Our Team

RABBI DAVID STEINHARDT

Rabbi Steinhardt has been the Senior Rabbi at B’nai Torah Congregation serving the Boca Raton community for more than twenty years. At B’nai Torah Rabbi Steinhardt has lead synagogue growth with the largest conservative membership in Florida, and a Shabbat attendance that rivals almost any congregation in the world. He inspires and champions innovative and meaningful synagogue programming and education for all ages.

Rabbi Steinhardt has chaired the Jewish Community Relations Council and the Israel Overseas Committee of the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County. At the Jewish Federation, he served on the Executive Board. He is a founder of the Boca Raton Inter‐Faith Clergy Association and currently serves as co-president. He served as one of three communal leaders on the steering committee of the Shemin Trialogue at Florida Atlantic University, an annual event bringing together Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders and scholars. He is actively engaged in a Jewish/Muslim dialogue group.

Rabbi Steinhardt has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Connecticut, where he studied Psychology, and holds a Master’s Degree in Hebrew Literature from The Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, where he was ordained as a Rabbi. In May 2010, he received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from The Jewish Theological Seminary.

Rabbi Steinhardt has led an effort for Haitian disaster relief through Mazon and the Lambi Fund. He is an instructor for the International Florence Melton Mini School and a Senior Rabbinic Fellow and Advisory Board Member at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. Rabbi Steinhardt is also a national board member of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs Committee (JCPA), and has served on the Chancellor’s Cabinet of The Jewish Theological Seminary. He has served as president of Boards of Rabbis in both Ohio and Palm Beach County.

Rabbi Steinhardt was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He is married to Dr. Tobi Richman‐Steinhardt, a physician, and they are the parents of five adult children.

RABBI DAVID ENGLANDER

Ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1999, where he also received a Master of Arts in Jewish Education and was awarded the Lillian M. Lowenfeld Prize in Practical Theology.

While at the Seminary, Rabbi Englander taught in the Youth House of Temple Israel in Great Neck New York, served as student Rabbi of Congregation Etz Chayim in Huntsville Alabama, and was the rabbinic intern at Town and Village Synagogue in lower Manhattan. He was also senior USY advisor at Temple Beth El of New Rochelle, NY, and worked on the staff of Camp Ramah in the Berkshires for 10 summers as a counselor, division head, and advisor for staff training. Prior to entering the Seminary, Rabbi Englander studied for a year at Yeshivat Hamivtar in Efrat, Israel, and graduated from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor with a B.A. in History. While at the University of Michigan, he served as President of the Conservative Minyan and as vice-chair of IMPAC, the Israel-Michigan Political Action Committee. He taught b’nai mitzvah students through Beth Israel Synagogue, and was an elected representative to the Michigan Student Assembly, serving as chair of its External Relations Committee.

At B’nai Torah, Rabbi Englander conducts Shabbat and holiday services, including the participatory Shabbat morning service known as Havurat Shabbat, and the High Holy Day Family service, attended by over a thousand synagogue members. He directs and teaches in the Lillian and Philip Cooperman Academy for Adult Jewish Learning, and is a principal instructor and coordinator for the Basic Judaism and Conversion program. He is active in pastoral care activities and officiates at all lifecycle events. He also teaches in the high school and middle school programs, and is the rabbinic contact for the Sam Mandelker College Connection program, which keeps B’nai Torah’s college students connected to their home congregation.

Recipient of the Rabbi Simon Greenberg Rabbinic Leadership Award by The Jewish Theological Seminary in December, 2004 and Past President of the Palm Beach County Board of Rabbis. He served as chair of the task force on Jewish Education for the Planning and Allocations Committee of the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County, where serves as a trustee and on the Israel Overseas Committee. Rabbi Englander is on the Honorary Board of Hillel of Broward and Palm Beach, and is an active member of the Boca Raton Interfaith Clergy Association. He also sits on the Ethics Committee of Boca Raton Regional Hospital.

Rabbi Englander grew up in Spring Valley, NY. He attended the Prozdor Hebrew High School program of JTS for four years, and is a graduate of the Monsey Jewish Center Hebrew School. Rabbi Englander and his wife Stephanie are the proud parents of Yaffa, Zev and Ayal.

CANTOR EHUD (UDI) SPIELMAN

Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, Udi is the great grandson of Rabbi Zerach Barnet, who was one of the key founders of Tel Aviv. Both of Udi’s grandfathers were Cantors. Listening to them chant services throughout his childhood profoundly influenced his love for Cantorial music (Hazzanut).

Udi is a graduate of Hakafar Hayarok, agricultural high school in Israel. Upon graduation, Udi went into the Israeli Air Force where he performed with his orchestra. Honorably discharged from the armed services, Udi established many musical groups in Israel that performed at many special occasions. His musical groups were extremely successful, and as a result of this popularity, the musical groups were invited to play around the world, including the Far East, Europe, and the United States.

In 2000, Udi decided to retire his performing groups in order to study Hazzanut. Cantor Spielman attended the Cantorial Institute of Tel Aviv, administered by Cantor Naftali Hershtik, the Chief Cantor of the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem. Cantor Hershtik exposed Udi to the deeper elements of Judaic learning and the art of chanting. Cantor Chaim Feifel and composer Raymond Goldstein influenced much of Udi’s education as well.

Udi believes that it is the seed his grandfathers planted within him which drove him to pursue his education in Hazzanut. Cantor Spielman graduated from the Cantorial Institute of Tel Aviv and enthusiastically embarked on his career. Besides his Cantorial services as a Hazzan, Udi has also performed in Cantorial concerts with the most highly regarded Hazzanim of our time.

Udi performs Hazzanut as he fulfills his dream of perpetuating the legacy of his grandfathers.

CANTOR BOAZ DAVIDOFF

Cantor, recording artist, and concert performer, as well as a musician, composer and choir director, Boaz Davidoff holds B.A in Music Ed. and M.A in Musicology.

Before becoming a Cantor, Boaz performed in festivals and concerts around Israel, Europe and the U.S.A. as a lyric tenor soloist. He sang Renaissance, Baroque, oratorio, early opera and world music, along with his own compositions. Boaz returned to his Jewish origins and discovered the “Wonderful Light of Emunah (faith).” Boaz registered to TACI (Tel Aviv Cantorial Institute) and started, passionately, to study under the direction of Maestro and Cantor Naphtali Herstik. After only two years of study – during a cantorial tour of TACI in North America – Boaz was moved on to Shaare Zion Congregation in Montreal, Canada where he became a full-time Cantor. Boaz completed his Cantorial studies with maestro and Cantor Arye Subar in Montreal.

During his six successful years as a Cantor, Boaz also produced two CD’s, broadcasted a program on the Montreal Jewish radio network – “Radio Shalom,” took part in many concerts as a soloist, and produced Charity concerts for Israel with the ”Share Zion band” (a band that he established). Boaz and his family then returned to their homeland, Israel.

Boaz continues giving lectures on different music topics, conducts two choirs, produces CD’s, sings and acts in musical theater for children, and performs around Israel and the world as a soloist with various ensembles and with his band “Boaz Ve’Hakotzrim” (Boaz & the Harvests) which is a combination of cantorial classic style, rock, Balkan, and world music.

RABBI RIKKI ARAD

As Executive Director, Rabbi Rikki Arad oversees the synagogue’s finances and development, communications, membership outreach, programming, maintenance and security, as well as creates and leads membership development initiatives to retain and increase membership of B’nai Torah, the largest Conservative synagogue in the Southeast of the United States.

Rabbi Rikki is a spirited results-oriented leader with a strong track record of developing and executing long-term goals within the Jewish community, non-profit organizations, and international corporations. Her strength is in developing leadership among professionals and lay leaders, designing and facilitating innovative training programs, and increasing active participation and involvement. She plays a key role in fundraising and programming, insuring the future financial health of the synagogue. She has extensive management experience in building effective teams and community relations.

A dynamic mentor and motivational leader, Rabbi Rikki has presented at the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education in England and at Limmud in France. She has received educator awards from the National Association of Temple Educators, the Bureau of Jewish Education in Los Angeles, Calif., the URJ, and a service award from St. Thomas Aquinas Church for 11 years of voluntary service teaching religion and cultural tolerance to students. She was also featured on 20/20 and in “Don’t Mess with Rivka,” an article in Reform Jewish Magazine describing a passionate educator who brought back a Jewish child to Judaism after he was persuaded to convert to Christianity.

Rabbi Rikki was born and raised in B’nai B’rak, Israel. She and her husband Terry live in Hollywood, Fla. Rikki is the proud mother of a son and daughter, and the very proud grandmother of 2 adorable grandkids who live in Austin, Texas.