The Westchester Jewish Council's

WE-stchester

Comm-UNITY

Connection

Special Julian Y. Bernstein

Distinguished Service Awards Edition

March 19, 2026 1 Nisan 5786

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Greetings!

Good morning.

Every year, the community comes together to celebrate the spirit of volunteering at the Annual Julian Y. Bernstein Distinguished Awards Ceremony. Friends, family members, colleagues, and neighbors gather to show their support for the remarkable individuals whose dedication and generosity strengthen our community in endless ways. To date, over 500 leaders have been awarded the DSA award. Congratulations to the class of 2026!

This year’s celebration will take place on Tuesday, April 28th, when we will proudly honor 17 outstanding volunteers. Each honoree represents a different organization and brings with them an inspiring story of service. We are grateful for the opportunity to honor this group who make differences in the lives of others to build a stronger and more connected community.

We hope you will join us for this special evening as we celebrate these extraordinary individuals and recognize the organizations they support. Full information below. Don't miss this night as we joyously celebrate our Jewish volunteer leadership.

See you there (but please sign up via the links within).



Julian Y. Bernstein Distinguished Service Awards Ceremony Committee Chair

Melissa Baer

Julian Y. Bernstein Distinguished Service Awards Ceremony Committee Members

Betsy Bernstein

Arlene Kleinberg

Julie Rockowitz

Audrey Samers

Judy Sarch

Larry Thaler

Harold Treiber 

Council Program Director

Donna Bartell

HERE WHEN YOU NEED US - YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW:

Since 1975, the Council has connected our Jewish community to:

Each other, to Israel, to our elected officials and

to our brothers and sisters from other faiths and ethnic groups

(The Council is financially supported by donations from individuals,

dues from 120 member organizations and generous financial support from UJA-Federation.)

31st ANNUAL JULIAN Y. BERNSTEIN

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS (DSA)

MEET OUR FABULOUS HONOREES!

Karen Rosenfeld

Anti-Defamation League

Amy Leveen

Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale

Alan Septimus

Bet Am Shalom Synagogue

Dr. Elena Procario-Foley

Holocaust & Human Rights Education Center

Emelia Pozharsky

The Blue Card

Ophira Cukierman

JCC Mid-Westchester

Josh Schraeter

Jewish Community Center of Harrison

David Malchman

Shaarei Tikvah

Lesley Levine

Rosh Pinah Chavurah of the Rivertowns

Rona Sterling

Sinai Free Synagogue

Steven Eigen

Scarsdale Synagogue-Temples Tremont & Emanu-El

Loretta London

Temple Beth Abraham

Valeriya Greene

Temple Israel Center

Sondra Levy

Westchester Jewish Center

Ann Silver

UJA Federation of NY

Mitchell Ostrove

Westchester Jewish Council

Wendy Hollander

Hadassah Westchester

UPCOMING COUNCIL PROGRAMS

ISRAEL CORNER

UPCOMING PROGRAMS AND HELPING ISRAEL

The annual Israel on Fifth - Celebrate Israel Parade in NYC will take place on Sunday, May 31, 2026 and the Westchester Jewish Council will again be organizing the Westchester marching group. More than ever, it is so important that Westchester unite with pride in celebration of Israel.  We hope your organization or synagogue is able to join our group.

We are thrilled to be joined by our Westchester community shlicha (emissary) and our shinshinim (young emissaries) who will be marching with us in their first-ever Celebrate Israel Parade.

IF YOUR ORGANIZATION WOULD LIKE TO JOIN US, PLEASE LET DONNA (donna@wjcouncil.org) KNOW BY PASSOVER. 

UJA-FEDERATION OF NY



Rachel Goldberg-Polin Book Launch

Thursday, April 23, 2026

Doors open at 6:30 pm

Program begins at 7:00 pm

White Plains, New York

Our greater community stood in solidarity as Rachel Goldberg-Polin turned unimaginable pain into fierce advocacy for the return of her beloved son, Hersh, who was kidnapped from the Nova music festival on October 7, and later murdered by Hamas.

Join UJA Westchester to hear from Rachel about her new book, When We See You Again. Rachel will discuss some of her book's major themes, including intense grief, love, loss, devotion, and faith. 

Register now: https://www.ujafedny.org/event/view/wc-evening-with-rachel-goldberg-polin

UJA Westchester Annual Celebration

Wednesday, May 13, 2026 • 6:30 pm  

Save the date to celebrate our community’s support for UJA and help us honor Karen and Ed Friedman for their deep commitment to the Jewish community and recognize Kim Goldberg and Lauren Shalem as the recipients of our Young Leadership Award. 

Learn More - Email Michele Wolfberg wolfbergm@ujafedny.org 

SOME QUICK MEDIA/COMMUNITY LINKS

Watch JBS-Jewish Broadcasting Service on Optimum 138, Fios 798,

Spectrum 219 and 830, DirecTV 388,

Roku under “educational”, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and streamed on www.jbstv.org  

For a complete and timely schedule and other television providers, go to www.jbstv.org 

Check out Westchester Jewish Life - www.westchesterjewishlife.com

Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS) provides programs and services throughout Westchester County

Westchester Jewish Council

925 Westchester Avenue, Suite 200, White Plains, NY 10604

914-328-7001 | info@wjcouncil.org | www.wjcouncil.org

For information regarding submissions, please contact Lori Kurlander

The next Community Connection will be published on or about March 26, 2026