Meet our 2016-2017 ImmerseNYC Fellows
Rebecca Blady
Rebecca Blady is a second-year student at Yeshivat Maharat and a freelance digital media specialist. Prior to pursuing her rabbinic studies, Rebecca worked in documentary film production in Brooklyn and lived in Israel as a JDC Jewish Service Corps fellow. Rebecca teaches and writes on topics related to Jewish mindfulness, spirituality and physical health and is currently completing a 200-hour yoga teacher certification. A proud granddaughter of four lively and loving Holocaust survivors, Rebecca advocates for a united global Jewish narrative and every individual Jewish story. Her writing can be found at http://rebeccablady.wordpress.com.
Samantha Frank
Samantha Frank: is a Reform rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. She was born and raised in Silver Spring, MD, where her Jewish community nurtured the value of working together to create a more just world. Studying at Tufts University, she explored the ways in which individuals come together and empower one another to create sustainable, healthy communities. She looks forward to drawing upon the transformative waters of the mikveh and our collective personal wisdom to strengthen our New York City community and the world.
Emily Rogal
Emily Rogal is a rising senior at the New School majoring in Religious Studies with a concentration in women's spirituality and ritual development. She has a passion for creating and holding space for radical inclusivity in the Jewish community, and in particular enjoys looking at the embodiment of mikveh practice. Emily spends her summers at camp working as a Jewish educator making Torah and Jewish life accessible and fun. Her passions include ritual creation, body positivity, weird midrash, and pictures of French bulldogs. She is extremely excited to be a part of the ImmerseNYC team.
Elon Rov
Elon Rov is a recent New York transplant from the Bay Area, where he participated in the Urban Adamah Jewish farming fellowship and Bend the Arc's Jeremiah Fellowship. He lives in a Jewish socialist collective in Brooklyn, and on the side runs a small Judaica business called Shmutz + Bolts where he makes mezuzas and hamsas out of found scrap metal and hardware. You can find him wherever there is french toast and/or sunshine.
Mia Simring
Mia Simring is a recently ordained Conservative rabbi from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She focused on pastoral care and counseling and practiced chaplaincy at NYU Langone and Mount Sinai Hospitals. She is excited about the intersection between pastoral care, active listening and ritual experiences. Mia has organized a joint 17th of Tammuz Break Fast with the Malcolm Shabazz Masjid and has traveled to Senegal and Capitol Hill with American Jewish World Service. She is committed to deepening and broadening her communities. Her first immersion took place on a Jaffa beach, as part of a creative ritual for mourning. She lives with her husband Jimmy and children Nava and Aminadav in her hometown New York City.
