Loren Monosov - Rabbi
Rabbi Loren Monosov joined the Temple Emanuel of the Pascack Valley synagogue family as our Rabbi in July 2016. Prior to assuming this role, Rabbi Monosov was the Assistant Rabbi of the Westchester Jewish Center in Mamaroneck, NY for the past six years. She earned a B.A. in Judaic Studies and Psychology from The George Washington University and received her Rabbinic Ordination and Masters with a focus in Pastoral Care from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS). While studying at JTS, Rabbi Monosov was the rabbinic intern at the Westchester Jewish Center and the Legacy Heritage Rabbinic Fellow at Shaaray Torah in Canton, OH, where she served as the community’s rabbi. Committed to pastoral care, she served as a chaplain intern at Bellevue Hospital and Jewish Home Lifecare. Dedicated to educating learners of all ages, Rabbi Monosov has been part of the teaching staff of the Westchester Jewish Center, Ramah Nyack Day Camp, and the Ivry Prozdor Hebrew High School of the Jewish Theological Seminary. She also taught a variety of Adult Education classes at the Westchester Jewish Center.
Rabbi Monosov is deeply committed to serving the spiritual, pastoral, educational, and programmatic needs of contemporary Conservative synagogues, forming deep connections and traveling life’s journeys with congregants. She is a dedicated teacher creating portals of connection to Judaism for learners of all ages and backgrounds. Rabbi Monosov strives to foster a warm and welcoming synagogue community that nourishes the souls and minds of those who enter. She and her husband Jeremy are the proud parents of daughters Hannah Rebecca and Yael Keren.
Alan Sokoloff - Hazzan
Hazzan Alan Sokoloff grew up in Sharon, Massachusetts. At Temple Israel of Sharon, he was a protégé of Cantor Harold Lew, who inspired him to pursue a career in the cantorate. After college, he continued his cantorial studies with Master Hazzan David Bagley in Toronto. Upon becoming a member of the Cantors Assembly in 1990, Cantor Sokoloff assumed positions in Albany, New York and Des Moines, Iowa.
From 2000 to the summer of 2014, he served with distinction as Hazzan of the Westchester Jewish Center in Mamaroneck, New York. He has prepared over eighteen hundred Bnai Mitzvah students throughout his career and thoroughly enjoys teaching and sharing his knowledge and skills with students, both young and old alike. He taught at Solomon Schechter School of Westchester for twelve years and continues to volunteer in the school community, leading tefilah and providing inspiration and guidance to his many students.
Cantor Sokoloff is an active member of the Cantors Assembly and a founding member of Kol Hazzanim: The Westchester Board of Cantors. To further serve the spiritual needs of his community, Cantor Sokoloff has been studying and preparing to become a Rabbi. He received his rabbinical diploma and was ordained in July 2015. He and his wife Erica are the proud parents of Arielle and Ranan.
Mark Biddelman - Cantor Emeritus
Mark Biddelman led Temple Emanuel in prayer, song and study for 48 years.
A New Jersey native, he has been conducting services and singing for Jewish organizations since the age of seven. He attended Carnegie Institute of Technology and is a graduate of the Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion School of Sacred Music from which he received his Investiture, Cantorial Certification and Bachelor of Sacred Music degree. The college also awarded him the degree of Doctor of Music honorous causum. Cantor Biddelman is certified as a Hebrew school and music teacher by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and the New York Federation of Synagogues.
Throughout the years, Cantor Biddelman has been a musical innovator and has composed numerous musical settings for the Shabbat prayers. In 1971 he composed the first folk-rock service for Shabbat Eve ever to be performed in a Conservative synagogue. Music from this service has become part of the contemporary Jewish Synagogue liturgical repertoire and is being sung in synagogues throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 1991 he composed another setting for the Friday eve service scored for electronic instruments. In addition, he has written other original compositions of Jewish content and his settings of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah blessings were published in the official Life Cycle Handbook of the American Conference of Cantors.
Cantor Biddelman has appeared as guest cantor at congregations throughout the metropolitan area, conducted services in Israel and appeared on radio and TV. He has also been the recipient of several awards including B’nai B’rith Man of the Year in 1990 and the Israel Bonds Sh’ma Yisrael Award in 1988. In 1994 he was inducted as an honorary Fellow of the Jewish Theological Seminary. He is a past Executive Vice President, President, Vice President and Secretary of the New Jersey region of the Cantors Assembly, and has served as a conductor of the New Jersey Cantors Choral Ensemble, the world’s very first choir of both men and women cantors.
During his tenure at Temple Emanuel, Cantor Biddelman has prepared over 2,000 youngsters for Bar and Bat Mitzvah and prepared dozens of children and adults to conduct daily and High Holiday services. He continues to present concerts and programs and conducts services for senior citizens at facilities throughout northern New Jersey. Cantor Biddelman and his wife Bette, a craftswoman, are active members of the Jewish community and the community at large. His daughter Terra, also a craftswoman, and his grandson Elijah live in Austin, Texas.
