Clergy and Staff

Our Clergy

Senior Clergy

Rabbi Jill Perlman
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Rabbi Jill Perlman joined the Temple Isaiah, Lafayette community as Senior Rabbi on July 1, 2019 after serving as Associate Rabbi for Temple Isaiah in Lexington, Mass. She feels blessed to share her love of Judaism with individuals and families of all ages. She grew up in Worcester, MA and attended Brandeis University, both as an undergraduate and as a graduate student. After receiving her B.A. in English and American Literature and completing programs in Education and Women’s Studies, she went on to pursue a three-year joint-Master’s degree program in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies and Jewish Communal Service with a concentration in Jewish Education. Rabbi Perlman received a M.A. in Hebrew Literature in 2009 and rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City in 2010. As a student rabbi, Rabbi Perlman served the Reform Temple of Forest Hills, NY; Temple Beth El of Chappaqua, NY, and Temple Tikvah of New Hyde Park, NY and completed extensive training in pastoral counseling at Massachusetts General Hospital. While serving Temple Isaiah in Lexington, Mass., Rabbi Perlman served as the President of the Boston Area Reform Rabbis and as the President of the Lexington Interfaith Clergy Association. She is a Tisch Fellow, which identifies and supports transformational rabbis; a Brickner Fellow, which empowers rabbis as social justice leaders; and an AJWS (American Jewish World Service) Rabbinic Fellow, which supports rabbis in effectively honing their voice and power to advocate for global human rights. Rabbi Perlman currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Northern California Board of Rabbis and on the Steering Committee for Clergy for Reproductive Freedom. Rabbi Jill Perlman is passionate about bringing the eternal lessons of our tradition into our world: compassion, repair, and justice. She is also particularly passionate about the work of creating intimate communities where we can all feel seen, heard, and known. Rabbi Perlman lives in Moraga with her husband, Jeff, an attorney and their three children, Lev, Eli, and Maya.

Cantor Leigh Korn
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Cantor Leigh Korn joined the clergy team at Temple Isaiah in 2005 and senior clergy team in 2016. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of the Pacific Conservatory of Music in bassoon performance and a Master’s degree in choral conducting from the University of Iowa. While studying in Israel, he worked with Tzi’im, a choir of disabled adults, which included preparing them for a performance at the K’nesset. Cantor Korn has served pulpits in Washington Township, NJ and Falls Church, VA. In 2004, he earned a Masters of Sacred Music degree from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion School of Sacred Music, and in 2005, became ordained as cantor. He conducted the Delegates’ Choir at the Union for Reform Judaism Biennial Convention in 2009 in Toronto, in 2017 in Boston, and in 2019 in Chicago, and co-led services in 2015 in Orlando. In 2010, Cantor Korn was one of 20 cantors invited to sing at the Vatican for an historic concert as a part of a conference on Jewish-Catholic Dialogue. Cantor Korn also serves on the board of the American Conference of Cantors and received the ACC President’s Award. Cantor Leigh Korn lives in Oakland with his husband Brian Nagel.

Clergy

Rabbi Alissa Miller, Rabbi of Community Engagement
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Rabbi Alissa Miller joined the clergy of Temple Isaiah after being ordained from the Los Angeles campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in May 2007. In addition to other rabbinic duties, she oversees our vibrant programs for youth, teens and young families, directing Noar Night (our teen school) and Camp Kefli, and coordinating our Kulanu “youth group style” family programs. In 2017 she received the Covenant Foundation’s Pomegranate Prize as a rising leader in the field of Jewish education. Growing up in Denver, Colorado, Rabbi Miller was active in her local and regional NFTY youth group and spent many summers at Shwayder Camp, a Jewish overnight camp in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. She attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison, earning a BA in Sociology and minor in Jewish studies and spent her junior year of college at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Upon graduating, she came to Temple Isaiah where she served as the Assistant Youth Director and Administrative Assistant for the Education Department (1999-2001). During rabbinical school, Rabbi Miller served as a student rabbi in Aiken, SC and Worcester, MA and was the rabbinic intern at Congregation Or Ami in Calabasas, CA. Rabbi Miller also earned her Master of Arts in Jewish Education at HUC-JIR in May 2005. Rabbi Miller is married to Dan Miller and they have two children, Leo and Jake.

Rabbi Nicki Greninger, Rabbi of Lifelong Learning
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Rabbi Nicki Greninger was born and raised in Denver, Colorado and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Human Development and Teaching. She was ordained as a Rabbi in 2008 from the New York campus of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR), where she also earned a Masters of Arts in Religious Education.  Rabbi Greninger is especially passionate about liturgy, prayer, and ritual, and her article “Believing, Behaving, Belonging: Tefillah Education in the 21st Century” in the Journal of Jewish Education is used in Jewish education classes throughout the country. Rabbi Greninger was a 2012 recipient of the prestigious Pomegranate Prize by the Covenant Foundation and she was a Wexner Field Fellow from 2019-2022. Rabbi Greninger serves as the Northern California coordinator of the Women’s Rabbinic Network (WRN), the Co-Chair of the Ethics Task Force for the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), and she is a co-founder of #onwardHebrew. She also teaches occasional courses at HUC-JIR as an adjunct faculty member. Rabbi Greninger is married to Dr. Daniel Greninger, and they have three children.

Clergy Emeritus

Rabbi Emeritus Roberto D. Graetz
Rabbi Emeritus Roberto D. Graetz has a long history of service in the Jewish community.  After 20 years of service to the Jewish community of South America, he returned to the United States in 1991 to assume the position as Senior Rabbi at Temple Isaiah, Lafayette, CA. He is a past President of Contra Costa Interfaith Housing, a coalition of faith communities working in the area of Affordable Housing with Supportive Services, past President of the Pacific Central West Region of the World Union for Progressive Judaism [WUPJ] and past President of The Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis.  He continues to serve in the Advisory Boards of Rabbis for Human Rights and T’ruah, a Jewish voice for Justice and on CCIH’s Board of Directors. He chairs Yad B’Yad, the organization that galvanizes friends of Latin American Progressive Jews in the United States. A native of Argentina, Rabbi Graetz studied at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, Ohio where he was ordained in 1972. Prior to being appointed the Senior Rabbi at Temple Isaiah in Lafayette, CA in 1991, he served as the Senior Rabbi of the Associacao Religiosa Israelita (ARI), Rio de Janeiro’s largest Reform congregation, from 1980 to 1991, and Congregation Emanu-El in Buenos Aires. He received his Doctor of Divinity from HUC-JIR in 1997. In Argentina during the Dirty War Graetz was one of the founders of the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights; in Rio de Janeiro he was active in the Street Children Movement and inter-faith dialogue. He became one of the leaders of the emerging multi-faith coalition to fight homelessness and hunger in Contra Costa County. Rabbi Graetz retired from Temple Isaiah in 2016 after serving the congregation as co-senior rabbis with Rabbi Judy Shanks for twenty-five years. Rabbi Graetz and his wife, Evelyn, have three daughters, Deborah, Ilana, and Sharon and four grandchildren.

Rabbi Emerita Judy Shanks
Rabbi Emerita Judy Shanks is a native of Phoenix, Arizona, where she grew up in a Reform synagogue and participated actively in her local and regional Youth Groups. She earned her B.A. degree in Religion, graduating with high honors from Pomona College in Claremont, California in 1977. After college she served as the Director of the summer Day Camp at the Jewish Community Center in Walnut Creek, CA. In 1979 she entered Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, first in Jerusalem and then in New York City. She earned her Master’s Degree and was ordained as Rabbi in 1984. From 1984 - 1991 Rabbi Shanks served Temple Beth Hillel in Richmond, California. The following year she taught Jewish Studies at the University of San Francisco and then joined the clergy team at Temple Isaiah in the Fall of 1992. Rabbi Shanks has a special interest in the study and teaching of Mussar, Jewish feminist studies, the development of new rituals for life cycle events, liturgical poetry and modern Hebrew literature. Rabbi Shanks retired in 2018 after serving the congregation as Associate, Co-Senior and Senior Rabbi for twenty-six years. She is the wife of Dr. James Gracer, the mother of Talia (Todd Ryan) and Mira (Zach Schlossberg), and the grandmother of JB, Lev, Elliana, and Henry.

Rabbi Emeritus Shelley Waldenberg
Ordained in 1962 at HUC-JIR, Rabbi Emeritus Shelley Waldenberg served as a chaplain with the U.S. Army at Fort Riley, Kansas and then in Wurzburg, Germany. After military service he became rabbi at Temple Beth El in Windsor, Ontario, from 1964 to 1968, A fellowship led to a teaching position at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem from 1968 to 1971.  In 1972, he became rabbi at Temple Isaiah in Lafayette, where he served until 1991. Among the programs he helped to establish included: the family school; havurot; a para-rabbinic program; protest rallies at the Soviet Consulate in San Francisco;  and an outreach program to intermarried couples. Upon retirement, Rabbi Shelley went on to teach Jewish Studies at Holy Names University from 1995 to 2011, and became principal educator of the American Jewish Committee’s Catholic-Jewish Educational Enrichment Program, seeking to build bridges of understanding and trust between jews and catholics at catholic high schools throughout the Bay Area. He also volunteers to help young people at juvenile hall in San Leandro to write a new chapter in their lives. He is an accomplished painter with works available to view online at https://temple-isaiah.org/community/art-exhibitions/

Senior Staff

Deb Kirsch
Executive Director
(925) 283-8575, ext. 301
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Debbie Kirsch joined Temple Isaiah as Executive Director in 2015. She had previously served a similar position in a small synagogue in the Boston area. She grew up in the Boston suburbs and graduated with a degree in Psychology from Boston University. An accomplished equestrienne, she competed in Three-Day Eventing among other disciples, trained horses and taught riding. She previously ran several small businesses including her horse farm, and gained extensive experience in accounting, business practices, technology, and education. She served as the Treasurer and sits on the Board of Governors of the United States Pony Clubs, a 10,000 member organization. She and her husband Stu have three children, Jason, Rina, and Brian, and live in an equestrian community on the slope of Mt. Diablo in Clayton, California.


Jen Boxerman
Philanthropy Director
(925) 283-8575, ext. 310
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Jen Boxerman joined the Temple Isaiah staff in 2012 as Communications Director, 2015 as Communications and Philanthropy Director and 2023 as Philanthropy Director. She is passionate about building a Culture of Philanthropy through meaningful charitable giving. Jen is from Santa Maria, CA and Missoula, MT and has a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Oregon and Master’s in Nonprofit Administration from the University of San Francisco. She spent her summers at Camp Alonim and was on year-round staff at Camp Tawonga, where she met her husband. Jen has worked in arts administration for Traveling Jewish Theatre, San Francisco Performances, and Zeum. Prior to Temple Isaiah, she spent five years as Events and Sales Manager for Lyric Opera’s historic theater in Chicago, where she was a finalist for BizBash Venue Manager of the Year. She is a Gryffindor and has run a Harry Potter convention and several wizard rock music festivals. Jen Boxerman lives in Lafayette with her husband Dr. Jonathan Boxerman and their two children.


Courtney Ludlow
Director of Early Childhood Education
(925) 284-8453
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Courtney Ludlow joined Temple Isaiah as Director of Early Childhood Education in 2021. She is a Bay Area native and grew up in the East Bay. She has worked in early childhood for 10 years and has previous experience as a camp counselor, mentor teacher, infant-toddler teacher and site supervisor. She has a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and is passionate about supporting children at a young age to set the foundation for their educational careers. Working as the director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Isaiah has given her the opportunity to share her passion and knowledge in the field and collaborate with parents and educators to create a comprehensive program for young children temple wide. In her free time, Courtney enjoys traveling, exploring nature through walks and hikes, and socializing with friends.

Rebecca Norton
Communications Director
(925) 284-8453
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In 2023, Temple Isaiah welcomed Rebecca as the new Communications Director. A native of Los Angeles and a graduate of California State University, Chico, she brings over 6 years of expertise in digital marketing, communications, and within the data analytics field. Beyond her professional prowess, Rebecca’s passions include playing the electric guitar and electric ukulele, writing songs, takes strolls with her canine companion Penny, exploring the Bay Area to build her record collection, and finding tranquility in various shaded nooks in parks. Whether it is uncovering unique board games with her partner, discovering the best karaoke songs from the ‘50s to now, or any calendar-related inquiries, Rebecca is your go-to source!

Admin and Program Staff

Shirelle Cobbs
Receptionist
(925) 283-8575
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Shirelle Cobbs joined Temple Isaiah as receptionist in 2022. She has worked in customer service for over 20 years. She enjoys interacting with people and greeting them with a warm smile. She is a loving mother of three and they are her pride and joy. During her free time she loves music, praise dancing, and traveling. She enjoys party planning, décor, and spending lots of time with family. She’s a creative person and loves fashion. She had the honor to dance at the Oscar Grant Foundation Vigil for the legacy of Oscar Grant III, a memorable event exploring the topic of “A Call to Action and Accountability from Community.”

Marsha Anderson
Membership Coordinator
(925) 283-8575
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Marsha Anderson has two roles at Temple Isaiah, membership coordinator and preschool teacher. Her love of children led her to Early Childhood Education and she teaches at Gan Ilan. Marsha will receive her Masters in ECE in May, 2023. Prior to that, she helped pilot the Omanut art class for JQuest. Her favorite part of both jobs is connecting with families and helping them find their place within the Temple Isaiah community. Marsha’s background is in Graphic Design and she often helps create publications for Temple events. Crafting, ceramics, and jewelry making are her latest hobbies. Marsha has two grown sons who live together in San Diego.

Katana Collado
Clergy Executive Assistant
(925) 283-8575
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Katana Collado joined Temple Isaiah in 2019 as the receptionist and was promoted to Clergy Assistant in 2021. She was born and raised in the bay area and received a degree in Economics and Film Studies from Pace University. She oversees the clergy team’s calendar and works closely with B’nai Mitzvah families, scheduling every step of that two-year journey. Katana is very knowledgeable about filmmaking and usually puts together videos or slideshows shown at special shabbats. Outside of work you can often find Katana traveling, editing videos, or taking her dog Batman out on long walks.

Daniella Forney
Assistant Director of Education and Youth
(925) 284-9191
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Daniella wears many hats at Temple Isaiah. You may see her in the halls during JQuest, training the Avodah TA’s or teaching 8th grade at Noar Night. Daniella graduated from Clark University with a degree in Economics and Business Management. After spending some time traveling and teaching English classes in China, Daniella worked as a business consultant with a specialty in organizational efficiency. Daniella has been an active volunteer in her local community, has held board positions at East Bay public and private schools, and serves on the board of Jewish LearningWorks. A native of Moraga, Daniella currently resides in Berkeley with her family. In her free time, Daniella can likely be found painting, cake decorating, or scrapbooking.

Vera Gordon
ECE Administrative Coordinator
(925) 284-8453
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Vera joined Temple Isaiah as our ECE Administrative Coordinator in 2022. She has worked in early childhood settings for about 10 years. She has combined experience in administrative support roles as well as on the floor in classrooms. She has worked for Spectrum Center, Bright Horizons, and George Miller, supporting children with varying abilities. Vera has experience working with people across the lifespan (babies- adults) supporting their varying abilities 1:1 and in group settings. When Vera is not at work she enjoys music and performing arts this is something she’s loved since middle school! In addition to her many years of experience in early childhood and other administrative roles, she is also a licensed cosmetologist. Vera is originally from Texas and those who know her from there always call her by her first and middle name; Vera Rose. Vera is looking forward to continuing to get to know the Gan Ilan and Temple Isaiah community and is excited to join as the administrative coordinator.

Fionna Kuniyoshi
Rental Events Coordinator
(925) 283-8575
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Fionna grew up in San Diego, CA and is the oldest of three children. She was an avid equestrian showing saddlebred horses during her youth. After obtaining a BA from the University of Wisconsin she returned to San Diego for a career in hospitality and management. Eventually moving to Ohau, Hawaii to enjoy living the island lifestyle of eating shave ice, swimming with honu and humuhumunukunukuāpua’a (Hawaii’s state fish) for eight years. Traveling is her therapy and when time permits will often explore the planet with her three children who equally love visiting foreign countries to see new wonders while discovering tasty new foods. She would love hearing recommendations for where to adventure next!

Jacob Friedman
Youth Director
(925) 283-8575 ext. 331
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He has been involved in Jewish education for several years and has worked as a song leader at Jewish camps and in Jewish communities all over the country. Jacob graduated from Indiana University – Bloomington with degrees in Jewish Studies and Sociology. In addition to his work at Temple Isaiah, Jacob is also a Moishe House resident, and puts on all kinds programming for Jewish young adults in Contra Costa County in his home. Jacob is passionate about getting out in nature and being silly, and his favorite shows are all about animated characters saving the world through the power of music and friendship.

Joy Plummer
Assistant Director of Programming and Community Engagement
(925) 283-8575
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Joy joined Temple Isaiah in 2023. Prior to joining Temple Isaiah’s engagement team, she worked in the food world for more than ten years while raising her family. Joy received her BA in philosophy in 2002 from California State University, Fresno, and proceeded to work in philanthropy for the Jewish world, first at the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund and then at Jewish Family & Children’s Services of the East Bay. Joy and her husband Eric live in Livermore with their three children, and are active at Congregation Beth Emek, where Joy teaches 2nd grade in their religious school. In her spare time, Joy is probably cooking global Jewish cuisine, baking bread, or cuddling with her dog Bowie.

Chris Sundblad
Operations Manager
(925) 283-8575
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Chris has been a California resident for over 50 years and wouldn’t think of living anywhere else! He has worked in the non-profit world for over 26 years, including the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco and Planned Parenthood Mar Monte. Chris has a passion for mission driven organizations and feels right at home as Operations Manager for Temple Isaiah. Much of his time outside work is spent with his 3 adult children and 6 grandchildren. When there is an opportunity, he will jump on his motorcycle and ride the winding roads of Northern California or pick up a cue stick for a friendly game of pool.

Lisa Taylor
Accounts Receivable Coordinator
(925) 283-8575 ext. 304
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Lisa joined Temple Isaiah first in 2015 as a temp before returning in 2017 as a full-time employee. A Bay Area native, she has studied theatre at Southern Oregon University, King’s College London, and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before returning to the Bay. At Temple Isaiah she can be found in the front office, helping to hold down the fort in a variety of capacities including special gifts processing and yarhzeit and yizkor book administrator. Outside of Temple Isaiah, she can usually be found relaxing with locally roasted coffee, spending time outdoors, on stage, or sitting at a table enjoying the fun & magic of tabletop games.

Sherry Bishop-Tsai
Bookkeeper
(925) 283-8575 ext. 302
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Sherry grew up in Moraga and graduated in 2012 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Academy of Art. She started at Temple Isaiah in 2012 as the receptionist and was promoted to bookkeeper in 2014. She has transitioned databases and accounting software twice, which she is proud of. Sherry Bishop-Tsai currently lives in Lafayette with her husband Drew and puppy Strider.

Bridget Wellerstein
Director of Student Support
(925) 283-8575 ext. 204
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Bridget is the Director of Student Support for Temple Isaiah. She has many years of experience in Early Intervention, Inclusion, and Special Education and has provided continuing education for teachers and parent education for both Alameda and Contra Costa counties. She holds a B.S. in Speech, Language Pathology and Audiology, and a M.S. in Education. Bridget believes in creating accessible and inclusive environments for all children and families. She works to build relationships that support and encourage diverse, equitable, and inclusive settings and communities of learning and belonging. When not working Bridget finds balance and joy in nature. She and her husband spend time sailing the bay. They have two wonderful, adult children who are both Gan Ilan and JQuest alums.

Lillian Whithaus
Librarian
(925) 283-8575 ext. 316
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Lillian joined Temple Isaiah in 2022. She holds a Masters of Library and Information Science from San Jose State University and a bachelors in Creative Writing from Bryn Mawr College. Lillian loves books of all sorts and especially loves giving book recommendations. Outside of the library, Lillian enjoys knitting, sewing, cooking, and 1000-piece puzzles. She lives in Berkeley with her housemates and two cats, KG and Bella.

Facilities Staff

Chris Stephens
Facilities and Building Manager
(925) 283-8575 ext. 401
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Chris Stephens joined the Temple Isaiah staff in 2019 after a career in property management where he was a California Certified Residential Manager (CCRM). He supervises and serves on our custodial team. He lives with his wife in Vallejo and enjoys martial arts.


Custodial Team
Fionna Kuniyoshi, Chris Owens.

Hebrew Tutors

Ophira Druch
Ophira Druch is the former associate director of education at Temple Sinai and has taught Biblical and Modern Hebrew in the Bay Area for more than 20 years. She’s currently teaching b’nai mitzvah students at Temple Isaiah and Temple Sinai. Ophira is the winner of the 2003 Helen and Sanford Diller Award for Excellence in Jewish Education and is a graduate of the Mandel Teacher Educators Institute (MTEI).

Melissa Rogoway
Melissa Rogoway has been a B’nai Mitzvah tutor and JQuest teacher at Temple Isaiah since 2013. She loves to help the students confidently lead the prayers and chant from the Torah on their special B’nai Mitzvah day. Melissa grew up in the SF Bay Area. She holds a Master’s Degree in Education and a BLit in Hebrew literature from American Jewish University in Los Angeles. She lives with Truman, a large Belgian Sheepdog, who is quite a character.

Music Staff

Isabel Grossman-Sartain
Songleader
Isabel is a native of Los Angeles who recently moved to Oakland, and she is thrilled to be joining Temple Isaiah as song leader! For the past two years, Isabel has had the pleasure of working as a songleader and assistant teacher at Temple Israel of Hollywood, where she grew up. She also attended Camp Alonim, in Simi Valley, as a camper and counselor for the past thirteen years. Isabel is passionate about the power of music in Jewish prayer, in the Jewish community, and hopes to bring her distinctly camp-style song leading to Temple Isaiah. In her free time, Isabel enjoys studying ancient history, playing guitar, and cuddling with her cat, Mars.

Daniel Lockert
Pianist and Organist
Daniel Lockert is a multi-talented pianist/collaborator, organist and harpsichordist. He received his Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance with a minor in organ from Loma Linda University. Following were studies for an advanced degree at the University of Southern California in the specialized area of accompanying, studying with the renowned pedagogue Gwendolyn Koldofsky. Daniel is Professor of Collaborative Piano at Notre Dame de Namur in Belmont CA. and Staff Accompanist at Mills College in Oakland, CA. In his role as coach and teacher, he has been on several faculties including the Juilliard School, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Chapman University, Cal State University East Bay, and Holy Names Unversity. He has also served on the coaching staff at the San Francisco Opera, Opera San Jose, and the Aspen Music Festival. Learn more at http://daniellockert.com/