Rabbi Adam J. Raskin is the spiritual leader of Congregation Har Shalom. Originally from Cleveland, OH, he developed a love of synagogue life as a child, and was encouraged by his own rabbi to grow and learn Jewishly, to go to Israel, and to imagine a career in the rabbinate. He earned his BA in Jewish Studies at The Ohio State University, and received the prestigious Wexner Graduate Fellowship for his studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York and Jerusalem. Upon ordination, the Rabbinical School awarded him the Lamport Prize in Homiletics. He has served as a compassionate rabbi, enthusiastic teacher, and devoted advocate for Jewish life in congregations in Huntsville, AL, Dallas and Richardson, TX, and now in Potomac. Rabbi Raskin is joined in his sacred work by his wife, Sari Levinson Raskin, and their three children, Mia, Nessa, and Ezra. Read more here.
Hazzan Henrique Ozur Bass was born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 1989,
he left his native Brazil to study at the Cantors Institute of the
Jewish Theological Seminary of America, graduating in 1995. In addition to his
studies at the JTSA, Hazzan Ozur Bass studied voice privately under
Thomas Lomonaco and Thomas Cultice in New York.
Hazzan Ozur Bass came to Congregation Har Shalom in 1996 after serving several
congregations in Brazil, Israel, and the United States. He is a member of
the Cantors Assembly and American Society of Jewish Music.
Hazzan Ozur Bass is married to Rabbi
Janet Ozur Bass. They have two boys, Avichai and Kalman, and a daughter,
Bayla.
Executive Director Michael L. Simmons FSA, ATz
Michael L. Simmons, a native of Boston, attended Northeastern University (and Boston’s Hebrew College, the University of Tel Aviv, and the Jewish Theological Seminary Machina Program) and holds a B.A. in Government & Community Relations and a Masters of Public Administration (MPA). Between 1976 and 1991, he served in Senior Administration and MIS positions in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Service and was an Adjunct Professor at Northeastern University Graduate School (Public Budgeting and Finance) and Lesley College Graduate School (Computers and MIS).
Michael has served as Executive Director of the West End Synagogue in Nashville, Tennessee, and Temple B’nai Aviv in Weston (Ft. Lauderdale), Florida prior to coming to Congregation Har Shalom in 1999. He serves
on the Board of Governors of the North American Association of Synagogue Executives (NAASE), and is a Past President of the Mid-Atlantic Temple and Synagogue Administrators Association (MATSAA). Michael is certified as a Fellow in Synagogue Administration (FSA) by NAASE, and is the 4th Executive Director to be commissioned as an Amin Tzibur (ATz), “one who faithfully devotes oneself to the ministration of the community and the rebuilding of Eretz Yisrael,” by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS), the North American Association of Synagogue Executives (NAASE), and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ).
Director of Early Childhood Education - Liran
Laor
Liran Laor was born and raised in Israel. She served and became a
Lieutenant in the IDF. Liran graduated from Haifa University as a social
worker and had worked with children and adults in diverse settings. She
moved to the United States in 2004 and became involved with the Jewish
community. Liran is passionate about Jewish early childhood education
and about instilling the love of Israel among her students and their
families.
During her career, Liran had been a preschool teacher, directed a Jewish
summer camp, and taught Hebrew in religious school settings. Liran is
married to Jonathan who is employed by Montgomery County as a social
worker. Liran and Jonathan are the proud parents of Liam, a student at Har
Shalom ECEC.
Youth Director - Julie Ashin
Director of
Congregational Learning - Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen
Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen was born and raised in Maryland. She attended University of Michigan, graduating from the Honors English Program. After working in Washington, DC at various public interest groups including the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Rabbi Cohen studied at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem and New York. After ordination in 1997, Rabbi Cohen served congregations in Cary, NC, and Cherry Hill, NJ, before coming to Har Shalom as Director of Congregational Learning. Rabbi Cohen has published five children's books, a teen novel and two teacher manuals. She has received numerous literary prizes, including a National Jewish Book Award. Rabbi Cohen and her husband David, a journalist, are joyfully raising three children Arianna, Jesse, and Ezra. Arianna and Jesse are students at Har Shalom.
Carol and her husband joined Har Shalom in 1971 and Carol immediately
volunteered to start a library. Since then, the library has grown from
about 30 volumes to well over 10,000, including over 2,000 titles for
children. Over time, as the library space grew, space was set aside for
a library office, and Carol joined the staff as Har Shalom’s librarian.
Har Shalom's library is not only accredited by the Association of Jewish
Libraries (AJL) but recently received awards
from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism for excellence in library programming and for its new on-line library
catalog. The library was also granted a meritorious citation from the Jewish Book Council. A long-time member of the
AJL, Carol served for several years on their Sydney Taylor Children’s Book Award Committee. Carol received a BA
in Personnel Administration from the University of Maryland and then worked at the CIA in its Office of Assessment and
Evaluation.
