In 1986, after more than ten years of leadership as a day school headmaster and Jewish Communal Relations professional, Rabbi Blumberg returned to congregational life by assuming the Rabbinic leadership of Temple Shir Tikva.
During his 19-year tenure, Shir Tikva’s membership, congregant participation and new programs grew significantly, making Shir Tikva more than a place of worship. The synagogue developed into an inviting and welcoming environment where Jews of all ages could gather in search of knowledge, spirituality and community. Under Rabbi Blumberg’s guidance, Shir Tikva became a Reform congregation that embraced Jewish tradition and sacred teachings viewed through modern and post-modern lenses. Rabbi Blumberg retired from his post at Temple Shir Tikva in July, 2005.
Currently Rabbi Blumberg is a member of the Religious Services and Palliative Care staff at Hebrew Senior Life. His work focuses on counseling patients and families who are facing serious illness and end of life concerns. Rabbi Blumberg is also a spiritual care coordinator at the Hospice of the Good Shepherd, Newton, Massachusetts, and a member of a Community Ethics Committee, affiliated with Harvard Medical School, which deliberates on significant bio-medical ethical questions.
Rabbi Blumberg and his wife Paula have three grown children, several grandchildren and reside in Newton.
Dan Brosgol joined Temple Shir Tikva as Executive Director in September of 2023. In that role, he serves as a strategic partner to clergy, temple leadership, the President, and Board of Directors, leads and manages all aspects of temple administration, provides financial management and oversight, oversees building maintenance and operations, supports the Early Learning Center and Religious School business operation, and promotes congregational engagement.
Prior to coming to Shir Tikva, Dan served in leadership positions at The Rashi School, Kesher Newton, and Hebrew College, in addition to working as a department head for the Town of Bedford. Dan was also honored in the first Chai in the Hub Cohort in 2013, participated in the Boston PresenTense Fellowship in Social Entrepreneurship in 2011, and is pursuing a doctorate in education at Northeastern University. Dan has also been a writer for JewishBoston.com since its launch and is the current Chair of the Bedford Select Board.
Dan lives in Bedford with his wife and five children.
Alison Weikel (she/her) joined Temple Shir Tikva in 2018 as our Director of Education and is responsible for meaningful and engaging learning programs for our Kindergarten through 12th grade children and teens. Alison’s commitment to Jewish education is based on the idea that Judaism, Jewish community, and Jewish learning can offer us something we cannot get anywhere else. She believes strongly in listening to children and teens and to their parents, providing flexibility, support, and solutions to difficult situations.
Alison’s background includes undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania as well as certificates from the Mandel Teacher Educator Institute and the University of Cincinnati in Jewish educational leadership. She is one of the 2014 National winners of the Grinspoon Award for Excellence in Jewish Education. Alison came to us from The Valley Temple in Cincinnati, Ohio where she was Director of Education for almost 10 years.
Before entering Jewish education, Alison spent several years in public education in Pennsylvania, New York and Germany. She is a strong believer in ongoing professional development and mentoring of teachers and has presented and published on several topics including reflective practice, innovation, teacher inquiry, and practitioner research.
Alison lives in Carlisle with her husband, Rob. They have two college-aged children, Josh and Maddie. When she is not at TST, Alison loves to garden, cook, and read, and she’d love to talk to you about any of those interests!
Articles by Alison:
Jenna Friedman (she/her) joined Temple Shir Tikva in 2017 as the Director of Youth Engagement, a role she held for eight years before becoming the Assistant Director of Education in 2025. In this role, Jenna continues to serve as the coordinator for our Madrichim (teen classroom leadership) Program and an educator in AISH (our teen learning program), while also mentoring our Youth Engagement Professional and helping to design, manage, and execute all K-12 programming. In May of 2025, she graduated from HUC-JIR with an Executive Master’s Degree in Jewish Educational Leadership.
Prior to her work at Shir Tikva, Jenna earned her Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Film Studies from Tufts University. Jenna credits her deep passion for youth professional work to her summers as a Jewish sleepaway camp counselor, and her deep love for education to the formative teachers she was lucky enough to have in her school years. Jenna and her partner Jonathan live in Boston, Massachusetts, and are constantly trying to convince each other to adopt a dog.
Articles by Jenna:
Stephanie Lerner (she/her) joined the ELC in July 2020 after more than 17 years as a teacher in the field of early childhood education. During her tenure as a teacher, Stephanie has had experience working in classrooms of all ages, from infants to pre-kindergarten. Her background includes an undergraduate degree in Early Childhood Development and Education from the University of Connecticut, and a M.Ed from Lesley University in Integrated Teaching Through the Arts. She has studied the Reggio approach to early childhood education in Reggio Emilia, Italy, and spent a summer teaching preschool in Taichung, Taiwan.
Stephanie is passionate about the Reggio Emilia inspired philosophy of education, in which teachers and parents work as partners in their children’s education. She understands the importance of creating an environment with parents and teachers that will inspire creativity, curiosity and foster a sense of wonder in children. She finds great joy in working with teachers to design rich provocations and invitations for learning that will allow children to engage deeply in the world around them.
Stephanie lives in Framingham with her husband, Abraham, and two young children, Gabrielle and Micah. She is delighted that she and her family have found a home here as part of the Temple Shir Tikva community.
Articles by Stephanie:
Talia Hirsh (she/her) is honored to serve as Director of Development at Temple Shir Tikva, bringing over a decade of experience in fundraising, donor engagement, and volunteer management across educational and nonprofit institutions.
Prior to this role, Talia supported development efforts at Harvard Business School and The Rivers School, where she led high-impact fundraising campaigns and partnered closely with volunteers to build meaningful donor relationships. She also brings a strong background in programming and community engagement from her earlier career in higher education at Simmons and Brandeis Universities.
Having grown up at Shir Tikva, Talia is especially grateful for the opportunity to return to the community that helped shape her Jewish identity and to give back in such a meaningful way. She lives in Wayland with her husband, Adam, their two children, Nora and Zachary, and their dog, Scout.
Marissa (she/her) joins the TST team after spending several years in the professional Jewish camp world. As the Director of Community Engagement at TST, Marissa works collaboratively with board members, committee chairs, congregants, and the clergy team to develop and execute creative and engaging programs for our community. She brings her Jewish programming experience, relationship building skills and love for organizing with her.
Renata Feinstein grew up in Los Angeles, California and made the move to Boston for school four years ago (still getting used to winters but she loves snow!). Renata recently graduated from Boston University (go terriers!), where she studied Education & Human Development with a minor in Linguistics. During her four years at BU, she also worked as an assistant teacher at a preschool and childcare center and taught religious school at Temple Isaiah in Lexington. Renata has also spent a total of 19 summers attending and working at URJ Camp Newman in California, where she was a camper and worked with all ages as a counselor and unit head.
In her role, Renata will be responsible for a variety for youth and teen engagement opportunities, primarily focusing on social and social action programs. She will also be spending Summer 2026 at URJ Crane Lake Camp in her capacity as a CLASP Fellow. Renata loves reading, crafting, traveling, and exploring her new New England home, and she is excited to learn about all of your interests and passions!
Christina Loftus has been in the role of Office Manager for almost six years. She lives in Wellesley with her two children, Brooke and Lincoln. Before coming to TST, Christina graduated from Ohio Wesleyan and has held a real estate license, working with residential clients and non-profits. Christina is the president of the Wellesley Hills Junior Women’s Club, working to raise $200,000 a year for grants and services for the community.
Stephen Greenstein (he/him) joined Temple Shir Tikva in 2025 as our Communications and Events Associate. His role focuses on facilitating effective internal and external communications and ensuring that the temple’s messaging is both clear and engaging.
Prior to joining Shir Tikva, Stephen worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Back Bay Computing, EMD Millipore (now MilliporeSigma), Pearson Education and WinnCompanies. Stephen is a Commissioner on the Sudbury Historical Commission. Stephen was a camper and counselor at Camp Tevya for 12 years. Stephen received his Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from the University of Hartford.
Stephen lives in Sudbury with his wife Jennifer and 3 children, Vivienne, Elise and Lincoln.
John Legg (he/him) is the Building Manager at Temple Shir Tikva, having started as an IT intern in June 2021. He graduated from Framingham State University with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He loves to tackle challenges that come from the audio-visual needs of Temple Shir Tikva. Alongside Richard Kaye, he has steadily improved the quality of the live-streaming offerings of Temple Shir Tikva. John is excited to be presented with new interesting challenges that need to be researched and solved, such as improvements to the office phone system. He lives in Hudson with his dog Sparky and gecko Gizmo. Outside of work, John enjoys fishing, listening to jazz records on his victor talking machine, cooking, and spending time with friends.
Karen Edwards has been part of the TST team since April 2006 and calls Natick, MA home. When she’s not working with our clergy and community members, she loves to garden, volunteer, host Shabbat meals, and learn Torah. She has a daughter, Rivka, who lives in Brooklyn.
Janice has more than 20 years of experience in the field of education, having taught children with diverse abilities and needs in both public and private school settings. Janice earned her Master’s degree in Education from Cambridge College and is thrilled to be joining the ELC team in an administrative role.
Adam Bernstein (he/him) is thrilled to be joining the Temple Shir Tikva team in the role of Music Director. He grew up attending Temple Emunah in nearby Lexington, and can’t wait to apply his music knowledge to give back to the Jewish community. As an experienced pianist, singer, educator, and arranger, he looks forward to leading the temple’s choir, accompanying shabbat services on piano, and otherwise enriching the TST experience however he can!
Adam graduated from Tufts University in 2024 with a BA in Music, Sound, and Culture and a Computer Science minor. While there, he assistant-directed the internationally-recognized a cappella group the Beelzebubs and performed in various groups ranging from jazz ensembles to student bands and musical theater pits. Currently, he directs and sings with multiple choirs, teaches private piano/voice lessons, runs a summer camp called The A Cappella Workshop, and plays and sings in a local band called Sunnydaze.
When Adam isn’t making music (which is rare), you might find him out for a run in Cambridge, grabbing ice cream at JP Licks, or attending a Vulfpeck or Couch concert!
