June 19, 2026 | 4 Tammuz 5786
Candlelighting 8:35 p.m. | Havdalah 9:44 p.m. | Vol. 69, No. 25 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
‘Psalm Enchanted From startup to standardbearer: Karen Wolk Feinstein Evening’: Interfaith voices reflects on 35 years at JHF join in song at Cantors Assembly gathering
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Sizzling into summer
NCSY fundraiser’s 35th year
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LOCAL Responsible journalism
p JHF incoming-President and CEO Danny Rosen and JHF President and CEO Karen Wolk Feinstein Photo courtesy of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer
Jacki Karsh comes to Pittsburgh
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LOCAL Caring for caregivers
JAA partners with RubyWell
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THEATER A different take on a classic
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hirty-five years of Jewish communal leadership have given Karen Wolk Feinstein countless memories. For Pittsburghers, Feinstein’s near double chai atop the Jewish Healthcare Foundation delivered an even greater impact. When the Squirrel Hill resident steps down from her role as president and CEO of JHF on July 1, she’ll have overseen the metamorphosis of a nascent local organization into an international model. Along with expanding a staff of three into 47, Feinstein furthered regional and global interests and advancements in patient safety, aging-related care, HIV/AIDS treatment, women’s health issues, teen mental health and workforce development. Staying true to those foci, granting autonomy to senior staffers and investing in relationships, she told the Chronicle, have been the hallmark of her tenure. That combination, along with persistence and clarity of vision, enabled Feinstein to not only bolster an organization built from the sale of a Jewish hospital but to transform herself from an academically trained professional into a socially conscious thought leader.
Where the tall corn grows
“Hamlet: The Bad Quarto”
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The seeds of Feinstein’s growth began in Iowa. Her father, Norman Sandler, was a Navy pilot from Des Moines. Shortly before the end of World War II, Sandler returned home for a furlough. Months later, he was shot down over Tokyo. At the time of Sandler’s death, his wife, Geraldine, was pregnant.
Geraldine gave birth to Feinstein and nearly four years later married Leonard Wolk, a clothing wholesaler. Geraldine and Leonard raised their blended family in a Squirrel Hill home on Northumberland Street. Feinstein attended Winchester Thurston School before majoring in American intellectual history at Brown University. As a college student, she joined the Civil Rights Movement and worked with the Urban League to secure voting rights and desegregate schools and housing. With an awareness of social responsibility, Feinstein earned a master’s degree from Boston College School of Social Work and a doctorate in economics from The Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. Early in her career, she administered Head Start programs in Worcester, Massachusetts, and held faculty positions at Boston College and Carnegie Mellon University. While teaching at CMU, Feinstein became a senior vice president at the United Way of Allegheny County and oversaw allocations, policy work and volunteerism — even the United Way’s helpline. When Montefiore Hospital was sold to UPMC for $145 million in 1990, Feinstein’s career path forever changed.
p Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers speaks to conference attendees. Photo by Adam Reinherz By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer
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Along with caring for all “regardless of race, ethnicity or background,” Montefiore had, according to the Heinz History Center’s Rauh Jewish Archives, delivered both “culturally sensitive” treatment to Jewish patients and “professional opportunities for Jewish
ven a room with vaulted ceilings can’t contain a multitude of voices. With chants climbing to the top of Saint Paul Cathedral in Oakland, five choruses, including singers from Pittsburgh and around the world, joined for an evening of memorable music. Delighting those packing the pews were choirs from Beit Kulanu, the Cantors Assembly Convention, Calvary Episcopal Church, Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts 6–12 and St. Paul Cathedral. The June 8 program, Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers said, “continues the message that has been part of the fabric of Pittsburgh: that we are all in this together and that we work together, and that’s how we build a better society.” Speaking with the Chronicle, Myers, Tree of Life Congregation’s rabbi and president of the Cantors Assembly, described multiple events — including the “Psalm Enchanted Evening” concert — tied to a June 7-11 Cantors Assembly convention. Some events, such as a roundtable discussion with thought leaders exploring the profession’s evolution and future were closed to the public. Other programs, such as several evening
Please see Feinstein, page 20
Please see Cantors, page 20
Start of something new
Charitable Giving
Special section begins on page 7
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