RABBI JILL HAMMER, PHD
DIRECTOR OF LEARNING & RITUAL
Rabbi Jill Hammer, PhD, author, scholar, ritualist, poet, dreamworker and midrashist, is a co-founder of Beit Kohenet and of the Kohenet movement. She is the Director of Spiritual Education at the Academy for Jewish Religion (www.ajrsem.org). She is also the author of Undertorah: An Earth-Based Kabbalah of Dreaming, Return to the Place: The Magic, Meditation, and Mystery of Sefer Yetzirah, The Hebrew Priestess: Ancient and New Visions of Jewish Women’s Spiritual Leadership (with Taya Shere), The Omer Calendar of Biblical Women, The Jewish Book of Days: A Companion for All Seasons, Sisters at Sinai: New Tales of Biblical Women, and The Book of Earth and Other Mysteries. She is the translator of The Romemu Siddur and of Siddur haKohanot: A Hebrew Priestess Prayerbook. She has written a children’s book, The Garden of Time. She lives in Manhattan with her family.
KOHENET LIVIAH WESSELY
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR | CEO
Kohenet Sho'eret Liviah Oreget Shirim, Priestess, Guardian, and Song Weaver, has regularly held ritual space for the Kohenet community, as well as leading, co-leading, and acting as Cyber-Gabbai. She writes and arranges liturgical music for chanting and choral settings. K’Liviah has led or co-led for Yelala, Kesher Pittsburgh, the Nechama Minyon, and numerous rituals, including weddings, funerals, and shiva services. She has catered events and taught cooking classes through her company MamaBakes, teaches college theatre, English, and humanities, and is a theatre director, producer, designer, and dramaturg. Liviah is the mother of three adults, a painter and poet, an opera singer, and an engineer, plus two cats—Cary Grant and Grace Kelly—residing in Silver Spring, Maryland.
*Photos by Gili Getz.
OUR BEIT KOHENET BOARD
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Kohenet Dr. Harriette E. Wimms is a Maryland licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in providing compassion-infused mental health care to children, adolescents, adults, and families across the age span. K’Harriette is a prayer leader in both the Kohenet community and at Hinenu: The Baltimore Justice Shtiebl. Dr. Wimms is also the inaugural Jews of Engagement Fellow at The Associated, Baltimore Jewish Federation (the first position of its type within any Jewish Federation System). A current Schusterman Fellow, Dr. Wimms is a Selah cohort 17 fellow; a contract trainer for Keshet, and the founder and executive director of the Jews of Color Mishpacha Project as well as the organization’s signature JOCSM Shabbatonim (JOCMishpacha.org). She is a proud Black, disabled, Jew by choice, and is most proud of being mother to her neurodiverse 18-year-old.
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Kohenet Michèle Burger/Michal Midbar is a community organizer and philanthropist who finds spirit in the wilderness and daily meditations. As a social worker and citizen of the world, versed in clinical and community organizing methodologies, she employs holistic, spiritual, culturally and team-centered approaches to community organizing on such issues as poverty, housing, social justice, family-life issues, friendships and ways of being.
Michèle is a visionary and activist who believes in building powerful coalitions rooted in solidarity, love, hope, financial support, and hard work. She aims to create a more equitable, just and peaceful world through networking and team work grounded in meditation, spiritual connection, weaving, and active listening. She is a nature lover, loves to move through the water, bikes, dances and is inspired by all kinds of music, traditions, and people. She lives in New York City and Lee, MA with her husband, who loves good food and travel. Tom, has been a back bone of support in my adventurous life, including Kohenet. We have two daughters, Nicole, who currently resides in Finland, and Natalie, who lives in Brooklyn, NY.
This bio reflects who I am today while I am constantly becoming….
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Kohenet Rakia Sky Beimel has an undergraduate degree in criminology and forensic science from South University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. She is also a religious school teacher at Congregation Shir Tikvah and teaches psychology and political science at Wayne County Community College Dis- trict. As former program coordinator of gardens and food for Hazon Detroit, she helped set up many gardens for local synagogues and de-signed the Sensory Garden at Tamarack Camps Farber Farm. She’s a doula, urban farmer, “weaver of ritual and keeper of sacred space,” and ordained through the Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute.”
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Arthur Fried spent most of his career as a marketing and business development professional. He loves working with young companies and organizations. He is the founder of several media companies, including ColorMedia, Healthcare Media Group and MDecisions LLC. He began his career as a professional photographer.
In the not-for-profit sector, Arthur was an active board member of Doctors of the World USA, helping build that NGO as an important player in the global health world. He was a founding board member of Romemu, a popular synagogue in New York City, and is currently a founding board member of the Shoresh Minyan in New York City. He is also a proud board member of Ayin Press.
Arthur is a graduate of Tufts University and the Harvard Business School. He is very excited with the opportunity to help nurture Beit Kohenet, and to work with an exceptional group of professionals.
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Dr. Lara Doan (they/them) is an avid and steadfast seeker of wisdom (sacred and mundane), embracing journeys of learning, exploration and revelation. They earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, a Master’s Degree in Women's Studies, and a Ph.D. in Education (Language, Culture and Teaching). Lara was in the first cohort of The Torah of Gathering JOC Fellowship through Ammud Jews of Color Torah Academy in partnership with Pardes North America (2023). They travel via video conferencing platforms to Batei Midrash across time (zones) and space (e.g., geography). In pursuit of rich wisdom of Judaism aligned with feminist earth-based spiritual practice, some years ago, Lara began davening with Kohenet Hebrew Priestess Institute where they felt a divine sense of belonging. Lara is deeply grateful to be part of the Beit Kohenet beloved community and is looking forward to supporting the Beit Kohenet community in meaningful ways.
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Yedida Landis is a Hebrew Priestess Gardener Writer who lives with her small family on a farm in Abenaki territory, otherwise known as New Hampshire. She has taught organic gardening to children for twenty years and is currently Lead Gardener at MacDowell. She holds a B.A. Environmental Studies & Spanish, as well as an M.A. Environmental Education. Yedida's published works include poetry, scientific research and various op-ed pieces about local food and building community. She is currently working on a book called Re-Imagine English. Some know her locally as "The Banana Lady" for her years of bringing bunches of bananas to the food bank each week and she loves baking for others. Yedida also speaks at local schools, libraries and religious/ spiritual centers about the intersectionality of history, language, environmental stewardship and religion.
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erica riddick (she/they) is a passionate ambi-brained educator / ritualist, founding director of Jews of Color Sanctuary, and creator of the Bilhah Zilpah Project and Parasha Play. erica is the Jewish Women’s Archive 2022-2024 Twersky Education Fellow and Mandel Foundation 2024-2026 Teacher Educator Institute Fellow. erica facilitates the Jewish Studio Process, Dismantling Racism from the Inside Out, and Changemakers (a peer-supported social entrepreneurial incubator of Realize Change). These projects balance the work of Design Theanthropic, a residential design and renovation initiative, and community action research on projects within beloved communities. A storyteller at heart, erica enjoys reading, watching films, live-action role playing gaming, and performing improv.