honoring
Born and raised in Toms River, NJ, Rabbi Yael Hammerman always felt at home in synagogue and could often be found "teaching" and "leading" her real and imaginary friends. Her childhood play became her professional passion as she works to help others feel as comfortable and welcome in synagogue as she has always felt.
Rabbi Hammerman started in the Ansche Chesed community as a family service leader while in Rabbinical School at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. As a student rabbi and educator, she served multiple communities, including Congregation Eitz Chaim in Monroe, NY, B'nai Jeshurun, the Forest Hills Jewish Center, St. Luke's Hospital, and the Solomon Schechter School of Manhattan. Rabbi Hammerman continued growing with the Ansche Chesed community, serving as Family Program Director and Education Director, while in school. In 2014, after receiving ordination from the Rabbinical School at JTS and completing a degree from its Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education, Ansche Chesed hired Rabbi Hammerman as Associate Rabbi.
"It has been the privilege of a lifetime to be your rabbi these past 12 years," she wrote in a letter to the community in February. "Cosi revaya - כוסי רויה - my cup overflows with gratitude."
In her work with the Ansche Chesed community, Rabbi Hammerman has welcomed our new babies, taught our B'nai Mitzvah students, joined us at the mikveh for our conversions, stood under the chuppah at our weddings, and sat Shiva with us. Her leadership brought our community through a pandemic, wars, and social upheaval, but she never wavered in sharing her joy of Judaism. We've learned with her in classes throughout the years, including Midrash classes, parenthood classes, and the TV Schmooze Club. We danced with her on Simchat Torah, partied with her at Purim, traveled to Israel with her, and spent countless hours in Shabbat Gym with her.
Rabbi Hammerman has loved creating dynamic Jewish learning experiences for students of all ages, from toddlers to older adults and spent over twelve years building a warm, strong, and engaged Jewish community here. We are forever grateful that Rabbi Hammerman and her husband Rabbi Josh Rabin allowed our community to share in their simchas, including the birth of their three children (Hannah, Shai, and Ella) and Hannah’s bat mitzvah last fall, and stand with them through family illness and death.
Join us on June 7th to express our gratitude for her extraordinary leadership, encouragement, and joy.