This program will be followed by Unpacking the Israeli Election with Ambassador Ido Aharoni at 7:15 PM.

Please join us in honoring America’s veterans and service personnel during our Veterans’ Day Shabbat Service.

Our guest speaker is Rabbi Irving Elson, Vice President, JCC Association of North America and Director, JWB Jewish Chaplains Council®. A special blessing is offered to temple members who are veterans or on active duty.

Rabbi Irving Elson is a vice president of JCC Association of North America and director of JWB Jewish Chaplains Council®. A U.S. Navy Captain retired from a 35-year military career, he is a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. At the time of his retirement, he was the highest-ranking Jewish chaplain in the U.S. military and a principal advisor to the Chief of Naval Personnel and Headquarters Marine Corps on matters of religious accommodation. Elson holds associate and bachelor’s degrees from Yeshiva University and was commissioned an Ensign in the Naval Reserve through the Chaplain Candidate Program in 1982. He earned a master’s degree and received his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He and his wife have three children and one grandchild.