Who We Are

The mission, vision, and the many activities of our congregation are supported by Temple Beth Shalom’s wonderful clergy and staff. Explore who serves our community below.

Don’t know who to contact with a question? Feel free to send us a message on the Contact Page or call the Temple office directly at 509-747-3304. We’ll make sure your message gets to the right place.

Temple Beth Shalom’s Mission and Vision

Mission

We are an inclusive and diverse, liberal* Conservative Jewish congregation whose mission is to inspire the search for a meaningful Jewish life, and to create a kehillah kedoshah (holy community) in the Inland Northwest.

Vision

Temple Beth Shalom is a congregation whose culture of warmth, welcome, and openness is reflected in its spirituality, its connectedness, and its physical space.

We warmly welcome all who are interested in exploring Judaism.  We create a kehillah kedoshah through Torah study (study of sacred text), avodah (worship and spiritual growth), and gemilut chasadim (acts of loving kindness and human connection), to perpetuate Jewish life in present and future generations.

Torah: We study Torah to stimulate life-long learning and passionate engagement with the profound wisdom of Judaism.  Literacy is increased by study of sacred texts, prayer and Hebrew.  Thoughtful and informed decisions regarding religious observance are made in the context of halakhah (Jewish law) as defined in the Conservative movement.

Avodah:  We cultivate spiritual growth through Torah study, communal prayer, individual spiritual practice, home and synagogue holiday celebrations, life cycle events, and the observance of mitzvot (commandments).

Gemilut Chasadim:  We have compassion for one another in times of joy and sadness, through acts of respect and loving-kindness, and through the pursuit of justice in our community and in the world.

Jewish Peoplehood:  We cherish and support the state of Israel, the land of Israel, and the people of Israel across the globe.  We promote Jewish peoplehood and heritage through social and cultural connections with Israel and within our Jewish community.

*Temple Beth Shalom follows the liberal interpretation of Conservative Judaism

Clergy and Staff

Rabbi Tamar Malino – rabbi@spokanetbs.org

Rabbi Tamar Malino arrived in Spokane in 2010 and served as the Executive Director of Spokane Area Jewish Family Services. In 2012, she began as part-time Rabbi of Congregation Emanu-El in Spokane, where she continues to serve. In August 2014, she became the Rabbi of Temple Beth Shalom and is the first female congregational Rabbi in Spokane.

Rabbi Tamar was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 2001. She has served as a congregational Rabbi at Beth Am, The People’s Temple in New York City, and at Temple Adat Shalom in Poway, (San Diego), CA, where in addition to her clergy responsibilities, she was a popular community lecturer and director of the award-winning Hebrew for High School Credit program. For two years, she worked as the Director of Jewish Life at the Peninsula Jewish Community Center in Foster City, CA.

Rabbi Tamar has created programs exploring Jewish spirituality, prayer, Jewish culture, history, and Israel. Her central passion is in her role as a teacher in deepening spirituality and strengthening compassion in her community. She lives on the South Hill with her partner and her two sets of twins, Aviel, Coby, Shaya and Yair.

Iris Berenstein, Education Director – eddirector@spokanetbs.org

Iris has been teaching and supporting the development of young minds in many different environments for almost three decades. In every step of her career path, she has been an educator. She believes every student can become an active and motivated learner when they are nurtured in a positive environment that recognizes their strengths. She strives to create this inspiring environment for students in Temple Beth Shalom’s education programs.

She has been a teacher in Temple Beth Shalom’s education programs since arriving in Spokane in 1998, and in 2011, she became Temple Beth Shalom’s Education Director. Prior to that, she served as the Education Coordinator for five years at Spokane’s Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture. For eight years, Iris was a trainer, teacher, curriculum developer, and chief editor of a science magazine for students at the National Science Museum in Haifa, Israel.

Twenty years ago, Iris and her husband moved to Spokane from Israel. They are the proud parents of three boys.

Sharon Beltz, Administrator – administrator@spokanetbs.org

Sharon has served as Administrator of Temple Beth Shalom for 13 years. She uses her business and accounting background to support the day-to-day operations of Temple Beth Shalom. She loves interacting with our congregants. She and Dave, her husband of 32 years, have two grown children.

Cicely West, Admin Assistant –  templesec@spokanetbs.org

Tootie (Nola) Bergman, Bookkeeper – bookkeeper@spokanetbs.org

Tootie has been with Temple Beth Shalom for many years and handles the day-to-day bookkeeping for Temple Beth Shalom. She works two days a week and has her private little office upstairs. She is a delight and is always willing to help answer questions on things that have to do with money. She has been married for 50 years to her dear husband Dennis.

Zina Zimmerman, USY Advisor – usyadvisor@spokanetbs.org

Zina was born and raised in Spokane, attending Sunday school, Hebrew school, and Midrasha High, as well as participating in the Temple Beth Shalom Madrichim program and USY. She came to understand exactly how important Temple was to her when she moved to Portland for her first year of college and stopped her involvement in Judaism “cold turkey.” She didn’t feel like herself until she returned to Spokane and her extended Jewish family. As United Synagogue Youth Group Advisor for Spokane Adir, Zina hopes to inspire teens to lead exciting programs and events for their own peers.

Rebecca Alberts, Kadima Advisor – kadimaadvisor@spokanetbs.org

Membership Committee – membership@spokanetbs.org

Board of Directors

Diane Lefcort, President – president@spokanetbs.org

Other Board Members

• Diane Lefcort, President
• Steve Silverstein, First Vice President
• Dana Levitt, Second Vice President
• Susan Amstadter, Treasurer                 
• Executive Secretary, Murray Huppin
• Kathy Golden, Recording Secretary
• Mary May, Past President

Trustees