Our Board + Advisors

Board of Directors Educational Advisory Group Research & Evaluation Advisory Group Technology Advisory Group

Kari Alterman is the founder of Good Name Advisors, where she helps individuals and families advance their philanthropic dreams and preserve their good name through meaningful charitable giving. She also partners with and leads giving circles, designing programs that elevate communal giving through education, shared experience, and collective responsibility.

Kari spent nearly a decade at the William Davidson Foundation, where she led the Foundation’s Jewish giving portfolio for eight years before becoming its Director of External Affairs and a Senior Advisor. Prior to joining the Foundation in 2015, she served as Detroit Regional Director for the American Jewish Committee, and spent 11 years with the Jewish Federation of Detroit, concluding her tenure as Leadership Development Director.

A proud graduate of the University of Michigan, Kari holds a B.A. in History, an M.S.W., and a Certificate in Jewish Communal Service. She is a 21/64 Certified Philanthropic Advisor.

In her active volunteer life, Kari serves on the boards of Clover Hill Park Cemetery, OneTable (as board secretary), the Zekelman Holocaust Center (where she is also a second-generation speaker), Boundless Israel, and the Jewish Federation of Detroit. She is a founding member and former executive committee member of the Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit, and a past board member of JPRO.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
Shabbat is my favorite Jewish holiday – and with OneTable, I am fortunate enough to work with an organization that deeply understands the joys and opportunities each week offers us in resetting ourselves, celebrating our Judaism, and appreciating a great meal and conversation with family and friends.

Jill Aschkenasy

Jill Aschkenasy is a dedicated philanthropist, social entrepreneur, and community volunteer with a passion for Jewish philanthropy and addressing basic needs for underserved communities. In 2011, she founded Our Closet in Your Neighborhood (OCIYN) to provide accessible clothing services to those in need. OCIYN later merged with the Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia (JFCS), where it now operates as a comprehensive basic needs program. Before establishing OCIYN, Jill served as an Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan’s Domestic Violence Unit. She is also a longtime volunteer with the Innocence Project, advocating for incarcerated individuals seeking justice. Jill earned her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her J.D. from the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law. She is the Board Chair of the Aspen Community Foundation and serves on the boards of JFCS of Greater Philadelphia and the Women’s Committee of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Jill resides in Haverford, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Paul, and their four children: Kate, Ben, James, and Charlie.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
OneTable’s mission to bring the magic of Shabbat into the homes of young adults in an accessible and affordable way is truly inspiring. The visionary approach of adapting Jewish culture to meet people where they are, while fostering a deep and meaningful sense of Jewish identity, deeply resonates with me. I joined the board to contribute to this transformative movement and to be a part of the magic that OneTable creates.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is a time for family, reflection, and taking a moment to breathe. It’s also a celebration of the beautiful chaos around the table—filled with laughter, lively conversation, love, and support.

Sara Bloom

Sara Bloom is the founder and the Chair of the Board of Directors of Hebrew Public. From 2004 to 2008, she was a weekly columnist for The New York Sun, focusing on raising children in New York City. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, OneTable, the Jewish Food Society, and the Areivim Philanthropic Group. She works as a mediator at the Long Island Dispute Resolution Center and in a private practice specializing in family disputes. Sara has six children and lives in New York City.

Why did you join the OneTable board?
My father, Michael Steinhardt, believes that having regular Shabbat dinners is a critical component of Jewish continuity, one that is accessible to all Jews regardless of levels of observance or educational background. We started OneTable, and I joined the Board in the hopes that adults in their 20s and 30s would develop this joyous, lifelong habit of having Shabbat dinners with family and friends.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is the opportunity to recharge and reconnect with people I love. Dinner each Friday with my family and friends is the grounding force in my life, around which everything else revolves. It’s also always about the challah…

Jake Cohen

Jake Cohen is a cookbook author and nice Jewish boy from New York. A former food staffer at Saveur, food editor of Tasting Table and Time Out New York, and editorial director of The Feedfeed, Jake wrote his first book, Jew-ish, about his love of Jewish food and Shabbat. When he isn’t writing about food, he’s posting challah-braiding videos and recipes on his Instagram and TikTok (@jakecohen).

Julie Franklin

Chair

Julie Franklin is a community activist and investor who is passionate about education, social justice, and children. She has mentored over 100 students through the Posse Foundation, Teach for America, Women of Tomorrow, and Achieve Miami. She co-chairs the Advisory Board of The Center for High Impact Philanthropy (CHIP) at the University of Pennsylvania, is on the Advisory Board of The School of Social Policy and Practice (SP2), and is an active member of the Trustee Council for Penn Women. She is a director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Jewish Philanthropy and on the Boards of Teach for America – Miami Dade and the Greater Miami Jewish Federation. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and currently resides in Miami with her family.

Why did you join the OneTable board?
I was inspired to join the board by my mother-in-law, Nina Franklin (of blessed memory), whose deep love of Shabbat united her large, growing family each week. I also can’t say no to Sara Bloom — a true inspiration who enriches everything she touches.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat symbolizes family, ritual, peace, and shalom.

Rabbi David Gedzelman

Rabbi David Gedzelman is President & CEO of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, which is dedicated to revitalizing Jewish identity through innovative initiatives that build connections with the richness of Jewish civilization, the Hebrew language, and the life and culture of Israel. He holds a B.A. from Hamilton College, an M.A. from Duke University in Comparative Religion, and Rabbinical Ordination from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. In addition to the OneTable Board, he serves on the Boards of The American Pardes Foundation, the Council for Hebrew Language and Culture, and YAFFED. He lives in Harlem with his wife, Judith Turner, and their three children, Nomi, Anina, and Ziv.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board at the inception of the project in early 2014 in order to help realize Michael Steinhardt’s vision for harnessing the power and meaning of the Friday night Shabbat dinner experience to give American Jewish young adults opportunities for Jewish expression and connection.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat provides the metronome of my life, setting a rhythm whose spiritual discipline opens a window to the infinite in the context of the finite.

Emeri Handler

Emeri Handler is a parent education and mental health consultant, community volunteer, philanthropist, and life-long learner. Focusing on developmental and clinical psychology for over 30 years, Emeri works with families to create long-term, healthy relationships. She previously worked as the Associate Director/Director for Education at the Anti-Defamation League in San Francisco. Emeri is active on various Boards and committees, including regional theater companies, education and mental health organizations, and Jewish non-profits. She is also passionate about collective grant-making, having co-founded and managed a women’s philanthropy fund that granted over $400,000 in five years. Emeri resides in Boulder with her husband, Brad; they are the proud parents of three young women.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the Board after advising leadership almost since the founding of the organization. It is a much-needed, brilliant pathway to connection and belonging.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat means breath, and light, and gathering, and friendship.

Deborah Hochberg

Deborah Hochberg serves as Senior Advisor to a private foundation where she works with organizations and partners seeking to increase their impact. Debbie is immediate Past President of Momentum, serves as Co-Chair of Areivim, and is on the Boards of The Harold Grinspoon Foundation, the Jewish Food Society, and the Jewish Funders Network. Prior to her non-profit roles, Debbie was Director of Investor Relations at Multex, Inc. and an Equity Research analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co.. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an AB in biology from Harvard College.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I was one of the co-founders of OneTable. We believed — and still believe — that Shabbat is a meaningful way for Jews of all ages to find meaning, community, and ritual. We hope that OneTable makes Shabbat personal, accessible, and meaningful and that it leads to regular Shabbat meals and unity and stimulates curiosity about the Jewish people and Israel.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat marks the end of the work week and the beginning of time with my family and friends. The rituals of lighting candles, blessing the wine, and challah bring our family together after a hectic week and reconnect us to each other. We use prayer books and kippot from prior generations to connect us spiritually to our ancestors. Post-October 7, we have found tremendous gratitude for Shabbat and always light an extra candle for our extended family — the millions of Jews— in Israel.

Rena Kopelman

Vice Chair

Rena Kopelman is an advisor, strategist, and philanthropist in the non-profit community who advocates for Jewish education and identity-building programs, including by serving on the board of Perelman Jewish Day School and the national boards of Hillel International, Jewish Federations of North America, and OneTable. Trained as a corporate lawyer, Rena has worked with numerous organizations on governance and strategic planning and created the Kopelman Foundation with her husband to fund early-stage, entrepreneurial social projects. She has been involved in several Israeli television and film productions, in hopes of using the power of storytelling to change perspectives. She mostly lives in Philadelphia, from where she launched two emerging adults.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
OneTable has brilliantly found a scalable way to elevate and amplify Shabbat from a moment to an experience. I joined the OneTable Board to be part of the incredible team facilitating this work.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
For me, Shabbat is both the end and the beginning of the week — time to wind down and be contemplative and also to ramp up for what comes next.

Rebecca Leventhal

Rebecca Leventhal has spent her career mobilizing investment capital to drive social impact. Rebecca was on the founding team of Social Finance, a national impact finance and advisory firm. Rebecca was the Head of Strategic Initiatives at Building Industry Partners and Founder of The Helm, a platform for dementia caregivers. She served as a Senior Advisor at Higher Ground Labs and has served on the strategy committee for several Jewish communal organizations. She serves on CJP’s Israel Advisory Group and Harvard Law School’s Public Service Venture Fund and chairs the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Neurosciences Board. Rebecca holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and an A.B. from Harvard College.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
Creating welcoming Shabbat tables — spaces of warmth, conversation, debate, and belonging — is at the heart of Judaism and how I try to live, and what I hope to help create for others.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
A pause. A slow, warmth-filled meal with boisterous conversation, real community, and a great challah.

Adam Levine

Treasurer

Adam Levine is President of Circle of Service Foundation based in Chicago. He has served on the Board of COSF since 1997 and joined COSF professionally as President in 2007. Prior to 2007, Adam practiced corporate law as a partner at Kirkland & Ellis. In addition to OneTable, he is a member of the Boards of the Partnership for College Completion, and Israel Policy Forum. Previously, he served on the Boards of Jewish Funders Network and Chicago Jewish Day School.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I am inspired by how OneTable supports young adults to experience how Shabbat dinner has coalesced people for centuries, and also how to adapt it as their own today.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
A weekly break from the routine – permitting us to rest and to be refreshed by reflection and gathering with family and friends (old and new).

Bruce Newman

Bruce Newman is currently a Principal of Addison Feen Insight, a consulting firm helping clients distill the perceived complexity of their business into a few simple clear objectives, metrics and measures that drive faster growth and wider margins.

He is a Senior Advisor to Graham Partners, a private equity firm investing in market-leading companies spurring innovation in industrial technologies and advanced manufacturing. At Graham, in addition to the wealth of knowledge he brings to Graham Partners’ portfolio companies through his 20+ year career, he also serves on Graham’s Buyout and Growth Gating Committees. He is also a founding Partner of Entrepreneur Partners, a firm of veteran private equity professionals and experienced operating executives acquiring direct marketing companies and contributing as engaged investors.

As an engaged investor and operator, he has led businesses including Northern Brewer, Peachtree Business Products, Amerifile, Bayshore Marketing, Franklin Mint and Paramount Citrus.

Bruce earned his M.B.A. from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and his B.S. degree from the University of Wisconsin. He is a long-time member of YPO/YPO Gold.

He is married to Laurel and is proud father to two sons.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
We have been long-time supporters of OneTable because we focus on the development and expression of Jewish identity in young people. In joining the board, I hope to help secure the continued growth and viability of its mission.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is an opportunity to set aside dedicated space for gratitude and a moment to bless our children and their friends.

Victoria Kimerling Oliphant

Victoria Kimerling Oliphant, driven by a passion for philanthropy and a deep commitment to Israel and the Jewish people, is a seasoned nonprofit professional and lay leader. Holding a BS from Indiana University in Nonprofit Management and an MPA from George Washington University, she has a rich background in supporting organizations through strategic marketing and engagement. After living in Tel Aviv for over 5 years, Victoria is now based in Atlanta, Georgia, where she runs Kimerling Creative, her one-woman consultancy dedicated to empowering women-led nonprofits and small businesses. She also serves remotely as the Marketing Consultant and Assistant Director of Israel Advocacy & Engagement for the Birmingham Jewish Federation. She is currently a sixth year on the Jewish Federations of North America’s National Young Leadership Cabinet, the Chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta’s Core Allocations Committee, and a member of AJC Atlanta’s ACCESS Board. Victoria enjoys life in Atlanta with her husband, Phil, and their beloved dogs, Queso and Pepper.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable board because I absolutely love how they bring the Jewish community together. Their focus on making Shabbat a space for meaningful connection and joy really resonates with me.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
To me, Shabbat is all about that special magic that happens when friends and family come together around the dinner table. It’s a testament to the beautiful diversity of our community that no matter where we are in the world or our level of observance, we can all make Shabbat our own in a way that is meaningful to us.

Rob Orley

Immediate Past Chair

Rob Orley serves as a Principal at O2 Investment Partners, LLC. He’s a real estate developer and a seasoned executive and private equity investor with more than 35 years of experience. Rob holds a J.D. degree from Detroit College of Law, a bachelor’s degree in Business from the University of Michigan, and an L.L.M. in Taxation from Boston University School of Law. Rob has served as an advisor to OneTable, helping us secure a match for Detroit funding and hosting a Shabbat dinner to introduce OneTable to the Detroit community with his wife, Marcie Hermelin Orley. Rob is an active JFNA Cabinet alum.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board because I loved their mission: bringing Shabbos to young adults.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is where everything starts for me. It’s my favorite day of the week. It’s my favorite meal, and that has nothing to do with food. It is when I stop every week, bless my family, and count my blessings. Celebrating Shabbat was the beginning of my Jewish journey.

Kylie Unell

Kylie Unell is a Dean’s Doctoral Fellow at NYU, concentrating in Jewish philosophy. Her research focuses on the intersection between the Black and Jewish community through the philosophies of Moses Mendelssohn and Booker T. Washington. In 2021, Kylie was named an “aspiring Jewish philosopher” by the New York Jewish Week for their annual 36 Under 36. Kylie has hosted two #1 Jewish podcasts with Tablet Studios: “How to Fix a Soul in 30 Days” and “49 Days to Stretch My Soul.” She has also hosted a YouTube series on the history of the relationship between the Black and Jewish communities with Unpacked, which has amassed over 1.2 million views. She currently lives in Upstate New York with her canine sidekick, Miley.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board because I am passionate about the journey of Jewish self-discovery and exploration and the spaces like OneTable that support Jews in that process.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat means a time of supercharging. It’s stepping into a space in time where I joyfully receive energy from the Divine without the expectation of giving anything in return.

Nancy Viner

Nancy Viner brings more than two decades of experience leading technology, cybersecurity, and operational initiatives in service of complex, people-centered organizations. Nancy spent 17 years at Fidelity Investments, where she held senior leadership roles in Cybersecurity and Technology Risk Management. Most recently, she led the cyber risk team supporting Workplace Investing and the Health Benefits Marketplace, helping protect mission-critical programs serving millions of individuals. Earlier in her career, she was COO of Fidelity Trading Ventures.

Nancy earned a J.D. from the New England School of Law and is a member of both the New York and Massachusetts Bar Associations.

For more than 25 years, Nancy has been deeply committed to philanthropic and leadership roles within Boston’s Jewish community. She served on the Board of Directors of Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP) and is a graduate of the Cynthia and Leon Shulman Acharai Leadership Program. She previously served as Regional Board Chair for AIPAC and on its National Council, and has held board roles with Yad Chessed, The Rashi School, and the Vilna Shul.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I said yes to joining the OneTable Board because I truly believe in the mission to create meaningful Jewish connection and belonging, especially at moments when people are building community and finding their way. Excited to contribute my time, perspective, and energy to support OneTable.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat has always meant coming together — family around the table, community connection, and the grounding rhythm of Friday night traditions that marked the week. I grew up in a home where Shabbat dinner happened every Friday night, and those moments shaped my deep appreciation for connection, reflection, and shared joy

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