In this first installment of Our Faith Communities, WORT correspondent David Ahrens visited the Beth Israel Community Center on the Westside of Madison and met with Rabbi Betsy Forester.
Their discussion included excerpts of her sermon and questions on the qualities of the Jewish faith, the faithful Jew’s relationship with God and prayer. They also recorded parts of the prayers sung on the evening before the Sabbath.
Rabbi Betsy/ Rav Batya has spent her entire life deeply engaged in Jewish life, and became Beth Israel Center’s spiritual leader in 2018. She holds a degree in Hebrew and Semitic Studies and Communicative Disorders, with a certificate in Integrated Liberal Studies, from UW-Madison. She holds master’s degrees in Speech-Language Pathology from Northwestern University and in Jewish Professional Studies from Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership. She’s previously worked as Director of Jewish Life and Learning at Solomon Schechter Day School of Metropolitan Chicago, mentored Judaic Studies teachers, and worked as a speech-language pathologist.
Image courtesy Beth Israel Community Center.
