Adam grew up in New Jersey, USA, much influenced by his Jewish, British, and Cuban roots. He is a connector, passionate about fostering meaningful relationships and cultural exchange across the global Jewish community. During his undergraduate studies, Adam majored in Human & Organizational Development and Economics at Vanderbilt University where he was awarded the full-tuition Chancellor’s Scholarship in recognition of his commitment to diversity and leadership.

On campus, Adam was the Vice President of Programming for Hillel and partnered with Be’chol Lashon to organize cultural exchange trips to Jewish communities in Latin America. After graduating, Adam earned a Fulbright Scholarship in Mexico City. There, he developed a passion for youth empowerment and education through his work at the United Nations Youth Association of Mexico. Seeking hands-on experience in this realm, Adam then volunteered for the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Project TEN, supporting informal education initiatives and delivering pedagogical strategy seminars in a rural community in Oaxaca, Mexico. These experiences inspired Adam to serve as Skills to Succeed Program Manager at Accenture, a global professional services firm. In this position, he worked to advance career prospects for underserved college students through professional development workshops, mentorship opportunities, and on-the-job training.

Most recently, Adam completed a Master’s in International Relations at Johns Hopkins SAIS. He speaks Spanish and Italian fluently and completed a Boren Fellowship to continue building upon his foundational Hebrew skills. Adam is a Birthright Exceller (2016), ROIer (2022), Maccabi Winter Games gold-medalist (2023). He served as a JDC Entwine Community Rep in 2024 and is a proud alumnus of Inside Jewish UAE and Inside Jewish Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Alicia works as a Programming Manager for Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington DC. She has also worked as a birthright coordinator for Hillel and was a preschool teacher for two years. She has traveled to both New Orleans and Georgia (the country) with JDC. In her free time, she enjoys playing pickleball, cooking new recipes, and playing board games.

Amit grew up in Maryland but currently lives in Tel Aviv. He first became involved with Entwine through the Jewish Service Corps (JSC) Fellowship, where he served for half a year with JDC’s GRID (Global Response, Innovative Development) team and then a year as a Public Health Fellow at the Agahozo Shalom Youth Village in Rwanda. Since then, he represented Entwine at the OLAM Focal Point Conference and participated in Entwine’s Insider trip to South Africa. Amit currently works as a program manager for the African Refugee Development Center (ARDC), where he runs classes for refugees and asylum-seekers. In his free time, Amit likes baking, playing guitar, and rock climbing, and is equally terrible at all of them.

Ezra is 31 years old, lives in New York City 9as of April of this year), and works in the family business of environmental consulting for commercial real estate. He most enjoys eating and cooking new foods, waking up early on Saturday and Sundays to watch Chelsea FC and the Green Bay Packers, and most of all, traveling to new places to explore new cultures and customs. Ezra has one sister, who is his best friend, and places a huge importance of family. He is a proud member of the Jewish community, and has dedicated his time helping others join and find their place in it.

Hannah Joy Sachs (she/her) is an experiential educator (BA High Honors in Sociology, Davidson College; MSc in Migration Studies, University of Oxford) who facilitates immersive learning programs for students and young professionals around the world.

Hannah’s upbringing as a transracial transnational adoptee in New York has both fueled and informed her travels, and she spends the majority of the year on the road. Hannah is honored to be joining the Entwine Council for her second term as part of the Global Programs Task Force. Entwine has been a big part of Hannah’s Jewish journey over the past eight years. Most recently, she joined the Global Leaders program in India. She has also served as Trip Chair on the inaugural Inside Jewish Mexico and participated in the first JOCSM affinity program in Brazil, and traveled with Entwine to Rwanda and Morocco. Hannah is grateful for all the connections these programs have granted her, and cannot wait to continue contributing to the Entwine community.

Jacob Goldstein is the founder of The Leadership Laboratory, and leverages his experiences in education, the performing arts, and corporate learning & development to his work. As a performer, Jacob has sung as a backup vocalist for musical artists such as Josh Groban, Jennifer Hudson, Idina Menzel, and Patti LuPone, as a recording artist for Netflix series Sense8, and at venues including The United Center, The Chicago Theater, and Chicago Symphony Center.

In the education space, Jacob has served as an educator for high school, undergraduate and graduate students throughout the Midwest, and has been a Guest Lecturer at Northwestern University since 2016. As a Learning & Leadership Development Consultant, Jacob has worked as a one-on-one coach and group workshop facilitator to organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies in diverse industries, including technology, healthcare, non-profit, and fashion/apparel.

In 2025, Jacob participated in a cultural exchange in Eastern Rwanda, researching and exploring resilience, trust, and community building in children and adults at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village. Jacob holds a Bachelor’s degree from The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a Master’s of Science in Communication from Northwestern University.

Jared Bierbach is a Senior International Relations Officer at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). In his capacity at DOE, Jared oversees the Israel, Jordan and Eastern Mediterranean Desks, managing the Department’s relationships with these countries. Prior to joining DOE, he spent several years working in the Jewish community on environmental justice advocacy, Israel affairs, and interfaith engagement at the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) in Washington, D.C. and at the Milwaukee Jewish Federation. After participating in an incredible LGBTQ Insider trip to Argentina, Jared was honored to continue his involvement with JDC Entwine by becoming one of the Entwine Community Reps for Washington, D.C. Jared is proud to now be on the Entwine Council in his second term. Jared also serves as the Programming Director for DOE’s Energy Pride ERG. A native of Wisconsin, Jared graduated from UW-Milwaukee with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Security Studies and Jewish Studies.

Lisa Fierstein grew up in Pittsburgh and now lives in Brooklyn, where she is an active member of her local Food Co-op. She attended Skidmore College, earning degrees in American Studies, Media and Film, and Arts Administration. She currently works at Audible, helping independent authors, narrators, and publishers by designing campaigns and community events that support their audiobooks’ success. Previously, Lisa worked at Spotify, where she developed an educational hub to help podcasters worldwide build their skills and grow their audiences. She also led the Shalom@Spotify Jewish belonging group of over 200 members, curating cultural and holiday programming, hosting community events, and educating colleagues on antisemitism while fostering allyship through partnerships with other identity-based groups. Additionally, she has contributed her marketing and production skills to media outlets including NPR, CNN, PBS, and Slate. Lisa is passionate about exploring Jewish identity through many lenses – her family history, travel, cooking, art, music, and storytelling.

Originally from Jacksonville, FL, Marie-Claire (M-C) now lives in Durham, NC. Her JDC journey began as a Jewish Service Corps (JSC) Fellow in Rwanda at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) from 2016-2017. Marie-Claire later had the privilege of working at JDC headquarters in New York, both for Entwine and Resource Development. She currently uses her nonprofit fundraising background to assist ASYV and local Jewish organizations in Durham. Marie-Claire enjoys swimming, tennis, reading, and playing with her rescue dog.

Molly likes to build Jewish community wherever she goes. She grew up in Ohio and Wisconsin, moved to Boston for graduate school, and forgot to leave. Molly has worked professionally for Jewish communities in Latvia (as a 2018-2019 JDC Entwine Jewish Service Corps Fellow), in Israel, and across the US. She also served as the Trip Chair on Entwine’s 2025 Inside Jewish Portugal and Spain trip and as a Community Rep in 2020. Molly currently works at Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP), Boston’s Jewish Federation. She is a founding board member of Jewish Women International (JWI)’s Young Women’s Impact Network-Boston Chapter. When she’s not actively engaging in Jewish life, Molly can be found drinking chai tea, preferably on a yoga mat near a body of water.

Pearleen Lederman is a proud Latina based in Miami, Florida. She currently works as an Associate Financial Planner at Macy’s Inc., though her true passions lie in community building, volunteerism, and global engagement. Through her involvement with JDC Entwine, Pearleen has had the opportunity to travel to Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, and Ethiopia, experiences that have deeply shaped her commitment to service. In 2022, she served as both a JDC Entwine Community Representative and Trip Chair. These transformative leadership roles inspired her to become more actively involved in her local Jewish community, with a particular focus on enhancing engagement among young professionals. She now serves as Chair of the Executive Young Leadership Board at the Greater Miami Jewish Federation.

Rachel Shapiro is an educator living in Cambridge, MA. Originally from Baltimore, MD, she holds a bachelor’s degree in American Studies and a master’s degree in Teaching, both from Tufts University. Rachel spent a year teaching English in Spain between undergrad and grad school, then taught high school history for several years. Since March 2023, Rachel has worked at a nonprofit workforce development program, helping young adults prepare for high school equivalency tests and build transferable skills to support their future success. Rachel was introduced to Entwine as a participant on the 2022 Inside Jewish Bulgaria trip and has since traveled to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan in August 2024 and served as a 2024 Entwine Community Representative. When not working or traveling, Rachel enjoys reading, lake swims, bar trivia, dance fitness classes, and bringing friends together.

Sharon is a global community leader based in Tel Aviv with interdisciplinary expertise in Psychology, Business Administration, and Israel Education (M.A., George Washington University). From 2021-2024, she served as the Jewish Agency’s representative to North Latin America young professionals, where she independently designed identity programs and orchestrated community events across multiple countries. Her unique blend of research experience, creative background in music and theater, and cross-cultural leadership enables her to create innovative, transformative community experiences worldwide.

Veronica graduated from Barnard College in 2021, where she studied psychology and lived in The Bayit, the school’s pluralistic Jewish food co-op. Veronica then worked at Zocdoc, a health tech company in New York, where she worked closely with medical practices to improve their care to patients. She was also a Moishe House resident in NYC and loved getting to meet different people through her events. Veronica is passionate about public health, international travel, and the Jewish community! She is currently traveling on a gap year before starting her master in public health degree at Yale in the fall.