Join us as we celebrate and show gratitude to our honorees for their
wonderful commitment and dedication to Ansche Chesed.
wonderful commitment and dedication to Ansche Chesed.
honoring
Wendy & Avery Katz
Avery and Wendy met in Ann Arbor, where Wendy was working on her PhD in Psychology and Avery was starting his career as a Law School Professor. After they married they moved to D.C where Wendy did her clinical internship and Avery taught Law at Georgetown University. They had two children, Batia and Margalit, who both had their naming at Congregation Adat Shalom in Rockville, Maryland.
They moved to NYC in 1999, where Wendy started her Psychology practice and Avery became a Professor at Columbia Law School. Fortunately for us, after looking at a few other synagogues they decided to join Ansche Chesed in 2005. It’s been their spiritual home ever since, and their daughters both celebrated their B’not Mitzvah in our Sanctuary
Wendy is passionate about social issues and has been involved in Ansche Chesed’s Social Action initiatives, including volunteering at our shelter and working on our Refugee Assistance committee.
Avery frequently attends Morning Minyan – thanks to Wendy’s wake up calls! – and often leyns in the Sanctuary on Shabbat. He has also been a steadfast leader, both through years as a member of the Board of Trustees and as Treasurer during the pandemic, where he worked closely with AC’s President Mark Paul and former Executive Director Josh Hanft to keep our finances stable during a difficult time. His service as Treasurer also included our Rav Chesed Campaign, and he worked extensively with the Rav Chesed Committee on financial issues. He continues this vital work as a longtime member of the Finance Committee.
Avery and Wendy are members of the Sanctuary Minyan and have generously supported Ansche Chesed throughout the years, including Rav Chesed and previous tributes.
Wendy remains in private practice as a psychologist and teaches at the Columbia Psychoanalytic Center. Avery remains a Professor at Columbia Law School. Wendy and Avery keep Jewish tradition alive for their extended family by hosting Passover Seders, Yom Kippur Break Fasts, Rosh HaShanah dinners and Chanukah latke dinners.
Patty & Seth Goldman
Seth and Patty had very different Jewish upbringings. Seth attended an Orthodox day school for eight years and was very active in his local synagogue. In contrast, Jewish life in Patty’s family was mostly limited to attending synagogue once a year during the High Holidays and eating matzah on Pesacḥ. Yet it’s no surprise that both grew up in families with very strong commitments to community service. Seth’s parents served in various leadership roles at their Conservative synagogue, the Pelham Jewish Center, while Patty’s mother led the PTA and later served on the school board, and her father held multiple leadership positions in the New York State Soccer Association.
They first met through a mutual friend on a ski trip to Lake Tahoe. Seth felt he had hit the jackpot when he found a cute Jewish girl who could ski. Patty, who had sung in countless choirs and acappella groups since high school, always imagined she would marry a musician. One of them got what they were looking for.
A few months into dating, they discovered that their worlds weren’t so far apart after all: Patty’s grandmother Min and Seth’s great-aunt Blanche were Florida neighbors and best friends. When they decided to marry, creating a Jewish home was part of the negotiation. Seth wanted a kosher home, and once Eli and Hannah came into the picture, a Jewish education at the Heschel School was the next step. Patty, always a team player, agreed.
With many Heschel friends already part of Ansche Chesed, joining our shul was a natural fit. True to form, neither Seth nor Patty ever simply pay dues to the communities they join — they roll up their sleeves and get involved. At Ansche Chesed, they have spent many nights volunteering at the homeless shelter, helping refugee families settle into apartments, and warmly welcoming countless newcomers into our building. Patty even pasted the new prayer for Israel into 400 siddurim.
In their professional lives, Patty and Seth also serve a social purpose. Patty works for the Ad Council, helping to strategize and evaluate major public service campaigns such as "Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk" and "Love Has No Labels." Seth is a third-generation mechanical engineer, working in his family business manufacturing life-saving devices — and occasionally Oscar statues.
It wasn’t long before their dedication was recognized, and they were invited into leadership roles at Ansche Chesed. Patty joined the Chesed Committee, co-chaired the last three tributes, and now serves on the Kiddush Committee — if you appreciate the new allergy signage, you have Patty to thank. Seth has been a member of the Board for the past two years, where he chairs the Building Committee. Every time you walk into a pleasantly climate-controlled Hirsch Hall, you should silently thank Seth.
Through their deep commitment to community, dedication and leadership, Patty and Seth have strengthened the very fabric of our congregation. We are proud to honor them for all they have given to Ansche Chesed.
Marge joined Ansche Chesed 34 years ago, when she moved back to New York after a four-year college stint in Portland, Oregon, and then two seven-year stints in what her friend used to call the High Galut—Fort Worth and Minneapolis.
She views her involvement in the shul, and, of course, Minyan M’at, as one of the great blessings of her life. After years of living and working in cities with smaller Jewish communities, she was thrilled to return to New York and discover Ansche Chesed and Minyan M’at— a large community of Jews, many of whom were raised in similarly observant homes, had a deep love of Israel, and were seeking deep and creative engagement with Jewish life. On her first Shabbat morning at M’at, she saw someone from her Los Angeles minyan, which she joined during graduate school and knew immediately that she was in the right place.
She has served twice on M’at’s Troika, once on their High Holiday Committee, and two rounds on the Ansche Chesed Board, each of them with time on the Executive Committee. Her other shul activities include two terms on the Program Committee, including organizing the recent Rye + Rye (the whiskey and the bread) event. She even made and oversaw the installation of the curtains in the gym for the High Holidays when Hirsch Hall was under construction.
Marge spent her career working in nonprofits—as a museum curator and director and as a foundation director. As director of the Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artist Program for 10 years, she brought more than 100 leading Israeli composers, choreographers, filmmakers, writers, and visual artists to teach for a semester in U.S. colleges and universities. Nowadays, she focuses on supporting Israeli visual artists, representing them here and working with clients across the country.