Our Honorees

Guest of Honor

Maria & Glenn Reicin

Glenn and Maria have been married for 29 years this coming June. They began their life together living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan where they started raising a family with their first two boys, Noah and Andrew. After 9/11, they began searching for a new home outside of the city. They considered New Jersey and Westchester at first, but Maria fell in love with Stamford. By the fall of 2006, six months after their youngest children - twins Isaac and Tina - were born, the six Reicins moved to Stamford, the best decision they have ever made. Within three months of moving in, Glenn and Maria began dedicating tremendous time and resources to the Stamford Jewish community, including the building of the Minnie Manger Marcia Lieberman Mikvah and both serving on the Board of Directors at Agudath Sholom. The Stamford Chabad and Gan Yeladim Early Childhood Center and Bi-Cultural Hebrew Academy have been other organizations close to both Glenn and Maria’s hearts and ones for which they each committed many hours of strategic planning and project implementation.

Professionally, Glenn spent the first half of his career at Morgan Stanley as a #1 nationally ranked research analyst in the medical devices and biotechnology industry. Today, Glenn is the CFO of Ecogene, a biotech startup firm in Boston. Maria’s background is in communications, and she has endeavored to apply those skills to benefit Stamford’s Jewish organizations. Maria’s most recent efforts include the formation of a Connecticut women’s pro-Israel political network and helping to expand the Stamford Kindness Project.

Glenn and Maria currently dedicate much of their free time advocating for Israel through their work with AIPAC, both having served on the National Council and currently focused on local political network groups. Other than Israel, Maria and Glenn see themselves living in Stamford for many decades with hopes that their family will grow and enjoy this amazing community for generations to come.

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Young Leadership Award

Shushannah & Ari Yasgur

Shushannah and Ari moved to Stamford over ten years ago and immediately joined Congregation Agudath Sholom. Shushannah previously served on the CAS board and was a co-chair of the capital campaign. Locally, she also serves on the board of Schoke JFS and volunteers at both of her children's schools. Professionally, Shushannah is an Emmy nominated journalist and author known for her incisive reporting about American politics, particularly presidential campaigns, candidates, and elections. She currently speaks and lectures, and previously was the deputy political director at ABC News and the editor-at-large at IJR. She is the co-author of the non-fiction book, Sarah From Alaska and earlier in her career was a reporter and producer at Fox News. Shushannah grew up in South Florida and has also lived in Boston, New York City, and Washington, D.C.


Ari is the current treasurer and executive board member at CAS. Professionally, he is a principal and co-founder of New England Investment Partners, a Stamford based real estate investment company, founded in 2011 by Ari and his business partner Jonathan Marcus. The company invests, manages, and operates commercial real estate throughout the northeast and southeast United States. Ari grew up in Paramus, New Jersey and Fairfield, Connecticut.


Shushannah and Ari are proud parents of Bess (9), Naomi (7), and Gabriel (5). They attend Stamford Jewish day schools, Bi-Cultural Hebrew Academy and Gan Yeladim. Shush and Ari are honored to have been selected as this year's recipients of the Young Leadership Award at Agudath Sholom, a place that is more than a shul to them, but truly a home.

Community Service Award

Aviva Ephraim Maller

Aviva Ephraim Maller has lived in Stamford for over 40 years, but she is connected to so much more.

She was born in Bombay, India, the source of so many connections and inspirations. Iraq, her heritage and the birthplace of her ancestors, is the place of expulsion and yet story book tales and soul filled cuisine. Both places and traditions are ardent elements of the roots she stands so firmly upon.

New York is near and dear to her heart as this was where her family began their American adventure when she was 13 years old, along with her two younger brothers. However, Israel is her eternal homeland, and she has been passionately drawn to it since her first visit at the age of eight when she felt a powerful and intoxicating connection. She calls all those places and Congregation Agudath Sholom “home.” Her family has been members of CAS since they came to Stamford in 1972.

Aviva is most well known as a photographer and event planner bringing magic and meaning to bar mitzvahs, weddings and non-profit events and galas. As a photographer, she does not merely capture an event, she crafts moments to capture. The one image that she repeatedly captures, that she has no effect over, are her now famous sunrise photos; they are simply created by our Master Creator. She also helps in her family’s half-century old biodegradable paper bag business founded by her father as a new immigrant. As such, her hands are never idle, and she is constantly multi-tasking towards her next projects. One of the best things a client said when they saw her walking in the door with her camera is, “Oh Aviva is here! Now I know everything will be okay.” It is not merely what she captures with her lens but what she radiates with her presence that makes things better.

She enjoys entertaining and one of her passions is cooking. She has a large extended family spread out all over the world, and, inspired by her rich background, loves to cook the foods of India as well as Iraq.

She volunteers for many non-profit organizations in town both Jewish and secular. As a volunteer, she puts all her professional talents to use - photography, event planning and even catering! Her take charge demeanor gets things done in a manner that is at once apparent and mostly under the radar. There are so many things she does that no one would ever guess she had a hand in!

In the end, the beneficiaries of the photography that Aviva has captured for more than 30 years, will ultimately be part of the inheritance of the Stamford Jewish Community. Her massive body of work is a compilation of an historic legacy of the faces in this community who have gone from 30 to 60 and from 60 to 90, as captured through her eyes and her heart and the lens of her ever-ready camera as they lived through their lifecycle events.

It is the meaning she puts into everything she does. No, it is not just a Sephardic Middle Eastern dinner where people get to taste delicious, exotic foods, but it is a “happening” that people want to experience because it is enhanced by the flavors and feels of the countries those foods represent. It is not simply décor for the sake of décor, but it is décor with meaning and magic that make people feel and think as they are surrounded not merely by a beautifully designed room, but hearts and souls are filled by the messages that are conveyed, through images, words and music! And of course, the food!

Previously, Aviva worked in advertising and on Wall Street; two seemingly disparate careers.

Aviva is married to Michael Maller. They have two sons, Zachary 31 and Jacob 29. 

Chai Award

Lorraine & David Kweskin

The Kweskins have celebrated many life milestones at Congregation Agudath Sholom. Lorraine was born and raised here and had her Bat Mitzvah. David and Lorraine were married in the synagogues' Sanctuary 57 years ago, and their children’s B’nei Mitzvot were also celebrated at CAS. Their family has always been part of this community.

Lorraine says “What I learned by being part of this Community is that when you need support or encouragement it is here for you and, when you’re able to give back you do so! I learned these lessons from my parents and grandparents as well as the religious leaders I so admire(d). Rabbi Ehrenkranz, Walter Shuchatowitz, Ben Soifer to name a few!” Keeping that Mission alive, she started her volunteer career as a board member and then President of NCJW (National Council of Jewish Women). She was and continues to be an active member of Agudath Sholom, United Jewish Federation, Back to School Shop, the JCC and the Israel Cancer Research Fund. She is also a member of the HaHa Clowns of Stamford Hospital; her “stage” name is Nurse Morning Glory! When asked what she does now that she’s retired, she replies “I’m a professional volunteer!”

Like Lorraine, David is a lifelong Stamford resident who was fortunate to have had parents and grandparents as models of involvement in the Stamford Jewish community. His youthful focal points were Stamford’s Temple Beth El (Bar Mitzvah & leader of Young Singles Club) and the JCC. CAS became his home in 1967 with his marriage to Lorraine. In his Stamford journey, he prospered from the call to serve as president of two Jewish organizations (The Jewish Historical Society of Fairfield County and United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford). He has served terms on the JCC Board and most recently on the Executive Committee of Agudath.

Professionally, David was a market researcher with a switch to professional fundraising in 2013. Currently, he is the Director of the CT Chapter of the Israel Cancer Research Fund. Part of his life journey is becoming a more committed Jew inspired by his fellow Agudath congregants/friends and Rabbis…a journey that he cherishes. 

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