Our Clergy
Senior Rabbi Eytan Kenter
Rabbi Kenter was born and raised in Westchester, New York. As an undergraduate in the Joint Program with Jewish Theological Seminary and Columbia University, Rabbi Kenter majored in American Studies and Midrash. In 2006, he graduated from the Davidson School of Jewish Education with honours in the Informal/Communal Education program. Following his ordination in 2009, Rabbi Kenter joined Congregation B’nai Torah in Atlanta, Georgia as the Associate Rabbi, eventually assuming the title of Rabbi and Chief Learning Officer.
In his spare time, Rabbi Kenter enjoys cooking and playing basketball. He is a pop culture buff and prides himself on the ability to have a conversation with almost anybody on almost any topic. He is married to Staci Zemlak-Kenter and is the proud father of Boaz Maor and Reuvi Aderet.
Associate Rabbi Deborah Zuker
Rabbi Deborah Zuker was born and raised in Ottawa, and is thrilled to return home after many years away. Rabbi Zuker grew up attending Temple Israel, where she was active in FROSTY (Federation of Reform Ottawa Senior Temple Youth, a dynamic group of Jewish youth in Ottawa affiliated with Temple Israel and the Reform Movement). She went to Machaneh Gesher for several years, and has fond memories of Akivah High School.
After graduating from Confederation High School, Rabbi Zuker went to Queen’s University and received her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Psychology in 2003. She studied in Israel for a year at Pardes, and then moved to New York City and completed a Masters in Social Work and a Masters in Jewish Studies from the Joint Program at Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary.
Rabbi Zuker remained in New York at JTS for Rabbinical School, studying at the Schechter Institute in Jerusalem from 2008-2009, and graduating with smicha as well as a Masters in Talmud and Codes in 2011.
Rabbi Zuker’s first pulpit was at Temple Ner Tamid in Peabody, Massachusetts, which she held from 2011 to 2015. During her time in Peabody, Rabbi Zuker excelled at creating engaging family programming and fostering community collaboration.
She has returned to Ottawa with her two young sons, Joey and Daniel, and looks forward to connecting with other families in the community, renewing old friendships, and making new ones.
Cantor Jason Green
A native of Montreal, Canada, Cantor Green (lyric tenor) began singing at age 6 as a child soprano in his Synagogue’s choir. He became its conductor at age 15, under the tutelage of Stephen Glass. He continued his vocal development and knowledge of repertoire by joining the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue Choir in 1992, soon afterwards becoming its associate conductor.
Cantor Green holds a diploma in Nusach Hat’filah (Prayer modes) and Chazanut (Cantorial Art) from the London School of Jewish Studies, having studied primarily with Cantor Stephen Robins. He studied voice production with Cantor Jerome Kopmar and Robert Davis. He was certified in January of 2007 as a member of the Cantors Assembly, the world’s largest professional organization of Cantors. In 2011, Cantor Green received his Cantorial Commission from the Cantors Assembly.
From 2004 until June 2018, Cantor Green held cantorial/programming positions in Baltimore, MD; Dayton, OH; and Bridgeport, CT, and London, England, where he was known for his professional-quality volunteer adult and youth choirs, his warm and engaging personality, and his sense of humour.
Cantor Green’s enthusiasm for teaching liturgy and nusach inspired his Shabbat Shirah “Sermon in Song”, a voyage through the music of the synagogue touching on the beloved traditions of Ashkenazi Jewry. In April, 2016, Cantor Green starred as a grandfather telling the Passover story in “Pesach Cantata” by Julian Dawes and Rabbi Roderick Young, accompanied by choir and chamber orchestra, and featuring his eldest son, Zev, singing the part of the grandson. Cantor Green is the featured soloist on a new recording, “Echoes of the Soul” by Mr. Dawes which will launch in London and around the world on July 5th.
Cantor Green arrived in Ottawa at the beginning of May, 2018 and is proud to be the Cantor at Kehillat Beth Israel serving alongside esteemed colleagues Rabbi Kenter and Rabbi Zuker. Cantor Jason and his wife, Jodi, have three sons – Zev, Noah and Eitan.
Click here for the Radio Show podcast between Cantor Green and Rabbi Stephen Garten.
Ba'al Koreh Kalman Estrin
Kalman began learning to read Torah in 1988 under the tutelage of Rabbi Hal Klestzick in Calgary and began reading Torah on a weekly basis at the Beth Tzedek Synagogue in Calgary in 1991. He moved to Ottawa in 2004. Originally from Edmonton, Kalman’s Hebrew reading skills were developed over a period of five years while living in Israel and serving in the Israeli Defence Force from 1971 to 1974.