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This year, AJ is honoring two very special people, Lana and Bernie Dishler, not just for their dedication to AJ, but for the work they do for the greater community.
Please join us at AJ on Sunday evening, April 23, 2023 to honor and celebrate Lana and Bernie.
Doors open at 6:45 PM. The program starts promptly at 7:00 PM. A dessert reception will follow.
Bernie and Lana Dishler have a long history of joint activism in causes such as Civil Rights, Anti-Vietnam War movement, Ethiopean Jewry, and Israel. But it was the cause of freeing Soviet Jews that took over their hearts and their minds. Besides traveling to the Soviet Union several times, they became leaders in the local and national movements. They each became co-chair-persons of Philadelphia’s Soviet Jewry Council. Bernie became the national leader of the national committee that briefed visitors to refusniks in the USSR. Lana became the co-chairperson for Philadelphia’s March on Washington in 1987.
These activities led them to become involved in the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia. Bernie has served on the Allocations, Community Outreach, Fund Raising and Israel committees. He served as co-chairperson of the Partnership 2000 Committee, which linked Philadelphia to Netivot, Israel. Lana became President of the Women’s Leadership Board and then a vice president of the JFGP. She also co-chaired Federation’s Israel 50 Committee. Together, they co-chaired JFGP’s 100th Anniversary Celebration.
Professionally, Bernie has been active in organized dentistry. He served as President of the PA Dental Association; and Chairman of the Board for Health Link, a volunteer-driven free dental clinic. He is one of the founders of MOM-N-PA, an organization that provides free dentistry across PA. He is currently an Attendant Dentist at Abington Hospital’s Dental Residency Program and is a member of the Board of Visitors at Temple University’s Kornberg School of Dentistry. Lana has been an elementary school teacher, as well as a Publisher’s Representative for The Wright Group Publishing Company. She is a long-time member of the JFCS Board and was a vice president of HIAS. She is currently a member of Women of Vision.
In 1973, the Dishlers joined Congregation Adath Jeshurun and found a spiritual home. Bernie was a co-chairperson of several search committees, including for Hazzan Glantz and Rav Shai. He became a vice president and now is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Lana was also a vice president of the Congregation. She produced several shows for AJ and then became a co-producer of the Beth Sholom/Adath Jeshurun Players for eight years. She has co-chaired the SPEC fund-raising events for eight years. Together, the Dishlers joined forces and co-chaired AJ’s year-long 150th Anniversary Celebration.
Most importantly of all, they are the proud parents of Elyse, Joe and now Mike, as well as the glowing grandparents of Ethan, Seth, and Ava.
Ophira Eisenberg is a standup comedian, writer, and the host of the new comedy podcast Parenting Is A Joke with iHeart Radio and Pretty Good Friends. She also hosted NPR’s Ask Me Another where she interviewed hundreds of celebrities including Sir Patrick Harris, Rosie Perez, Yo-Yo Ma, Awkwafina, Roxanne Gay, Nick Kroll, Chelsea Handler and more. She’s appeared multiple times on CBS’s The Late Late Show, Comedy Central, HBO, The New York Festival and is regular host and teller on The Moth Radio Hour and her stories are included in three of The Moth’s best-selling collections, including the most recent: How To Tell A Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling from The Moth. Her memoir, Screw Everyone: Sleeping My Way to Monogamy was optioned for a television series, and her new comedy special Plant- Based Jokes is streaming on YouTube. Her solo show Leaving A Mark: A Comedy About Scars recently made it’s Off-Broadway review to rave reviews and won the Women in the Arts & Media Award for Solo Show Scripts.
You can hear some of Ophira's work at "The Moth" and on YouTube.
