Rabbi David Wilfond
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Rabbi David Wilfond is proud to lead and serve Temple Emanuel of Andover. He was the first full time reform rabbi in Eastern Europe after the collapse of the Soviet Union. An ordained rabbi for more than 25 years, he has led congregations in London, England; Kiev, Ukraine; Jerusalem, Israel; Wellesley, Massachusetts; and Westchester, New York. He holds a doctorate from Hebrew Union College, a Master in Hebrew Literature from Hebrew Union College, a Master of Science from the University of Florida and a Bachelor of Science from Rutgers University. He is the father of three children (Isaac, Eliora and Rafi) and is married to Deborah. Rabbi Wilfond loves ice cream, lively conversations, communal singing and bike riding in nature.
Cantor Rachel Reef-Simpson
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Cantor Rachel Reef-Simpson is honored and privileged to be selected to serve the Temple Emanuel community as our Cantor. Previously Cantor Rachel served as a part time Cantor at Temple Shalom of Newton while serving as a Chaplain for Constellation Health Services in Maine. A Massachusetts native, Cantor Rachel has served congregations in MA for the past 19 years at Temple Emanuel Sinai in Worcester, Temple Beth David in Westwood and Temple Etz Chaim in Franklin. Cantor Rachel is a graduate of the Cantorial Certification program at the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York and also has a Certificate in Cantorial Arts from Hebrew College. Earlier in her professional career, Cantor Rachel was a Boston area singer/actress and musical theatre director. She is the proud mother of two working musician sons on each coast. Cantor Rachel lives in Cape Neddick, Maine with her husband and Oreo, her singing dog.
Rabbi Emeritus Dr. Robert S. Goldstein
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Rabbi Robert S. Goldstein served as the rabbi of Temple Emanuel from July 1990 until his retirement in June of 2021. At the core of Rabbi Goldstein’s rabbinate was his attempt to help families and individuals find greater understanding and meaning in the milestone rituals of their lives. By making Jewish ritual accessible through creative adult education, he believes that many more people will discover the relevance of the Jewish path of life. Rabbi Goldstein has been a beloved teacher and preacher. From the pulpit and in the classroom, Rabbi Goldstein has shared his love of Judaism with erudition, eloquence and humor.
Throughout his three decades as the spiritual leader of Temple Emanuel, Rabbi Goldstein became the most consistent and recognizable face of the Jewish community in the Merrimack Valley. Widely sought as a lecturer on Judaism as well as a speaker on the challenges facing the broader community, Rabbi Goldstein has spoken with eloquence and clarity about issues ranging from antisemitism, the common values shared by different faith communities and the current divisiveness in the public debate.
Rabbi Goldstein was co-founder of the Center for Jewish, Christian and Muslim Relations at Merrimack College and was an adjunct professor in the college’s Religion Department. He has serived on a number of boards including the Lawrence General Hospital, Merrimack Valley Hospice, Samaritans, the Greater Lawrence YMCA and the Edgewood Retirement Community. In 2003, Rabbi Goldstein received an honorary doctorate from Merrimack College. In 2006, he received an honorary doctorate from Hebrew Union College for 25 years of exemplary service as the leader of his congregation.
Rabbi Emeritus Harry Roth D.D. z”l
Rabbi Harry A. Roth, of blessed memory, served as rabbi of Temple Emanuel from June 1962 through his retirement in 1990. He was the driving force behind the congregation’s move from Lawrence to Andover. He made interfaith initiatives a priority, originating the Catholic-Jewish Dialogue of the Merrimack Valley and taking a dozen ministers to see the newly established State of Israel. He also traveled the Soviet Union to provide aid to Soviet Jews known as Refuseniks, at one point getting arrested by KGB agents.
His loving wife Lillian, of blessed memory, ran the temple gift shop. She was by his side for 71 years.
Rabbi Roth was born in 1924 in a village along the Romania-Hungary border, and he came to the United States in 1929. He served in the Army Signal Corps during World War II, spending time in Germany and Japan. He later enrolled at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati. He was ordained in 1958.
Rabbi Roth lived in recent years in Los Angeles, near his daughter Sheilah and son Michael.