EVERYTHING DERIVES FROM WOMAN: Midrash Genesis Rabbah 17  Dorit was born in Haifa, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor from an Orthodox background and an American Jew raised in the Reform movement.  When she was three, the family moved to Long Island, where she attended North Shore Synagogue, a Reform congregation.  Dorit recalls that Judaism, in her family, meant a strong connection to Israel and to Jewish history and traditions; there was less focus on religious observance.

In 1991, Dorit married Neil who had been raised in the Conservative movement.  In 1998, their first child, Sam, age 4, tried out the Shomrei Torah Sunday School and liked it.  A few years later, Hannah followed Sam through Hebrew School. Currently their youngest children, Noah and Leah, attend our Hebrew School.

For a few years, Dorit found little time to "get involved" in anything, including Shomrei Torah, as she juggled four young kids and a developing career.  But Sam's Bar Mitzvah in 2007 proved to be a turning point.  Dorit recalls it was a beautiful day, full of pride, love and accomplishment.  But she also remembers feeling that, although she had been a member for a few years, she did not really know the people who had helped make that day possible – the Shomrei Torah "family".  In some ways, she says, she felt like she was a guest (a welcome guest, but still a guest) at her own synagogue.

So, in 2009, when asked to join the Synagogue Leadership Institute Year 2 Team, Dorit realized it was time to get involved – and one of her goals was to get to know other members while "giving back" to the synagogue.  She recalls, happily, it was a success!  She later served as a Co-Chair of the Education Committee and a member of the Personnel Committee.  Dorit currently serves on the Board of Trustees and chairs the Education Committee.  She is very fond of Shomrei Torah's slogan, created during an SLI meeting - "Celebrating tradition, embracing the future" - because she believes it captures what we should be doing every day at Shomrei Torah:  teaching our kids - our future - about our rich traditions and history, and keeping those traditions vibrant and meaningful.

Dorit is very proud of her children.  Her oldest, Sam, loves being a freshman at Brandeis University.  Hannah is an avid reader, an honors student at Wayne Valley and a member of the fencing team.  Noah and Leah, in the fourth grade and third grade, enjoy school, friends, family, and participating in our Chaverim youth group.  When Shomrei Torah recently hosted families through Family Promise, Dorit, Hannah, Noah and Leah enjoyed the time they spent together with the families.

Professionally, in 1996, after serving as a judicial clerk to Associate Justice Gary S. Stein of the New Jersey Supreme Court, Dorit joined the firm of Wolff & Samson PC, in West Orange.  In 2010 she became a partner.  Over the past 15 years, she has provided legal advice in connection with billions of dollars in public finance transactions for projects involving schools, transportation, health care facilities, and housing.  Her department was recognized as a leading public finance practice in 2011 and 2012, according to reports published by the New Jersey Law Journal.

Juggling multiple responsibilities seems to be Dorit's calling.  Right now, she is also class mom for Noah's fourth grade class.  And while at Fordham Law, Dorit served as Editor-in-Chief of the Fordham Law Review at the same time that she and Neil decided to start a family –so that Neil would have "someone to spend time with if she worked late."  And a number of years ago, while on maternity leave, she co-authored a book with Neil, Stack and Sway:  the New Science of Jury Consulting.

Dorit credits her parents with instilling in her a strong commitment to Judaism, service, and family, as well as a strong work ethic; she hopes that she is instilling similar values in her children.  Dorit is delighted to be a part of the Shomrei Torah family and is thankful for having been given the opportunities to "get involved" – and for having been inspired by so many other wonderful volunteers.
Where one truly wishes to go, their feet will manage to take them. Talmud: Sukkah 53a