Silvia and Sam Gornstein have been involved with Temple Israel Reform Congregation of Staten Island for nearly five years. While their time at the Temple has been short, their impact has been great.
Originally from Argentina, they lived and raised their two sons on Long Island then came to Staten Island. Members of Long Island & Manhattan synagogues, they were thrilled to find a nearby Jewish home at Temple Israel.
Silvia is a passionate cook and loves to host holidays for her extended family. She finds time to do this even while commuting to her job at the Argentinian consulate in Manhattan.
At Temple Israel, she jumped right in and helped organize a Tu B’shevat Seder that raised enough money to plant a garden of 100 trees in Israel. One of Silvia’s favorite projects was teaching students how to make knishes. She was also involved in creating the first Sisterhood cookbook for Passover.
As Vice President of Ways and Means for Sisterhood, Silvia has been instrumental in fundraising efforts including the New Year cards and the Make Your Own Pizza night.
She is also a member of the Oneg committee. Silvia is known around the Temple for her can do attitude and is always willing to lend a hand. She has helped with everything from making food for those in need to helping run the Hannukah fair.
Sam, a retired radiology technologist, is an active member of the Choir. He enjoys singing during the holidays and Shabbat. Sam also appreciated the community formed during the pandemic over zoom and how the choir was able to continue to engage and sing together.
Sam is also active in the Brotherhood and is there when Brotherhood puts up the Sukkah, helps run the Hannukah celebration & Purim carnival, and is busy at the annual barbecue.
He was elected to the Temple Board and can be found serving as an usher or greeter. He is always ready with a warm smile and a helping hand!
But family is first for Sam and Silvia. They are proud of their dear family: Ilan, Sara, Matthew, Andrew, Kayla and Michael Gornstein and Arin, Daniel, Clara and Emma Gornstein. They are also very fond of their two grandpups, Zee and Toby. Just as cherished are their many nieces and nephews in Canada, Florida, Israel and Argentina. They are especially proud of their role as third abuela and abuelo to Ma’ayan Feldman.
Marc Konowitz is an attorney and a member of Congregation B’nai Jeshurun of Staten Island.
Marc has dedicated his life to serving the public interest. He worked at the Farm Workers Community Center in Pine Island, New York, helping connect migrant farm workers to needed services. He also served as a den leader in Cub Scout Packs 118 and 160 on Staten Island.
Marc started his public service legal career as an attorney at the New York Mental Hygiene Legal Service. There, he zealously defended the rights of the mentally ill. He later served as a New York State assistant attorney general, where he enforced laws preventing tobacco companies from targeting youth in their marketing campaigns. At the same time, Marc volunteered as an arbitrator in Staten Island Small Claims Court, helping ease the court's caseloads. For the past eight years, Marc has been in-house counsel to the city's Medicaid program, where he works to maintain the integrity of the program for those who need it most.
Marc has been on CBJ's Board of Trustees since 2018 and is active on several committees. He lives with his wife, Seva, and their two beautiful children, Maia and Andrew.
Robyn has been a member of AHBJC CAI since birth. Her father, Martin Brenner, was an original member of Arden Heights Boulevard Jewish Center. Robyn became more active in the synagogue once her son began Hebrew School in 2011. She eventually ran for the Board of Trustees in 2017.
Robyn is a member of the synagogue’s Education committee and is always willing to lend a hand during Temple events, including building the sukkah. Robyn is director of Service Operations at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, where she has worked for almost 30 years. Robyn is pursuing her Master of Business Administration in healthcare management from Southern New Hampshire University, where she maintains a 4.0 GPA. Robyn is a proud mother of Vincent, who just completed his first year at the University of Pennsylvania. In her free time, Robyn loves to read and is an avid sports fan, always cheering on the Green Bay Packers, New York Mets, and New York Rangers.
Boris Natenzon is the president and chief executive officer of Enexia Specialty Pharmacy and VitaCare Longterm Care Pharmacy. Enexia Specialty is a growing independent pharmacy with five locations across three boroughs. The company touches thousands of people each year through its unique tailored customer service to both retail clients and long-term care facilities.
Boris opened his first pharmacy, along with his wife, Angela, RPh., in 2002, after receiving his Bachelor of Science in pharmacy from Long Island University in 1999. He was later joined by his partners, Semyon Lorberg, RPh. and director of specialty services, in 2008, as well as Bernard Glezerman, RPh. and chief operating officer, in 2003. Their combined experience expands beyond the retail pharmacy services into practice in community, long-term care, and hospital/facility settings.
Boris’s professional affiliations include the P&T Committee at Richmond Community Health Center, board member of the Pharmacists Society of the State of New York and of the New York City Pharmacists Society, and proctor for the State Board of Pharmacy exam.
Boris has served as a member of the Foundation Board of Staten Island University Hospital since 2011, and has been the recipient of several awards and honors. In 2000 he was awarded Drug Topics Pharmacist of the Year as well as the Staten Island Community Health Hero Award in September 2011 and September 2013.
Throughout the pandemic, Boris helped those in need through the Joan & Alan Bernikow JCC’s Resource Navigator program, providing supplemental supplies to those quarantining. He hosted multiple Covid-19 vaccine clinics, both at his pharmacies and in conjunction with the JCC. For homebound seniors and individuals with disabilities, he made house calls to administer the vaccine. Boris and his team were responsible for vaccinating thousands of New Yorkers over the course of a few months.
Jeffrey Novick has been attending Temple Emanu-El of Staten Island since his parents joined in 1987. He is very active in the congregation and joined its board of trustees in 2012. He served as first vice president from 2013 to 2016 and was elected president in 2016. He served as president for five years through 2021.
Jeffrey has worked in the physical security industry for almost 20 years, and he has been involved in the installation of security systems for notable Jewish organizations such as the Abraham Joshua Heschel school in Manhattan, Temple Israel of Manhattan and the Hebrew Home in Riverdale, New York. Jeffrey serves as a member of the Temple committee for IT and security, lending his security expertise to the synagogue whenever he can. He was instrumental in getting a video surveillance system installed in Temple Emanu-El with equipment that was donated from several manufacturers that he works with regularly.
Jeffrey married his wife, Renee, in 2014. Jeffrey and Renee have been members of Temple Emanu-El since they were married and have three small children: Stephanie, age 5, Aaron, age 4, and Juliana, age 18 months.
Iva Reuven, a native of Staten Island comes from a proud family of community leaders who understand the important need to volunteer, give back and help the Jewish community of Staten Island grow and prosper. Iva is a married to Oshri Reuven, who serves as President of the Aur Torah Sephardic Minyan of Staten Island. Iva serves as Aur Torah’s Sisterhood President handling nearly all major Synagogue and community events and is also the proud head of the JFS PTA and runs fabulous school programs. In this capacity, Iva helps to enrich the flourishing Jewish life that enriches the School and the Staten Island Jewish Community as a whole. Perhaps one of Iva’s crowning achievements was when the pandemic hit and covid became a crises Iva and her husband together with her children, Angela, David, Michael and Liat came to volunteer with the COJO Food Pantry to help their fellow Staten Islander survive the novel and unexpected hardships caused by the pandemic.
From food distributions and resources to PPE, Iva and her family was there from the get-go. Not only did Iva come to the plate she got her Rabbi Aharon Zeev and the Aur Torah Sephardic Minyan congregation family involved and they became a pillar of hope and inspiration for the entire Borough of Staten Island. Iva organized the COJO Service Committee which she proudly serves as Chair and this hardworking diverse committee of dedicated civic minded people are here to spread hope, optimism and love. The COJO Service Committee is the pride and sparking jewel of Staten Island and is adapting to the world as we transition to a healthier reality and will continue to be at the forefront of activism. Iva truly is gem who cares and is a friend of everyone and is inspiration to all those who get to know her. This award is just a small token of appreciation and a thank you to an individual who is selfless and dares to care.
Allison Romeo was born in Queens and grew up in Brooklyn. She attended Brooklyn College, where she received her master’s in speech pathology. Allison and her husband, Robert, have been married for 30 years. They moved to Staten Island in 1996 and have two children: Tyler, 28, and Justin, 24, who both grew up at the JCC. Allison has been working at the JCC at First Foot Forward as a speech/language pathologist for the past 25 years. In addition to working at First Foot Forward, she was involved in Maccabi Artsfest in both New Orleans and Baltimore with the teens from the JCC. She has volunteered at many JCC events including the Purim carnival, Character Breakfast, and Sunrise walks.
In addition to working at the JCC, she has been on the Board of Directors of her temple, Congregation Ohel Abraham, for the past 19 years. When her children were in Hebrew School, she helped oversee the everyday planning. She was honored in 2004 by the Council of Jewish Organizations (COJO) with the Community Service Award for her leadership, devoted service, and dedication to the Jewish community of Staten Island for her work at her temple, where she is actively involved. Whether it’s helping during model seders, Shabbat dinners, Hanukkah parties or temple yard sales, she is always there if help is needed. Those in her temple know if they need anything, they can just call, and she will be there.
Leah and her husband, Bobby, moved to Staten Island in 2011, where they live with their four children. Leah attributes her dedication to community service to the lessons she learned from both her paternal and maternal grandparents, who were each instrumental in bringing and shaping Jewish life in their respective communities (Denver, Colorado, and Bayswater, New York).
Leah has been on the Board of Directors of the Young Israel and has served as its second vice president since 2016, overseeing all youth-related activities. Her responsibilities include the youth department, which runs weekly shabbat groups, interactive monthly events, and special programming for each holiday. In addition, Leah supervises a basketball clinic for boys in grades k-8 and co-chairs the summer day camp at the Young Israel, serving over 100 local children each year.
In 2016, Leah began studying for her MSW and subsequently interned at the JCC and became a member of its staff for several years, with a focus on working with caregivers in the Memory Loss Program. Leah now works as an LMSW in a home-based hospice agency, and credits her husband, Bobby, for giving her the opportunity to serve the community and future generations of community members.
Alex Bebeshko was born in Odesa, Ukraine. In 2000, at 12 years old, he immigrated to the United States as a Jewish refugee. In high school, Alex got involved in his local Jewish community center, the Marks JCH of Bensonhurst. During his time at the J, Alex deepened his Jewish identity and connection to the Jewish community and was inspired to become a communal professional. Most recently, Alex got to put his experience and skills to work helping Ukrainian refugees in Budapest. In addition, Alex holds master's degrees in Nonprofit Management and Hebrew and Judaic Studies from New York University. He is a manager in the UJA FRD division where he engages FSU and healthcare communities.