthropology and received her Masters of Sacred Music and Investiture from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She joined the clergy team at Congregation B’nai Tikvah in 2004, where she has been proudly serving ever since.
Several years ago, Rabbi Chabon felt the call to the rabbinate. This call, and her desire to broaden her learning and expand her ability to guide her congregation, led her to the Academy for Jewish Religion in Los Angeles, where she found inspiring teachers and mentors who are dedicated to pluralistic values and engaging deeply and joyfully with Judaism.
Rabbi Chabon was ordained as a rabbi in 2019, at which time she stepped fully into the role of spiritual leader of B’nai Tikvah. She looks to guide her community towards a future that cherishes the spirit that makes CBT so sweet and unique, while also helping them to embrace the creative, complex and changing landscape of Bay Area Judaism.
Rabbi Faith Joy Dantowitz, Co-Chair, Caring Committee
Rabbi Faith Joy Dantowitz is Co-Chair of the Board of Rabbi’s Caring Committee. She is the Rabbi at Congregation Emeth in Morgan Hill, CA.
Rabbi Faith Joy Dantowitz (she/her) is honored to be Congregation Emeth’s Rabbi since 2020. Building relationships is an integral part of her rabbinate. She is passionate about social justice, pastoral care, teaching children and adults, leading services and finding joy.
A New Jersey native, she grew up in a Reform Jewish household and loved being Jewish. Before pursuing the rabbinate, she followed her math and science interests to explore engineering which made it even clearer the rabbinate was her path.
She previously served as Associate Rabbi at Temple B’nai Abraham in Livingston, NJ from 2010-2020. From 2004-2010, she was the Regional Director of Admissions and Recruitment at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in NY. Her first rabbinic position was as a rabbi at Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in Short Hills, NJ, 1993-2004. Rabbi Dantowitz was ordained from HUC-JIR in 1993 (NY). She graduated from University of Pennsylvania’s Moore School of Electrical Engineering and Applied Science in 1987 with a B.A.S. in Systems Engineering.
Rabbi Dantowitz is honored to serve on the Executive Board of the Northern California Board of Rabbis which represents and supports rabbis from across the denominations. She is also a longtime member and current Secretary of the Women’s Rabbinic Network (WRN). WRN has consistently worked to promote the personal and professional growth of female identifying rabbis and rabbinic students within the Reform Movement.. She is part of the Interfaith Clergy Alliance of Morgan Hill/Gilroy and served as facilitator. She represents CRAGSJ (Cantors and Rabbis of Greater San Jose) on the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the Bay Area’s Advisory Council.
She is a global justice fellow with American Jewish World Service (AJWS) and traveled to Guatemala with them in 2015. Rabbi Dantowitz is a Balfour Brickner Fellow and a JOIN for Justice Rabbinic Fellow. She is a chaver with T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights. She is a Hevraya member of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality (IJS).
In 2018, she received her honorary Doctor of Divinity from HUC-JIR for 25 years in the rabbinate. She is married to David Dantowitz and they have four adult sons: Ezra, Benjamin, Samuel, and Daniel, and a dog, Lily Rose. She loves hiking at the Pacific Coast and in the Redwood Forests, reading, musical theater, and ice cream.
Rabbi Stacy Friedman, Co-Chair, Fundraising Committee
Rabbi Stacy Friedman serves as Co-Chair for the Board of Rabbis Fundraising Committee. She is the senior rabbi at Congregation Rodef Shalom in San Rafael, CA and is dedicated to tikkun olam – repairing the world.
Rabbi Stacy Friedman, Congregation Rodef Sholom’s senior rabbi. She sees Judaism as a rich tradition which can inspire its followers to lift each human being and see within them the divine spark. She joined the congregation in 1993 after posts in New York City, Montana and Victorville, CA. She was named senior rabbi in 2003 when her predecessor Rabbi Michael Barenbaum, z”l, retired.
Rabbi Stacy is passionate about prayer and ritual and believes strongly in the power and holiness of Congregation Rodef Sholom.
Dedicated to tikkun olam – repairing the world – she is known for her ardent sermons on social justice issues. In 2014, her Rosh Hashanah drash on mental illness and suicide spearheaded a congregational initiative. She received national attention for her presentation.
Born in Framingham, MA, Rabbi Stacy grew up in New York and Salt Lake City. She was just 16 when she decided to become a rabbi. After earning a B.A. degree in Sociology at Brandeis University, she attended Hebrew Union College and was ordained at HUC-Los Angeles Institute of Religion in 1993.
Rabbi Stacy spent three years studying at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem as a part of their rabbinic fellows program. She has traveled with American Jewish World Service to Guatemala on a fact-finding mission on human trafficking. She has also lobbied our congresspeople on issues including human trafficking, LGBTQIA+ rights and the environment.
In addition, she represents Congregation Rodef Sholom at the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) and Hebrew Union College (HUC). At home, among her many community involvements are the Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis, Marin Interfaith Council, the Northern California Board of Rabbis, and the Marin Interfaith Youth Outreach.
Rabbi Stacy is married to Frank Friedman and they have two sons, Adam and Eli. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, reading fiction, cooking, movies, gardening, traveling and meditation.
Rabbi Dan Goldblatt
Rabbi Dan Goldblatt is a new Board Member. He is co-director of the Ari-Yael Jewish Healing Center and Rabbi Emeritus of Beth Chaim Congregation in Danville, CA.
Rabbi Dan Goldblatt is co-director of the AriYael Jewish Healing Center. He is Rabbi Emeritus of Beth Chaim Congregation in Danville where he served as rabbi for 30 years. He served on the Boards of OHALAH and ALEPH, is a Past President of OHALAH and currently serves on the Board of Governors for the ALEPH Ordination Program. He also serves on the Board of Wilderness Torah.
Rabbi Chaya Gusfield, Jewish Chaplaincy Co-Chair
Rabbi Chaya Gusfield is a member of the Board of Directors of the Northern California Board of Rabbis and serves as Co-Chair of the Jewish Chaplaincy Advisory Committee. She is a Spiritual Director and Retired Board Certified Chaplain, having worked in hospital Palliative Care, Interfaith Chaplaincy and Jewish Chaplaincy.
Rabbi Chaya Gusfield is a Spiritual Director and Retired Board Certified Chaplain, having worked in hospital Palliative Care, Interfaith Chaplaincy and Jewish Chaplaincy. She serves as a Spiritual Director for rabbinical students from HUC and Aleph and has a private practice serving individuals and groups. She teaches in the Aleph Ordination Program. She has a long history of serving congregations in a variety of roles (Beth Chaim Congregation (Danville), Or Shalom (San Francisco), Temple Beth Or (Edmonton), Kehilla Community Synagogue (East Bay), and more.
She has a passion for using art and creativity in her work and has a website where she blogs and offers her art as prompts for writing. She is a lesbian mother and partner with a woman who is living with Multiple Myeloma. She can be reached at rabbichayagusfield.com.
Rabbi Dana Magat, Co-Chair, Caring Committee
Rabbi Dana Magat is a Co-Chair of the Board of Rabbi’s Caring Committee. He is the Senior Rabbi for Temple Emanu-El in San Jose. CA.
Rabbi Dana Magat became Temple Emanu-El’s Senior Rabbi in July 1999. Prior to that, he served four years as Associate Rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel in San Diego. Rabbi Magat’s first pulpit was in Miami where he was the Assistant Rabbi/Director of Education for Temple Israel of Greater Miami. Before his ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1993, he earned a Masters in Education from the Fingerhut School of Education at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles.
Rabbi Magat is actively involved in interfaith relations. He is currently the Chair of the Interfaith Council on Economics and Justice for Santa Clara County. He has served as President of the Cantors and Rabbis Association of Greater San Jose. Rabbi Magat has been a board member of Hillel of Silicon Valley, Chai House, the Jewish Community Center and the Pacific Association of American Rabbis. He currently services on the board of the Northern California Board of Rabbis as well as various other committees.
Rabbi Magat is married to Cheriel and he has two children, Shira and Raya.
Rabbi Gray Myrseth
Rabbi Gray Myrseth is originally from San Francisco and was ordained at the Hebrew College Rabbinical School of Newton, MA, and served for six years as Rabbi Educator at Kehilla Community Synagogue in Oakland.
They have worked as a rabbi, chaplain, and educator with people of all ages, within Jewish institutions and beyond. When not at work, Gray can be found making ceramic Judaica, writing and reading poetry, expounding on the wonders of Talmud study, and enthusiastically exchanging podcast recommendations.
Rabbi Jill Perlman
Rabbi Jill Perlman serves as the Senior Rabbi of Temple Isaiah in Lafayette.
After receiving her B.A. from Brandeis University in English and American Literature and completing programs in Education and Women’s Studies, she went on to pursue a three-year joint-Master’s degree program at Brandeis in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies and Jewish Communal Service with a concentration in Jewish Education. Rabbi Perlman received a M.A. in Hebrew Literature and rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City. She is a Tisch Fellow, which identifies and supports transformational rabbis; a Brickner Fellow, which empowers rabbis as social justice leaders; an AJWS (American Jewish World Service) Rabbinic Fellow, which supports rabbis in effectively honing their voice and power to advocate for global human rights; and a CLI (Clergy Leadership Incubator) Fellow, which encourages rabbis in the areas of innovative thinking, change management, and institutional transformation. Rabbi Perlman also serves on the Steering Committee for Clergy for Reproductive Freedom.
Rabbi Jill Perlman is passionate about bringing the eternal lessons of our tradition into our world: compassion, repair, and justice. She is also particularly passionate about the work of creating intimate communities where we can all feel seen, heard, and known.
Rabbi Perlman lives in Moraga with her spouse and their three children.
Rabbi Eric Weiss, Jewish Chaplaincy Co-Chair
Rabbi Eric Weiss is Executive Director Emeritus of the Bay Area Jewish Healing Center and is Co-Chair of our Chaplaincy Advisory Committee.