Contact Us
Main Office: (202) 363-6394
Religious School: (202) 363-1942
Nursery School (202) 362-3836
Our Clergy
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Rabbi Jonathan Roos has served as Senior Rabbi at Temple Sinai since 2010. Jonathan is most enthusiastic about teaching Judaism to Temple Sinai members at every age and every stage of their lives. Each year he offers an adult education class focused on traditional Jewish sources. He also teaches the 10th grade confirmation class. Jonathan is the leader of the Temple staff team and loves the opportunity to work with an amazing set of clergy who do great things individually and as a group. Jonathan is committed to Jewish social justice work at Temple Sinai and in the wider community where he focuses particularly on issues of immigration and refugee rights.
Jonathan was ordained as a rabbi from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in 2002 with special awards for best sermon delivered, outstanding contributions to women and Judaism and outstanding academic achievement. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and received a Masters degree in American History from the University of Maryland at College Park. He is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) and previously served congregations in Tinton Falls, New Jersey and Albany, New York. Jonathan’s love for Judaism and Jewish community is founded on his family’s deep involvement in his childhood temple (Beth Am of Randolph, Mass.), great experiences in his USY youth group, and many amazing summers at Camp Bauercrest in Amesbury, Mass.
In addition to leading worship services, teaching at all levels, and guiding the staff team of Temple Sinai, Roos is available for individual meetings, pastoral counseling and support with any ritual or Jewish matters.
Contact
Jonathan Roos
Senior Rabbi
jroos@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-6394 x 209 -
Cantor Rachel Rhodes is thrilled to be the cantor at Temple Sinai since July of 2023. She deeply believes in the power of music to form community and transform lives. Whether working with kids in the youth choir or adults preparing to read from Torah, Cantor Rhodes loves making Jewish music accessible for all.
Cantor Rhodes works closely with all musical happenings at Temple Sinai. If you are interested in singing with the choir, participating in the congregational band, chanting Torah, or simply learning more about Jewish music, please get in touch! Cantor Rhodes also participates fully in all lifecycle events at Temple Sinai and revels in being present with families at the most important moments of their lives.
Cantor Rhodes was ordained in 2014 from Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music at the Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion in New York. She was awarded the Izzy Goldstein z’l award for Excelling at Chazzanut during her time in school. Her thesis was about inspiring the Jewish Environmental movement through song. Cantor Rhodes then moved to Falls Church, VA where she served at Temple Rodef Shalom for 9 years.
She lives in Bethesda, MD with her husband Dov and her sons Oren and Lev.
Contact
Rachel Rhodes
Senior Cantor
rrhodes@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-6394 x 208 -
Rabbi Hannah Goldstein has been at Temple Sinai since 2013. In addition to leading services and officiating at lifecycle events, Rabbi Goldstein is deeply committed to the education and social justice work of the congregation. She loves teaching learners of all ages from nursery school through 7th grade b’nei mitzvah preparation, to teens. She coordinates Temple Sinai’s adult education program, which includes everything from book discussions to weekday mini-courses, adult Hebrew and adult b’nei mitzvah. Hannah is also deeply committed to repairing the world through her work with Temple Sinai’s Davis Center for Social Justice. This includes mobilizing congregants to participate in non-partisan GOTV work, supporting the Green Team, advocating for Reproductive Health and Right, and working with the Washington Interfaith Network (WIN) on local issues. She is also dedicated to the work, led by Multiracial Sinai Committee, on being an antiracist congregation. Hannah has served on the Mayor’s Interfaith Council in DC, and is currently serving on the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism. She is also a member of the Washington Interfaith Network strategy team.
Hannah received her rabbinic ordination at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in New York in 2013. She completed a Masters in Religious Education at HUC-JIR in the spring of 2011. Hannah grew up in Andover, Massachusetts and studied English and Politics as an undergraduate at Brandeis University. Before coming to Temple Sinai, she served as the rabbinic intern at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan.
Hannah lives in Chevy Chase, DC with her husband, Josh, and their daughters, Bella, Eve, and Sophie.
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Rabbi Noah Diamondstein joined the Temple Sinai clergy team in the summer of 2020, having been freshly ordained from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. He has had wide ranging experiences as a scholar of Judaism—from handling primary source documents from early 20th Century rabbis who wrote about the Mourners’ Kaddish, to teaching the leadership of Jerusalem’s Women of the Wall movement to blow shofar, to serving as a rabbinic intern at a Jewish Social Justice non-profit organization. His rabbinic thesis is entitled “A Tale of Two Liturgies: Placing Liturgical Development in the Reform and Conservative Movements in Conversation,” and focused on the differences and similarities between the ways these two Liberal Jewish movements approach the work of creating new prayer books.
This project was meaningful for him, given that he was raised simultaneously in both the Conservative and Reform Movements. Noah was brought up in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he was bar mitzvah-ed at the Conservative synagogue. Alongside this experience, he attended URJ Camp Harlam, eventually serving on the staff and leading the Jewish Life department as Head Songleader over two non-consecutive summers. His experience at camp was one of the chief shapers of his Reform Jewish identity. As a result of these dual, and often dueling, identities, Noah spends much of his intellectual energy on navigating what it means to do Reform Judaism using the model of “Choice-Through-Knowledge.”
Noah is also a published Jewish musician! His first album, entitled “Ashira L’Adonai,” was released in January of 2019 and produced by none other than Dan Nichols! He was featured as an Emerging Artist on Jewish Rock Radio, and spent much of his final year before coming to Temple Sinai as a guest service leader or artist-in-residence in Jewish communities across the country. His musical work has helped him to fine-tune his skills as a service leader, and has taught him the power of leaving your ego at the door for the sake of holding space for the group. You can find his music on Spotify, Youtube, or on his website: noahdiamondstein.com. On that website, in addition to his music, you can also read about Noah’s approach to the rabbinate and to Judaism, and where he stands on various topics relevant to today’s Jewish community, from intermarriage to Israel to God and commandedness.
Contact
Noah Diamondstein
Associate Rabbi
ndiamondstein@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-6394 x 232 -
Cantor Rebecca Robins is Director of Temple Sinai’s religious school and superintends the congregational youth educational programs. She is especially passionate about making sure our children, teens, their families and our teachers feel a sense of significance and belonging at Temple Sinai. Rebecca can also be found leading Tot Shabbat services, Family Shabbat services, and other and other worship services here at Sinai.
Rebecca (also known as “CR”) came to Temple Sinai in 2012. A passion for music, teaching, learning and working with people on life’s journey sent her to cantorial school the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion where she was ordained as cantor in 2008. While at HUC-JIR, Cantor Robins served congregations in Edison, NJ, Katonah, NY and Falls Church, VA. After being ordained she served Congregation Sinai in Milwaukee, WI as Cantor-Educator.
Originally from Long Island, NY, CR holds a BM in Music Education and Vocal Performance from the Crane School of Music, State University of New York College at Potsdam in Potsdam, NY. She began her career in education as a K-8 music teacher at Lyncourt School in Syracuse, NY. CR is a member of the American Conference of Cantors (ACC), and the Association of Reform Jewish Educators (ARJE), and serves as chairperson of the DMV’s Reform Synagogue Musicians professional group. She lives with her husband Zerek (a member of MMC, Sinai’s band), and their son Gus in Rockville, Maryland. When not at Sinai, they can be found exploring, doing projects, baking cupcakes, and having as much fun as possible.
Contact
Rebecca Robins
Cantor Educator
rrobins@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-1942 -
Robyn Helzner has been Temple Sinai’s Cantorial Soloist since 2005 but she has been leading services here since 1987. Encouraging participation is a hallmark of Robyn’s cantorial style. She coordinates the temple’s twice monthly lay-led Shabbat morning, Kehillat Shabbat services.
Robyn is a graduate of Northwestern University’s renowned theatre program. She served for six years as the Cantor for the United Jewish Congregation of Hong Kong and officiated at the first bar mitzvah celebrated in Beijing, China. In addition to her work at Temple Sinai, she leads the Robyn Helzner Trio, performing concerts of World Jewish Music throughout the U.S. and abroad. The moving story of her underground concerts in the Soviet Union, which led to sold-out performances in Moscow and St. Petersburg, was broadcast on the Public Television special, “Chanukah – A Celebration of Freedom.” Robyn has released five recordings. “Hearts Awaken,” “ A Fire Burns,” and “Signs & Wonders,” feature the Robyn Helzner Trio. “Clap Your Hands” and “I Live in the City” are beloved by children worldwide.
A native Washingtonian, Robyn comes from a Temple Sinai family. Her father, Manny, was the temple’s first Director of Education, and her mother, Charlotte, taught first grade in the Religious School. Combining her love of Jewish music, culture, history and travel, Robyn leads Jewish Heritage Tours and has escorted groups to China, Spain and the Balkans.
Contact
Robyn Helzner
Cantorial Soloist
rhelzner@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-6394 x 214
Our Directors
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Ellen Agler is Temple Sinai’s Executive Director. She came to Temple Sinai in 2008 after running facilities and programs for Jewish and healthcare organizations serving the needs of seniors in the Washington area. As executive director, Ellen has responsibility for the temple’s administrative activities ranging from financial matters to staffing, coordinating logistics for the busy congregation, and taking care of the temple building. Ellen makes an impact beyond Temple Sinai by serving as a board member of the National Association of Temple Administrators (NATA) where she is credentialed as a Fellow in Temple Administration (FTA). She is also President of the Community Purchasing Alliance (CPA), a regional organization that brings together non-profits to save money and strengthen the community. Ellen attended the University of Michigan as an undergraduate, and returned there to pursue a master’s degree from the School of Public Health. She lives in Gaithersburg, Maryland with her husband Jeff and son Adam.
Contact
Ellen Agler
Executive Director
eagler@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-6394 x210 -
Cantor Rebecca Robins is Director of Temple Sinai’s religious school and superintends the congregational youth educational programs. She is especially passionate about making sure our children, teens, their families and our teachers feel a sense of significance and belonging at Temple Sinai. Rebecca can also be found leading Tot Shabbat services, Family Shabbat services, and other and other worship services here at Sinai.
Rebecca (also known as “CR”) came to Temple Sinai in 2012. A passion for music, teaching, learning and working with people on life’s journey sent her to cantorial school the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion where she was ordained as cantor in 2008. While at HUC-JIR, Cantor Robins served congregations in Edison, NJ, Katonah, NY and Falls Church, VA. After being ordained she served Congregation Sinai in Milwaukee, WI as Cantor-Educator.
Originally from Long Island, NY, CR holds a BM in Music Education and Vocal Performance from the Crane School of Music, State University of New York College at Potsdam in Potsdam, NY. She began her career in education as a K-8 music teacher at Lyncourt School in Syracuse, NY. CR is a member of the American Conference of Cantors (ACC), and the Association of Reform Jewish Educators (ARJE), and serves as chairperson of the DMV’s Reform Synagogue Musicians professional group. She lives with her husband Zerek (a member of MMC, Sinai’s band), and their son Gus in Rockville, Maryland. When not at Sinai, they can be found exploring, doing projects, baking cupcakes, and having as much fun as possible.
Contact
Rebecca Robins
Cantor Educator
rrobins@templesinaidc.org
(202) 363-1942 -
Ali Hurewitz has been a member of Temple Sinai for nearly 25 years, and part of the Temple Sinai Nursery School community for over 18 years, joining the program as a parent and eventually becoming credentialed as a teacher. After teaching at TSNS for six years, she left the classroom to work closely with school leadership on special projects and teacher support, while also working as a mentor for early childhood teaching fellows through the Center for Inspired Teaching. Ali, who graduated with a degree in English from Haverford College, is also a former labor and employment attorney who earned her J.D. cum laude from The Georgetown University Law Center. She then returned to school to earn her Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Leadership from the Bank Street Graduate School of Education in New York City, and wrote her thesis on the role of documentation in supporting children’s learning, educator growth, and community engagement through the Reggio Emilia Approach.
Actively involved in guiding the school through its most recent National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation process, Ali believes in the importance of staying abreast of and meeting the highest standards of excellence for early childhood practice; she attends annual NAEYC Conferences and varied conference programming on topics of interest around the country and online, and presented with TSNS colleagues at the NAEYC Conference in 2013. Ali has also participated in numerous Reggio Emilia symposia as well as a Study Tour in Reggio Emilia, Italy. She strongly supports ongoing professional development and offering opportunities for learning to all members of the TSNS community, and is a credentialed Trainer with the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education. Ali is committed to the hiring and retention of talented teachers, and seeks out early childhood educators who are aligned with our program’s values around experiential relationship-based learning and scaffolding social-emotional development in the early years. Ali’s professional memberships include NAEYC, the DC Directors’ Exchange, the DC Area Jewish Early Childhood Directors’ Council, and the North American Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA).
When not working, Ali enjoys time with her family, which includes her husband, two children who are TSNS graduates (now in college!) and Ozzie, her labradoodle. She is a voracious reader, a hobby crafter, and loves decorating cakes, cupcakes, and cookies, especially for TSNS celebrations.
Contact
Ali Hurewitz
Director of Early Childhood Education
ali.tsns@templesinaidc.org
(202) 362-3836
Our Staff
Karen Auerbach
Member Relations & SinaiCares
Noah Benjamin
Director of Development
Jenny Cohen
Social Justice Coordinator
Diego Enriquez
Facilities Manager
Helena Goldstein
Clergy Assistant
Deborah Gordis
Staff Clinical Social Worker
Andrei Israel
Finance Manager
Max Miller
Youth Ed Program Manager
Helena Peter
Communications & Programs Coordinator
Ruth Polk
Librarian
Laura Rose
Senior Assistant to the Executive Director
Gail Sell
Senior Clergy Assistant
Reco Thomas
Religious School Office Manager
Elizabeth Wess
Nursery School Assistant
Neil Weston
Keyboard Artist
Marcie Wilson
Finance Associate
Facilities & Safety Team
Ronald Bell, Steve Combs, Enrique Enriquez, James Epps, Edward Ford, Juan Fuentes, Ester Garcia de Martinez, Jose Marquez, Flor Paz-Pacheco, Benjamin Pena, and Greg Wood.
Our Emeriti
Fred N. Reiner
Rabbi Emeritus
Mindy Portnoy
Rabbi Emerita
Laura Croen
Cantor Emerita
Perri Iger-Silversmith
TSNS Director Emerita