Ayeka Staff Members

Aryeh Ben David
Aryeh Ben David founded Ayeka, Jewish Spiritual Education, in 2006. This initiative came after almost 20 years of work in formal and experiential Jewish educational settings. Aryeh taught at the Pardes Institute in Jerusalem since 1987, and was a member of the Senior Faculty and Director of Spiritual Education. He also served as the Rabbinical Educational Consultant for Hillel International from 2004 - 2007, and spearheaded their spiritual initiative throughout the United States. Previously Aryeh served as the Educational Director of Livnot U’Lehibanot from 1991-96. He has been involved in the training of staff of countless organizations and lectures internationally. He is the author of “Around the Shabbat Table, a Guide to Meaningful Shabbat Conversations” (2000) and “The Godfile, Ten Approaches To Personalizing Prayer” (2007).

After many years in the classroom, teaching subjects including Torah, Talmud, prayer, ethics, and interpersonal relationships, Aryeh sought a way to enable students to more deeply engage with Judaism and to explore their spiritual identities. This led to the development of Spiritual Education and the creation of Ayeka.

Aryeh grew up outside of NYC and studied psychology at Vassar College. He came to Israel in 1978, studied at the Meretz yeshiva in Mevasseret Zion and received Rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Rabbinate. He served in the Israeli army and now lives in Efrat, Gush Etzion, with his wife Sandra and their six children.

David Kahn
David Kahn (Chairman of Ayeka’s Board) is a partner in FisherKahn, an Israel-based financial communications firm that he co-founded in 2004. A corporate attorney, David has acted as general counsel and business development officer for several Israeli companies since immigrating to Israel in 1989, including PVS, a division of Bank Hapoalim. He received his BA, cum laude, from Yeshiva College in 1978 and his JD degree from Cardozo Law School in 1981, and is admitted to the New York and Israel bars. He and his wife, Nicci, a GP from London, live in Efrat, Israel, together with their four children. He is an avid runner, hiker, skier and little league baseball coach, and well into his second round of Daf Yomi.

Tovah Leah Nachmani
Tovah Leah Nachmani (Educational Staff) has been engaging in formal and informal adult Jewish education in Israel for the past 20 years. Her particular interest is exploring with her students the relevance of Jewish wisdom to their personal lives, combining methods of classic Torah study with creative opportunities for reflection and integration. She has been teaching at the Pardes Institute in Jerusalem for many years. Previously she was involved in Jewish education for many years with her husband Gabi in “Livnot U’Lehibanot” (To Build and Be Built) in Tzfat and Jerusalem. They co-edited the highly acclaimed song book “Zemirot from Livnot”. Thousands of copies grace Shabbat tables worldwide. Tovah Leah and her husband Gabi live in Alon Shevut, using humor and spiritual common sense to raise their 7 children.