Commemorating October 7: Creating Space During the Chaggim (High Holidays)

Mark S. Young is vice president of Talent Strategy and the director of JResponse® at JCC Association of North America. He brings 20 years of experience in leadership, program development, and talent strategy in nonprofit organizations to his roles, much of which he gained in previous positions with the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS), Episcopal Social Services of New York, 92NY, and the Mandel JCC in Cleveland, Ohio.

Young holds dual master’s degrees in nonprofit management and Judaic studies from New York University and a bachelor’s degree from McGill University. He is the author of “Bless Our Workforce: Changing the Way We Manage Our People.” He lives in Hartsdale, New York, where he, his wife, Rabbi Mara Young, and their two children are members of the Harold and Elaine Shames JCC on the Hudson.

Tikvah Womack is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and an Expressive Arts Therapist specializing in trauma and cultural humility. She has 20 years of experience in the mental health field, ranging in modalities and populations within clinical and community settings. She develops, facilitates, and consults groups across the developmental spectrum, professional training, and community and affinity conversations. She is the Clinical Manager of Clinical Services at Jewish Community Services in Baltimore, MD.

Noam Dahary grew up in Korazim, a small Moshav (farm/village) in the north of Israel. He served in a small reconnaissance unit in the IDF as a team commander of 20 soldiers. During his service, he took part in the disengagement from Gaza in 2005 and the Second Lebanon War in 2006. After his army service, he lived in the Nitzana, in the Negev desert of Israel, by the Egyptian border, and worked with national service volunteers in developing communities in the most remote areas of Israel. In 2011 – 2013 Noam served as the Jewish Agency community Young Shaliach (emissary) in Colorado. He got his B.A. in Israeli studies from Kinneret College and was certified as a tour guide by the Israeli Ministry of Tourism. Right after he graduated, Noam started “Darchei Noam Travel,” a small boutique company that provides educational experiences in Israel. In 2019-2023 Noam worked for Hillel of Colorado, first as the DU Hillel Campus Director and later as the state-wide Assistant Director. Today Noam is the Director of Israel Enrichment for BBYO. Noam is married to Rabbi Kolby Morris Dahary, and together they lead the Jewish community in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, a small ski town in the Rocky Mountains. Kolby and Noam Lived together in Israel for 5 years and moved back to Colorado in 2018, where they live today with their son Oriyah, daughter Shir, and their dog Tikva. The outdoors is Noam’s biggest passion, and he invests most of his free time outside mountain biking, backpacking, and doing nature photography. Connecting the outdoors and the Jewish world is one of Noam’s guiding principles as a professional and as an individual.

Rabbi Dena Shaffer is a passionate and experienced Jewish leader. She serves as the Director of Learning and Engagement for the Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Funder Collaborative (powered by Jewish Federations of North America). The Funder Collaborative is a national network of stakeholders driven to innovate, nurture, sustain and scale new ideas that help strengthen Jewish identity and cultivate a sense of belonging for young people. Ever curious about the mutual interplay between secular and Jewish wisdom, Dena received her bachelor’s degree in in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies and East Asian history from Brandeis University, Rabbinic ordination (’10) and a Certificate in Jewish education for adolescents and emerging adults from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, and has expertise in relationship building, communal change management, lean innovation, and scaling methodology.