Cheryl Uram

Woman of Achievement
Merrick Jewish Centre

Since before her college days, Cheryl has been involved in Jewish life. She became a Bat Mitzvah at Valley Stream's Congregation Tree of Life in a time when this ceremony for girls was only just becoming acceptable to many traditional Jews. She went on her first trip to Israel during her college years with Junior Hadassah and Young Judea in 1967 and was lucky enough to be one of the first to see the Western Wall after Israel captured it during the Six-Day War. This trip solidified her connection to Israel, and later she spent a year on a kibbutz working and learning Hebrew, lived in Israel for three years with her young children, and goes to visit Israel often.

Cheryl is an avid traveler, having visited many exotic places, and hopes to keep that going forever. She is curious about other cultures and likes to travel among the people and mix with the locals. Aside from traveling the world, Cheryl is a believer in repairing the world and does so through many ecological outlets as well as energy outlets, such as reiki, in which she holds a master designation. She is a strong inclusion advocate and works within the framework of her synagogue to assure all are welcomed.

Cheryl is a committed feminist and fights for equal rights for women in all walks of life, especially in our Judaic practices. In her professional life Cheryl is a real estate agent, and she priorities helping people according to their needs, with an emphasis on solving even the most challenging of transactions.

Cheryl has been Sisterhood President intermittently for about 10 years and serves on numerous other committees. She joined Merrick Jewish Centre as a Merrick transplant in 2004 and knew that she wanted to be involved Jewishly and work towards creating community. From the first day she joined her Sisterhood, she volunteered wherever needed. The importance of women in creating Jewish community is her strongest motivator. She is always seeking to institute educational programs that will enhance women’s roles within the community, which is why she formed a Rosh Chodesh Circle four years ago. Cheryl continually seeks ways to increase her knowledge of Judaism and feels a great sense of responsibility toward Tikkun Olam. She believes that if each person does just one small act of kindness, it would all add up to many people participating in activities that repair the world!