Our Rabbis & Cantor
Rabbi Mark Goldsmith
Rabbi Mark Goldsmith is Senior Rabbi at Edgware and Hendon Reform Synagogue. Before joining EHRS in 2019, Mark served Alyth Synagogue in Golders Green from his appointment as Principal Rabbi in 2006, Finchley Progressive Synagogue from 1999-2006 and Woodford Progressive Synagogue from 1996-1999. He gained Semichah (rabbinic ordination) from Leo Baeck College in London where he is now lecturer in Jewish Life Cycle and Homiletics. He was Chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis UK from 2011-2013 and Chair of the Rabbinic Conference of Liberal Judaism from 2004-2006.
Rabbi Debbie Young-Somers
Rabbi Debbie grew up down the road in Radlett, and attending RSY’s Shemesh every summer. She went to university as far away from a Jewish community as she could find, in Lancaster, where she majored in Religious Studies, focussing on Hinduism and Judaism. She ended up running the JSoc, setting up a 5 way dialogue society and half way through her studies realised what many others had suggested years before, that she wanted to be a Rabbi. After working as Student Fieldworker for RSGB, studying at The European Centre for Jewish Studies in Stockholm and working for the Council of Christians & Jews, she began her studies at Leo Baeck College, where today she is a lecturer on Religion and Dialogue. She is a regular broadcaster on Radio 2’s Pause For Thought, and frequent guest on BBC Radio London and BBC 3 Counties Radio (where she previously hosted the Sunday morning breakfast show). At the end of 2021 she became a trustee of Faith for the Climate working to empower faith communities in their work on climate change. She joined the EHRS clergy team in April of 2020.
Rabbi Tanya Sakhnovich
Rabbi Tanya was born in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. There in 1998 she attained her first BA&MA in the History of Art and Music and after teaching for two years at the State Pedagogical University of Minsk, she began her career working in various capacities for the World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) in Minsk, Moscow and the UK. After her graduation from Leo Baeck College in 2009 Rabbi Tanya served Nottingham Liberal Synagogue for 12 years and the Elstree Liberal Synagogue before joining EHRS in November 2022.
She is proud to be involved with Leo Baeck College as a coordinator of communities placement as well as teaching classes on practical rabbinics there. Rabbi Tanya is also a member of the World Union for Progressive Judaism Executive Board.
Rabbi Tanya is passionate about social justice, the environment and interfaith initiatives. She is a co-founder and a trustee of the Salaam-Shalom Kitchen Charity in Nottingham since 2015 and is a member of the EcoJudaims Rabbinic Team since 2020.
Rabbi Tanya served as a member of the Ethical Approval Committee at Nottingham University Pharmaceutical department from 2014-2021. She was the chaplain to Rampton Hospital from 2016 and became a member of the Nottingham Crown Court panel on domestic abuse and sexual violence the same year.
Rabbi Tanya was a regular contributor to “Thought for the Day” on BBC Radio Nottingham from 2016-2021 and from 2018-2021 – a regular contributor to the faith column in the Nottingham Post newspaper. She was a proud member of the Shrievalty panel in Nottingham from 2015-2021, which resulted in the appointment of the first Jewish High Sheriff of Nottingham in April of 2024.
Cantor Tamara Wolfson
Cantor Tamara gained s’michah (cantorial ordination) at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in 2018. She trained there for five years, a training which included much of learning which a Rabbi would undergo as well as the specialist training for a Cantor. Having gained s’michah Tamara moved right away to Britain from her native America to become Cantor at the Ark (Northwood and Pinner Liberal) Synagogue and the Kehillah North London Synagogue. She became Cantor at Alyth (North Western Reform) Synagogue in 2020 from where she joins us at EHRS from January 2024.
Cantor Tamara is our Music Director as well as our Cantor and will also fulfil many of the pastoral, service leading and teaching duties that our Rabbis fulfil, just as is the case with the ordained cantors of Finchley Reform and Sinai Leeds Reform Synagogues. She brings her deep expertise and enthusiasm for Jewish traditional and contemporary music to our Synagogue. Cantor Tamara is married to Rabbi Anna Wolfson and together they have son Jonah.
Rabbi Roberta Harris-Eckstein
Rabbi Roberta Harris-Eckstein joined the EHRS Rabbinic Team as an Interim Rabbi in 2020. Rabbi Roberta gained Semichah from Leo Baeck College in 2018 after her distinguished career as teacher of Bible, Hebrew and history. She is a specialist in pastoral care of the elderly.
Although she may not get too much time for hobbies these days, Roberta still teaches Biblical Hebrew, including for the Leo Baeck College Lehrhaus online. Her husband, Jeremy, is immensely supportive and has encouraged her right through the five years of rabbinic study.
Her main rabbinic work with EHRS was to ensure that our pastoral care is of excellent quality and responsiveness as well as accompanying our families in their life cycle events, especially bereavements. She brings her teaching to the community in adult education and in our services and shiurim.
Emeritus Rabbi Daniel Smith
Rabbi Daniel Smith was the Senior Minister at Edgware & Hendon Reform Synagogue (previously with Edgware & District Reform Synagogue since 1993). Daniel studied Philosophy and Psychology at Keele University and then qualified as a psychotherapist. He was the founding Chairman of the Raphael Centre – a Jewish counselling service.
Rabbi Smith retired in the Summer of 2019.
Emeritus Rabbi Steven Katz
Rabbi Steven Katz was ordained, by his father, Rabbi Dr. Arthur Katz, at a Leo Baeck College ceremony at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue in 1975. Later that year, he was inducted as Associate Rabbi at Hendon Reform Synagogue, again by his father. Soon after this, Dr Katz suffered a serious car accident and so, shortly after his ordination, Rabbi Steven undertook the burden of running the religious side of the synagogue single handed. Although doubtless traumatic, it obviously succeeded.
Rabbi Katz retired in early 2019.