Beth Shalom hires interim executive director
New England native takes helm of Squirrel Hill synagogue
Congregation Beth Shalom has hired New England native Ken Turkewitz as its interim executive director. Turkewitz succeeds Rob Menes.
Turkewitz most recently served as interim executive director at The Jewish Center, a Conservative congregation in Princeton, New Jersey. From 2014-2017, he was the executive director of Tifereth Israel Congregation in New Bedford, Massachusetts. In 2011, he served as executive director of Congregation Beth Israel in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Turkewitz has also served as president of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs, New England Region, of which he remains an active member. He will be chairing the FJMC’s Leadership Development Institute in January 2020.
“I’m on my second career,” said Turkewitz in an email to the congregation. “In the past, I have held roles as a high-tech program manager, working on programs such as the establishment of internet infrastructure and creation of new driver license systems for several U.S. states.”
He holds a degree in computer science and engineering from M.I.T. He and his wife, Carol, live in Walpole, Massachusetts, and have five adult sons. He has temporarily relocated to Pittsburgh.
“Ken’s experience and recommendations stood out,” said Debby Firestone, president of Beth Shalom’s board of directors.
A search for a permanent executive director is anticipated to begin after the High Holidays, she added. pjc
— Toby Tabachnick
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