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2018 SESSION


SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 56
Commending Brett R. Isserow.

 

Agreed to by the Senate, March 7, 2018

 

WHEREAS, Brett R. Isserow, the longtime rabbi of Beth El Hebrew Congregation, has served and strengthened the Northern Virginia community through his work with interfaith organizations and community outreach efforts; and

WHEREAS, a native of Johannesburg, South Africa, Brett Isserow was an accountant by trade before he moved to the United States and answered his call to the rabbinate in 1987 at Hebrew Union College; he spent 11 years as an associate rabbi in Atlanta, Georgia, then settled in Alexandria; and

WHEREAS, over the course of his 16-year tenure as rabbi of Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Brett Isserow has offered spiritual guidance to countless community members and helped many congregants explore their Jewish heritage; and

WHEREAS, Brett Isserow has worked to build respect and understanding among different denominations, expanding opportunities for interfaith dialogue and maintaining relationships with clergy members throughout the region; and

WHEREAS, well known in the Jewish community, Brett Isserow is president of the Mid-Atlantic Region of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, vice president of the Washington Board of Rabbis, and a board member of the Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia; he hosts interfaith trips to Israel and is active in Alexandria’s annual Holocaust memorial observance; and

WHEREAS, Brett Isserow teaches on a variety of subjects, and he earned an innovation grant for his Quest for Spirituality course; he was also a founding member of Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement, which provides education and advocacy on local and state issues; and

WHEREAS, as the only community clergy member on the Inova Alexandria Hospital Ethics Committee, Brett Isserow provides an essential perspective on medical ethics issues; and

WHEREAS, Brett Isserow enjoys the love and support of his wife, Jinny, and their children, Anna and Jesse, as he continues to better the lives of his fellow Alexandria residents; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate of Virginia, That Brett R. Isserow, the longtime rabbi of Beth El Hebrew Congregation, hereby be commended upon his retirement for his years of service to the residents of Alexandria and Northern Virginia; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Brett R. Isserow as an expression of the Senate of Virginia’s admiration for his spiritual leadership, generosity, and dedication to the community.