Tali Bar-Gil lives in Israel and grew up in a loving multicultural family. She runs an organic social media marketing business and shares her home with her young son and (too many) rescue cats.
Sofía Friedman is a recent graduate of Tufts University with a double major in Middle Eastern Studies and Civic Studies and a minor in Social Justice Anthropology. She is published in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum library, and has self-published a number of poems and creative non-fiction pieces.
Diane Feen is a freelance journalist who has written features and news stories for newspapers, magazines, websites, businesses and blogs. She also wrote a popular humour column called, "Feen on the Scene" that won an award from the Society of Professional Journalists of South Florida.
Tania Hammer was born in Sydney Australia, emigrated to New York when she was 22, got married, had a child, moved around a bit until she found her footing in Far Rockaway after she got divorced. Although Tania doesn't have any academic degrees, her community activism should earn her a PHD. Thousands of Shabbat guests and singles groups could attest to this! Tania made Aliya in 2016 and now lives with her daughter Grace and her dog Milly in Jerusalem.
Naomi Levin is a communications professional, former sports and political reporter and was news editor of the Australian Jewish News from 2009-11. Naomi has been published in The Age, The Australian, The Herald Sun, ABC Online and many other publications. Naomi is currently chief operating office of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria.
Sharon Lowe is the Founder and President of The Social Blueprint, a Board Member of CCare, and former management consultant and Founder of Habitat Heroes. Sharon believes that by collaborating with other organisations we can strengthen our community.
Judy Lipson is the sole survivor of three sisters, losing her sister Jane in 1981 at age twenty-two in an automobile accident, and nine years later her sister Margie at age thirty- five after a twenty year battle with anorexia and bulimia. For thirty years Judy suppressed her grief and in 2011 founded Celebration of Sisters, an annual ice skating fundraiser to commemorate the lives and memories of her beloved sisters Margie and Jane to benefit Massachusetts General Hospital. Skating is a sport the Lipson sisters shared and brought Judy full circle back to her sisters.
Judy published articles for The Open to Hope Foundation, The Centering Organization, Grief Healing, and Love and Loss. Massachusetts General Hospital and SKATING Magazine featured numerous pieces on Judy’s philanthropic work. Judy has appeared as a guest on The Open To Hope, The Morning Glory, Surviving Sibling Loss, Where’s The Grief, Good Grief and U.S. Figure Skating Voices From The Ice Podcasts.
Her passion for figure skating secured the recipient of U.S. Figure Skating Association 2020 Get Up Award. Judy’s memoir, Celebration of Sisters: It Is Never Too Late To Grieve, released December 2021 by WriteLife Publishing. http://www.judylipson.org
Kerry Gonski is the Chair of the Australian Jewish Fertility Network (AJFN), a charity whose mission is to ensure that no Jewish Australian ever feels alone on their fertility journey and that finance is never a barrier to building a family. AJFN provides means tested financial grants towards fertility treatments and psychology services, peer-driven emotional support, as well as educational resources and advocacy work. If you or someone you know needs support, please reach out in the strictest of confidence at support@ajfn.org.au.