Meet Our Rabbi & Staff
Rabbi Zvi Engel
Rabbi of Congregation Or Torah
Ortorahrav@gmail.com
Office: (847) 679-3645 ext 222
Rabbi Zvi Engel is the Rabbi of Congregation Or Torah in Skokie, IL. In addition to his pastoral, educational, and organizational responsibilities, Rabbi Engel currently serves as the president of the Rabbinical Council of America. He is a former President of the Chicago Rabbinical Council. His affiliations include AIPAC and the Jewish United Fund of Greater Metropolitan Chicago. Before arriving in Skokie in September 2008, Rabbi Engel served as the Rabbi of Congregation Ahavath Achim in Fairfield, CT for five years.
Born and raised in Montreal, Rabbi Engel studied at Yeshivat Har Etzion, holds a B.A. in English Literature from Yeshiva University, and received his rabbinical ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS), an affiliate of Yeshiva University, in 2002. Beyond enjoying the benefits of strong mentors within his own family and of various teachers, Rabbi Engel credits a number of formative experiences with shaping his approach to the rabbinate, including working with Jewish youth in Australia, Belarus, Canada, Israel, Poland, Ukraine, and the United States. Over the years, he served as the leader of various programs, such as: Yeshiva University’s Counterpoint, OU-NCSY’s JOLT Program, as as a regional coordinator for OU’s Yachad/ Re’im Program for Jewish People with special needs.
Combining an abiding love for the Jewish People with a passion for learning and teaching Torah, Rabbi Engel strives to connect with people of all ages within the congregation and the wider community. Rabbi Engel and his wife, Laurie, are the proud parents of four children. To learn with Rabbi Engel online through a sampling of various presentations (shiurim and drashot) at Congregation Or Torah, please visit https://www.ortorah.org/online-learning1.html . To subscribe to Rabbi Engel’s Podcast, please click here: https://podcasts.apple.com/ us/podcast/rabbi-zvi-engel/id1234332040 .
Rebecca Brown
Executive Director of Congregation Or Torah
exec@ortorah.org
Office: (847) 679-3645
Rebecca "Bec" Brown, moved to New York in June 2013 from Sydney, Australia. She grew up in a communally minded, Modern Orthodox family, volunteered and ran programming at her synagogue, attended Young Leadership events through the Jewish Communal Appeal, and saw her parents give to a wide variety of Jewish organizations in her Sydney community.
While she worked in the fashion editorial industry in New York City, many of her after-work hours were devoted to taking part in local charity organizations and her synagogue. In the summer of 2017, she relocated to Baltimore with her husband and decided to diversify her professional path. She dove into charitable work with The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore as the Development Associate, Women's Philanthropy. During her three years at The Associated, Bec was responsible for creating and implementing Annual Campaign strategies, soliciting, cultivating, and stewarding Associated Women donors, curating giving level and community events, and empowering women in the Baltimore Jewish community to take an active role in philanthropic endeavors. When she was promoted to Senior Development Associate, Women's Philanthropy, Bec also took on the role of managing the Jewish Professional Women affinity group and the Chapter Two cohort (a leadership development program for women) in addition to her campaign responsibilities. In 2020, she was selected as a Friedman Fellow, nominated by The Associated to receive funding to use over a two-year period on professional opportunities to advance her career in the Jewish communal field. She has since completed a Certificate in Leadership Principles through Harvard Business School Online and partook in the Playing Big Facilitators Training Program by esteemed women's leadership expert, Tara Mohr.
In June of 2021, the Browns moved to Chicago and Bec began working at JUF as the Senior Manager, Integrated Fundraising. In this role, she helped create bridges from engagement programming to Campaign, further strengthened relationships with day schools and their families, and conducted outreach to and engagement of the Orthodox community.
Bec and her husband, Gavi, live in Skokie together with their three children Adi, 5, and Lev, 3, and Ori, 1.
Office and Operations Administrator at Congregation Or Torah
Office@ortorah.org
Office: (847) 679-3645
Olivia was born and raised in Chicago, Rogers Park. She attended Solomon Schechter for grammar school and Ida Crown for High School. After high school she did one year abroad at Bar Ilan in Israel. When she returned to Chicago she attended Le Cordon Bleu and obtained a degree in Culinary Arts and Hospitality Business Management. Olivia worked in the hospitality industry for many years after graduating from culinary school before she decided to make a career shift into operations and office management.
Olivia has over 17 years experience as an office and operations administrator. Her background in hospitality management lends to her love for people, attention to detail, and exemplary client relations. She has dedicated more than half of her professional career to setting up, executing, and maintaining the core operations of several different types of businesses. These range from healthcare to real-estate to startups.
Olivia was the go-to contact for all businesses. She dealt directly with all vendors and clients. Olivia really takes the time to get to know all her clients personally. Olivia can wear many hats and enjoys learning new trends and keeping up with current events in the community.
Olivia and her husband, Adi, live in Park Ridge with their two children: Josephine Rose, 3 and Julian Ayal, 1.
Olivia is ecstatic at the opportunity to be a part of the Or Torah team and we are excited to have her on board.