Shavuot

	Shavuot is a time when we focus on women and their unique contributions to our world. At YOF, we are very blessed to have so many accomplished women as part of our alumni. In this issue, we profile a few YOF alumni women who are leaders in their chosen professions.
	Norma (Haddad) Cohen (ES ‘82, HS ‘86) is a pioneer in event planning and production. When you hire Norma you know your event will be glamorous, exciting, and most importantly flawless. Norma started her business over 30 years ago. Since, she has been named one of the “Best Wedding Planners in America” by BRIDES magazine and featured in Harper’s BAZAAR, Grace Ormonde, Wedluxe, Partyslate, and more. When we asked about her time at YOF, she spoke about her favorite teachers and how they encouraged her. She spoke fondly about Rabbi Besser, the current dean of students at YOFHS, that “he exudes warmth and caring. He has a dynamic personality that makes everyone feel special. He cares about students as if they were his own.” Norma is also known to mentor other young women, many of them YOF alumni, who are starting businesses or when seeking advice on balancing work and family. She gave this advice about starting your own business, “never give up, obstacles make you stronger and better.”
	Deborah Beth Medows (ES ‘00) is an attorney whose expertise includes healthcare law. She works as a Senior Attorney for the New York State Department of Health prosecuting physician misconduct. Her skills have been in high demand throughout the pandemic as our healthcare system faces unprecedented challenges. After graduating from law school, she clerked as a foreign law clerk at the Supreme Court of Israel. In an unexpected coincidence, she clerked for fellow Flatbush alum and Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Neal Hendel (HS ‘69). She has also worked as an attorney for the New York State Senate and New York State Assembly drafting legislation, as counsel to two Speakers of the New York State Assembly, and she is a legal expert on the committee that reviews applications from law professors and attorneys for the Fulbright Specialist Program. She credits her YOF education with strengthening her skills as an attorney. “The strong background in Tanakh and the solid foundation of ethics and values guide my work in public service. YOF is a place where students are taught to apply the lessons that we learned in the classroom to our everyday lives.” When we asked what she valued most about YOF, she said “the education and the continued friendships. I am still in touch with teachers and classmates."
	Louise (Mosesman) White (HS ‘93) is a mom, artist, and toy designer. Her unique career speaks to the winding path that took her there. But her interest in art was sparked at Flatbush. The question was how do you pay the bills while making art? After an architecture class in college to which she said “no not for me,” she found product design, a niche field that allowed her to keep her creative juices flowing. When we asked her which skills she learned at Flatbush have been most helpful in her career she said “the concentration on time management, and organizational skills in high school allowed me to cope with juggling multiple projects and deadlines throughout my career and in life.” Currently, Louise has been working as a freelancer on multiple projects. She finished a line of Jurassic Park plush dinosaurs recently, works with Lamaze Brand baby toys, Fatbrain toys, and others. Her work has picked up a lot during COVID. She is currently working on baby toys, puzzles, and licensing toys, as well as pet toys as many families have adopted a new furry friend.
	Lisa (Steinberg) Snow (ES ‘69, HS ‘73) has been and continues to push professional boundaries since she graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in the 1980s. Lisa is a woman in a field still dominated by men, financial services. Today Lisa serves as the Senior Vice President of the Legal Division at Focus Financial, a company that acquires investment management firms worldwide. Lisa spoke fondly of the uniqueness of YOF, the community, and camaraderie. Lisa’s elementary and high school class have been getting together on Zoom once a month throughout the pandemic to reconnect. “I have reconnected with some people I haven’t seen since we graduated elementary school and it was as if very little time had passed. Especially among the women in my class, we have a very supportive group. Each of us has led different lives, but we share that common experience of Flatbush.” When we asked about something she missed about her time at YOF, Lisa spoke about her teachers, such as Rabbi Haramati, who she called “a revered and beloved teacher”, and how the Gemara classes prepared her for her academic achievements and inspired her intellectual curiosity.
	Sara (Purow) Munk (ES ‘96, HS ‘00) began working as Principal of Shulamith High School for Girls in August 2019. It has been an interesting time to be a school leader but her time at YOF prepared her to rise to the challenge. “At Flatbush, the academics were solid. But it’s where I learned the soft skills as well, the grit, resilience, leadership, and hard work that will take you far.” She honed these skills for the first time as a senior when she and another student were appointed to the planning group for Freshman Seminar. They were tasked with planning and executing the event for their younger classmates with the assistance of school administrators. She thinks back fondly on her time at YOF and maintains close relationships with her classmates and former teachers. Shortly after her appointment at Shulamith was announced, she received a phone call from Rabbi Besser wishing her mazel tov. When we asked her what she missed the most, she spoke proudly about our varsity girls basketball team. Sara played all four years of high school. Even today, she is a fierce competitor and has continued to play in women’s leagues and pick-up games when possible throughout her adult life.
	Joyce (Balaban) David (HS ‘67) is a trailblazer and pioneer. She spent over 40 years as a criminal defense attorney in Brooklyn. She was the first and only woman to serve as the President of the Kings County Criminal Defense Bar Association. She was an on-air contributor to CourtTV throughout the 1990s. Joyce is also an author and was an adjunct professor at Cardozo Law School for 20 years. When asked what she valued most from her Flatbush education, she comes back to her Gemara lessons. She shared with us, “while before a judge arguing points of law, a fellow attorney is called in. He is also a yeshiva graduate and I held my own throughout our conversation as we weaved through different areas of law, like one does when arguing the finer points of Gemara. I would not have been able to do that without my Flatbush education.” Joyce spoke about how her career put her in contact with many different communities both within the Jewish world and the larger secular world. She credits Flatbush with helping her to navigate between those two worlds with a foot firmly planted in both. She is recently retired and now splits her time between Georgia and New Jersey where her children and grandchildren live.

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