Staff

Rabbi Asher Brander

Our indefatigable Founder and Dean, Rabbi Brander is also the full-time Rav of the Westwood Kehilla and a beloved Rebbe at Yula Boys High School. A native of Oak Park, Michigan, he studied at Yeshiva University (where he received his Bachelors, Masters and Semicha), Yeshivat Shaalvim, and the Gruss Kollel in Jerusalem before coming to Los Angeles in 1990.

While a member of YOLA’s Kollel (under Rabbi Nachum Sauer), he began his illustrious teaching career at YULA Boys and Girls High Schools. In 1994, he embarked upon his much beloved tenure at the Kehilla. Through teaching several classes every week, he has touched thousands of people with his deep compassion, intellectual brilliance, and spiritual warmth. Recently, Rabbi Brander has begun publishing “Reflections” on the Parsha and life, which goes out to several thousands of people weekly – something that brings him great nachas ruach.

Since LINK’s inception in 2002, Rabbi Brander has guided the Kollel’s development; from recruiting the original team of scholars from Israel to shaping its vision and opening its doors to the LA Jewish community and beyond. Most impressively, he has created a very broad and diverse donor base that has proved to be durable and resilient, expanding to meet the burgeoning needs of the Kollel.

Mrs. Batyah Brander

A native of Queens, NY, attended local Yeshivos and studied at Machon Gold Seminary in Jerusalem before earning an Engineering Degree from Cooper Union College in NY. In LA, she has taught both secular and Torah subjects at YULA Girls High School as well as serving as Assistant Principal at Ohr HaEmet Girls High School. Currently, she is a Torah teacher at YULA whose approachability and brilliance makes her incredibly beloved by her students.

In her “spare time,” she leads the YULA Girls Choir as they are on the verge of producing a CD, designed and organized several innovative outreach learning programs for young children and their parents, created and “starred” in the very popular Shalom Time – Borders Books monthly children’s puppet shows. Mrs. Brander has won plaudits for her penetrating analysis of Tanach in her women’s classes at the Westwood Kehilla, LINK and YULA. In between all, she and her husband have raised three wonderful children.

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Rabbi Mordechai Lebhar

In his tenure time here as our Rosh Kollel, Rabbi Lebhar has made a profound impact. His enthusiasm for learning has invigorated our morning and afternoon intra-Kollel learning and his expertise and fluency in Talmud and contemporary halacha have raised the bar for all of us. In addition, his high-level classes all around LA have raised considerably LINK’s profile as a true community-wide Kollel. Rabbi Lebhar’s charming personality as well as warm wit has won him many admirers in both the Sephardic and Ashkenazic communities.

A native of Montreal from Moroccan ancestry – Rabbi Lebhar is one of the unique young Talmidei Chachamim who are equally fluent in Sephardic and Ashkenazic halachic traditions. (It doesn’t hurt that he speaks 5 languages, including Yiddish and Farsi!) After studying at the Chicago Telshe Yeshiva, Rabbi Lebhar spent 10 years learning at the feet of some of Israel’s most illustrious sages, especially, Rabbi Tzvi Kushelevsky and Rabbi Azriel Auerbach. In addition, he has had tutelage from several leading Poskim (halachic authorities) in Jerusalem. Before coming to LINK, he was a very popular Halacha teacher at Shapells/ Yeshiva Darche Noam and headed a night Kollel for professionals in Har Nof. He is the author of 3 full-length halachic works as well as seven monographs on various applications of Jewish Law and Prayer.

Mrs. Lori Lebhar, a native of Highland Park, NJ, moved with her family to Israel at age 13. She has a Degree in Psychology from Thomas Edison University. In Jerusalem, she taught in an early intervention learning center for children with developmental and learning disabilities, helping them to “mainstream”. Her warmth and graciousness have endeared her to all. She has allowed her husband to devote so much of his time to learning, teaching and writing while taking over most of the responsibilities for raising their six wonderful children.

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Rabbi Eli Stern

A veteran of nearly 23 years in Rabbinic and Outreach work, Rabbi Eli Stern is the senior member of the LINK team. His broad experience in many areas has allowed him to be a key resource for the other members of the team as well as for his many students. His irrepressible wit combined with an uncanny ability to connect Torah ideas to contemporary events makes his classes especially appealing. Whether to searching people with limited backgrounds or those who have been observant for many years, Rabbi Stern has a well-earned reputation in counseling and guiding Jews with keen insight and compassion. A gifted writer and speaker, he is an eloquent communicator of timeless Torah values in the contemporary idiom.

A native of Manhattan, Rabbi Stern began his Yeshiva learning after graduating with a degree in Political Science from Hunter College of CUNY. After 2 years in Ohr Somayach in Jerusalem, he studied for 7 years at the Yeshiva of Staten Island, under Rabbi Reuvain Feinstein. He has held outreach and/ or pulpit positions in Buffalo, Richmond and Dayton before coming to LA in 1996 to become Ashreinu’s pioneering campus Rabbi (JAM). He laid the ground work for much of LINK’s outreach mission while serving as Outreach Director and Associate Rabbi of the Westwood Kehilla from 1997-2002. He still keeps up with many of his relationships while forging new links with interested students.

Mrs. Robin Stern, a native of Richmond, VA, has been a full partner with her husband in all of his Torah endeavors. She attended Touro College in New York and served as an advisor to NCSY for many years. She has taught formal and informal Jewish learning to students of all ages as well as English, Science and Maths in Yeshivos on both coasts. For 11 years, she had been a mainstay in the Toras Emes secular studies department. Now, she teaches math and science to junior high school girls at Bais Tzivia (the Girls Cheder). In addition, she is the beloved “Morah Robin” at “Bubbies’ House” pre-school here in Westwood. Her warmth as a tutor and as a Shabbos “hostess with the mostess” has attracted dozens of women to the path of Torah. While making this all look easy, she has found the time to raise a beautiful family of six children.

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Rabbi Daniel Weinstock

If we had to identify the neshomah (soul) of the Kollel it would have to be Rabbi Daniel Weinstock. His passion for learning and teaching touch all areas of his life. From his heartfelt and uplifting tefillos (prayers), to his uncompromising zeal to understand and internalize the Dvar Hashem (word of G-d) – he has a profound impact on so many people. Whether directly as a teacher or through osmosis, Rabbi Weinstock has been that ideal yardstick by which others have measured their spiritual growth.

Thus it’s not by accident that it is Rabbi Weinstock who awakens the dawn each morning at 5:30 am. First with teachings of mussar and then with intellectually challenging Gemara classes. The 18 or so members of the exclusive “Gemara In Your Kup” club are literally pulled out of their slumber by the dynamo of Torah excitement called Rabbi Weinstock. That same energy is evident some 14 hours later in his advanced Talmud class each night-undiminished by a full day of intense intra-kollel learning and private tutorials.

Rabbi Weinstock is a native of Brooklyn, NY. After attending Yeshivas Torah Temimah in Brooklyn, MIR in Jerusalem and Ner Yisrael in Baltimore, he spent five intensive years at the famed Beis Medrash Gevohah in Lakewood. Along the way, he joined the Westwood Kehilla for an unforgettable SEED program in the summer of 2001. His passionate shiurim, earnest friendship and stirring guitar playing made an indelible imprint on the entire community.

During that busy summer, Rabbi Weinstock stole away a few minutes to be introduced to his future wife, Tally (nee Brenner). Mrs. Weinstock, a native Angelino, studied at the Bnos Chava Seminary in Jerusalem. She is currently working as a Speech Therapist. As a tutor and beautiful role model for women of all ages Mrs. Weinstock exudes a true warmth and accessibility. The Weinstocks are the proud parents of four wonderful children.

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Mrs. Sarah Gertel

Mrs. Sarah Gertel is the Program Director of TLC (Torah Learning for Collegiates), LINK’s college women’s learning and outreach program. In Mrs. Gertel’s tenure, she has expanded the program from the Tuesday night class structure to a comprehensive, award-winning organization that assists girls in all aspects of their development.

The program focuses on providing inspiring classes with amazing teachers in a “happening” social setting, mentoring where girls get the one-on-one guidance they need, special events both social and religious, opportunities to learn in Israel, all in a laid-back atmosphere where the girls build relationships and forge friendships.

Mrs. Gertel has been involved in the field of outreach for the past twelve years. Post high school/seminary, Mrs. Gertel did college campus kiruv and recruiting for JAM/Ashreinu in Los Angeles, CA. After which, she moved to Israel and worked for Aish Hatorah’s JEWEL program doing one-on-one mentoring, educational programming and fundraising. She then worked for Heritage House where she single-handedly produced and directed an overseas-abroad outreach program at Hebrew University Har Hatzofim, Jerusalem.

Although they greatly miss living in Eretz Yisroel, together with her husband Dr. Yehuda Gertel, clinical psychologist and darling daughter Raina, Mrs. Gertel is grateful to be living in sunny California where a bike ride along the ocean with some TLC girls is just a quick car ride away. A true lover of nature, Sarah Gertel enjoys hiking, picnicking, boating (floating 2 miles an hour down rivers and streams in her two-person blow-up boat, the S.S. Gertel, to be exact) and playing her guitar alongside just about any place with a few trees and a trickle of fresh running water.

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Rabbi Ariel Ovadia

Few Rabbis at such a young age have seen more of the world (or more of the Talmud) than Rabbi Ariel Ovadia. Born in Israel, he followed his well-known father, Rabbi Chaim Ovadia, around the Sephardic Jewish world to Bogotá , Colombia, back to Israel, to Deal, NJ, Brooklyn, NY and finally here to LA. Along the way, besides imbibing a host of experience (and scholarship), he studied in the Yeshiva of Staten Island, Yeshiva Gedolah of LA and Chevron Yeshiva in Israel. Rabbi Ovadia completed his first journey through Shas (the entire Talmud) at age 18 and has already begun to share that wisdom with students at LINK. For good measure, he is also a Chazzan, Baal Koray, accomplished musician (plays 10 different instruments – but not at one time!) and is fluent in Arabic, Yiddish and Hebrew.

Mrs. Esther Ovadia (nee Navaro) is a native New Yorker who studied at Bais Yaakov of Borough Park and BYA Seminary in Jerusalem, as well as Maalot here in LA. She has served as Youth Director for Kahal Joseph Congregation as well as teaching at Bnos Devorah High School. She currently teaches at Harkham Hillel Academy. She and her husband are the proud parents of their daughter Orly Leah. We look forward to her sharing some of that Torah with the women of LINK.

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Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Haber

We are pleased to welcome Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Haber to LINK. A native of Buffalo, NY, Rabbi Haber has traversed the globe from Melbourne to Monsey. He spent many years learning in Yeshiva Ohr Hameir of Peekskill, and studied at the famed Yeshivas of Mir and Rav Dovid Soloveitchik in Jerusalem. He then continued on to Lakewood and married Suzanne Schor, a native Angelino. Rabbi Haber then moved over to Mesivta Tifereth Jerusalem from where he has received Semicha and had the privilege of studying under the tutelage of Harav David Feinstein Shlit”a. Rabbi and Mrs. Haber have joined the Westwood community with their three children.

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