Gather
You are a sacred piece of something big.
What is Gather?
Gather is Emanu-El’s small groups initiative, bringing together congregants from across our community to learn, connect, and grow. These lay-led groups are based upon a range of topics, igniting marvelous conversations and dialogue. In these small groups, meaningful friendships are formed and congregants truly get to know one another. Gather is one of the ways we make our larger congregation feel small.
Curious about Gather? Please reach out to us with any questions at gather@emanuelnyc.org.
Gather members can expect to:
- Develop real and honest relationships.
- Help foster an inclusive space where all can share comfortably.
- Create a place where members are present for each other.
- Support group members in times of need and celebrate in times of joy.
Gather Groups
Gather For Parents and Caregivers of Children with Special Needs and Learning Challenges
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Temple Emanu-el has always been a safe space to share. Led by Beth Pilchik, this gather is a safe space for families (parents, grandparents, siblings, caregivers,etc.) to come to gather to talk about their amazing neurodiverse kids. Whether your child has an IEP, 504, a diagnosis, or has no diagnosis at all, this small group meets once a month to talk and share.
Meeting Time and Day: Meeting time to be determined by guide and participants
Guide: Beth Pilchik
Beth Pilchik is a trusted voice in the neurodivergent community, known for her deep expertise and heartfelt support for families navigating the challenges of special needs and neurodiversity. With a reputation for offering insightful advice and practical solutions, Known on and off social media as @bethwouldknow Beth connects families with resources, tools, and opportunities to foster inclusion. Entrepreneurs and organizations also turn to her for her business acumen, seeking guidance on how to create more inclusive environments. Whether she’s introducing social stories, offering advice on diagnoses, or helping businesses develop neurodiversity-friendly practices, Beth leads with compassion and dedication, creating meaningful change for the people and communities she supports.
The Caregivers' Circle
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Many of us are in relationships shaped by care and caregiving. This might mean a parent, spouse, sibling, friend, or anyone living with illness or disability who depends on us in some way. These commitments are often long-term, so caregivers need self-care and self-compassion.
Join us in learning and practicing to take care of ourselves as we care for others. We are a supportive community that is peer-/lay-led and confidential. Present to one another, we actively listen and also share resources.
We will schedule our meetings remote and/or in-person based on the preferences of our members. Our goal is to gain strength from our community as we provide strength to others.
Meeting Time and Day: We will schedule our meetings remote and/or in-person based on the preferences of our members
Guide: Dr. Frederick Roden
Dr. Frederick Roden is an educator and author. He is a long-time and active temple member.
Supreme Court Roundup
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In this Gather, we will talk about the Court, how federal judges function, cases that the Court has granted petitions to hear, and, ultimately, opinions that the Court issues. Think of it as Torah study, but the Supreme Court version.
Gather Guide: Kyle Satterfield
Kyle Satterfield is an associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Kyle previously served as a judicial law clerk to the Hon. L. Felipe Restrepo on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, as well as the Hon. Brian A. Jackson, then-Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana.
Kyle received his J.D. from Tulane University Law School, where he served as Editor in Chief of the Tulane Law Review. Kyle also received his B.A. from Tulane University, double majoring in Political Science and Philosophy and minoring in Sociology. Kyle has published scholarship on a variety of legal issues, and his work has been cited in several prestigious journals, including the Vanderbilt Law Review, the Washington University Law Review, and the Oregon Law Review, as well as a recent opinion of the Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal.
Shakespeare's Iconic Scenes
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Brush up your Shakespeare! Each month meet with fellow Bard-lovers and discuss what makes Shakespeare’s most famous scenes so legendary. Whether it’s Romeo and Juliet’s balcony scene, Hamlet’s graveyard scene, Midsummer’s mechanical play, or Macbeth’s ghostly banquet – these scenes are classic for a reason. We’ll watch different versions of these scenes and compare how actors and directors chose to interpret them, and we may even read the scenes aloud for ourselves! All experience levels are welcome.
Meeting time and modality: Meetings will be held once a month on a weekday, with exact time and location to be determined by participants.
Gather Guide: Sophia Swettenham
Sophia Swettenham works at the Museum of Jewish Heritage and serves on Temple Emanu-el’s Young Members Committee. She studied English & Theatre at Fordham and has previously acted in professional Shakespeare productions. Her love of the Bard runs deep!
Embrace Equality Gather Group
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Temple Emanu-El is passionate about creating a space for our LGBTQ+ Jews and families to be authentic, find and provide support, share resources, and build community. Open to all LGBTQ+ folks & allies, the Temple Emanu-El Embrace Equality Gather Group works to provide a space in which LGBTQ+ Jews can feel seen and valued. We will come together to discuss LGBTQ+ current events and plan fun outings in the city.
Meeting time and modality: We will meet on Zoom once a month for an hour, but in some months, we will meet in person for outing events. The day and time are TBD.
Gather Guide: Lee Phillips
Dr. Lee Phillips is in private practice in New York City, specializing in sex and couples therapy. He is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Washington, DC, Maryland, Virginia, and New York. Dr. Phillips is a Certified Sex Therapist (CST) by the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, and Therapists. He is a Certified Sex and Couples Therapist (CSCT) by the Integrative Sex Therapy Institute and a Certified Psychosexual Therapist (C-PST) by the International Association of Psychosexual Therapists. He has been in private practice for over a decade, working with LGBTQ+ individuals and couples. He lives on the Upper East Side with his husband, Jason, and their two dogs, George and Charlotte. Contact information: drleephillips@gmail.com
Jew(ish) Book Club
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Do you keep meaning to get back into your reading habit? Join us once a month to read and discuss a new book with the group. Topics and themes can include Judaism, New York, or neither, depending on what participants would like that month. Members of all reading interests and perspectives are welcome.
Meeting time and modality: Meetings will be held once a month on Sundays, with exact time and location to be determined by participants.
Gather Guide: Alicia Schleifman
Meditation
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Open to people at all levels, this Gather group meets monthly for meditation sessions that help us relax, rejuvenate and restore.
Meeting time and modality: Meditation sessions will be held virtually, once a month.
Gather Guide: Allison Richard
Allison Richard B.A., RYT, IHC is a Stress Management, Self-Care and Wellness Coach as well as a Yoga & Meditation Instructor. She works with clients to help them understand their stress and how to incorporate holistic tools such as yoga and meditation to their routines, empowering them to create purposeful, healthy and passionate lives.
Bronze Shadows: Poetry and Life
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Gather to read great poems from authors famous and unknown, engage with meaningful works and find inspiration to take into our daily lives. Don’t know your sonnets from your whatevers? Not to worry. This isn’t school. Every level is welcome. All you need is an open mind and a love of words.
Gather Guide: Brian Quinn
Brian Quinn serves on Temple Emanu-El’s membership committee, works in healthcare investing, and lives on the Upper East Side with his wife, his goldendoodle Paddington, and, last but not least, his daughter Poppy (who comprehensively and joyfully overturned her parents’ applecart upon her birth last January).
Old New Parents
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Do you ever feel like the oldest person in the room at Mommy and Me or similar events? Has your day ever been ruined by someone innocently asking if you were the grandparent?!?!?! If so, this Gather group is for you. Meet other parents who are similarly situated to commiserate, share funny anecdotes, discuss issues you’ve encountered, and most of all, have fun with other parents who are a little older than most of the other parents in your child’s social circle.
Gather Guide: Michele Meises
Michele Meises is an attorney at White & Case in the Financial Restructuring & Insolvency group. She graduated from Columbia College and Columbia Law School. She and her husband, Larry, got married on the late side and started a family on an even later side. They have a son named Alexander who is four and attends Temple Emanu-el Nursery School.
Bam Crak Dot: Mahjongg Gather
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We are currently taking a break for the summer and plan to reconvene after Labor Day. Stay tuned for further schedule updates.
Join us for a weekly game night of Mahjongg. There will be tables for advanced, intermediate, beginners and everyone in-between.
We have a fabulous instructor that will be with us each week.
To play with us is FREE.
However, if you do need instruction there will be a $40.00 per person charge (paid directly to the instructor) for beginners or $30.00 for those looking for less instruction but more advanced level strategy help.
If you don’t need any help, there is no charge at all.
Looking forward to playing with you!
Gather Guide: Rebecca Weisberg
Rebecca Weisberg in a nutshell. Lifelong lover of New York. Lifelong lover of travel. Lifelong lover of food. Newfound lover of mahjongg.
Beginner's Poker
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Practice your poker skills with a friendly, no-stakes poker game. No experience necessary! Even if you are among the world’s worst poker players, you are welcome. The cost is FREE.
Meeting time and modality: We will meet in-person at the temple, once a month, time slot TBD.
Gather Guides: Jon Krivine and Ben Weintraub
Jon Krivine has been a member of the congregation for almost 20 years. A retired real estate executive, he regularly attends the programming offered by the Men’s Club and Streicker Center.
Ben Weintraub is an Emanu-El congregant for several years, a Men’s Club Board Member, and a beginning poker player interested in fine-tuning personal risk-management skills.
Spiritual Seekers
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We will discuss our individual and collective spiritual practices of prayer, ritual, and study. Together we will chart where we’ve grown and discern where we hope to deepen in community. We seek greater self-awareness in our connection to Judaism and to ourselves.
Gather Guide: Dr. Frederick Roden
Dr. Frederick Roden is a longtime temple member who volunteers for the Sunset Service among other activities. He is a college professor who teaches courses on memory, life-writing, and spirituality.
Talking Sports
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New York is the greatest sports city in the world, graced by memories of Ruth, Gehrig, Stengel, Munson, Lombardi, and a kid named Robinson who proved anyone who believed in himself could go incredible places.
Who are the next legends? Whose name will be etched on the Lombardi Trophy? Who will make the pilgrimage to Cooperstown? If you’ve got an opinion on sports, (and we know you do!) join us the first Tuesday of the month at 7:00 PM Eastern. It’s your pitch!
Meeting time and modality: Meets the first Tuesday of the month at 7:00 PM, Eastern.
Gather Guide: Steven Eisenpreis
Steven graduated LIU Brooklyn in 1983 (Go Blackbirds!) and has had the pleasure to follow the Rangers all over North America, even on a cruise to Bermuda in honor of their regular-season championship in 1982. Steven also worked with MSG Sports Group and will be happy if ANY New York team wins a championship before 2030!
Exploring Life's "Big Questions"
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So many of us are yearning for spaces to talk about life’s “big questions”– questions about meaning, love, responsibility, purpose, community, and God. We want deep conversations, we want meaningful exchanges, and we want to strengthen our connections to Judaism and to the Divine. In this Gather group, we will use resources from Ask Big Questions to scaffold our discussions, spark conversation, and ground our learning in Jewish texts and teachings.
Gather Guide: Barry Friedfertig
Barry is a retired elementary school teacher. He is now an artist painting abstracts as well as works with English and/or Hebrew text. He is presently on the Union for Reform Judaism North American Board.
Sunday Schmooze
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Schmoozers discuss whatever is of interest to the group at the time.
Meeting time and modality: Meets via Zoom every Sunday at 11:00 AM, Eastern.
Gather Guide: Suzanne Gronemeyer
Suzanne Gronemeyer is in the Academic Programs Office at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. She is a born schmoozer who works with undergraduate and health professions students.
Our Team
Gather is a partnership between lay leaders, staff and clergy.
Rabbi Sara Sapadin
Clergy Liaison, Gather Vision Committee
Nicole Frankel
Gather Vision Chair
Allison Salzman
Membership Director, Gather Vision Committee
