Andrea Sonnenberg is a mental health advocate, attorney, and educator dedicated to advancing youth wellness through advocacy, storytelling, and systemic change. She is the co-founder and former CEO of Wise Readers to Leaders, where she spent over a decade addressing educational inequities in underserved communities.

After the tragic loss of her son, Bradley, Andrea turned her focus to mental health advocacy—raising awareness, reducing stigma, and influencing policy through public speaking, storytelling, and coalition-building. She produced the podcast Getting Thru and co-founded the Bradley Sonnenberg Wellness Initiative at USC, a model for student wellness now expanding nationwide.

As founder of the LA Youth Mental Health Coalition, Andrea brings together major institutions to address the youth mental health crisis. She is currently leading the launch of LA’s first-ever Youth Mental Wellness Day in May 2025.

Andrea serves on several nonprofit boards, including the Jewish Community Foundation and NAMI, and advises organizations focused on children’s mental health. A certified Narrative Medicine practitioner, she is also the author of children’s books that introduce mental health concepts in a compassionate, accessible way.

Andrea graduated cum laude from the USC Marshall School of Business in Finance and received her J.D. from Loyola Law School.

Laurie Bahar has dedicated much of her adult life to philanthropy, and local civic and non-profit work. After having children and leaving her full-time career in the retail business, Laurie worked with others in her Encino community to improve their neighborhood public elementary school. She stayed involved with Lanai Road School throughout her sons’ elementary school years, managing the school’s booster club,raising significant funds annually for programming, facilities, and staff.

Laurie expanded her philanthropic efforts at The Sherwood Foundation, established by her grandparents to support the community and encourage a sense of philanthropy in future family generations. Laurie eventually became the foundation president and continues to serve in this role.

Additionally, Laurie is involved in leadership with The SAM Initiative, a local woman’s giving circle.  In this capacity Laurie has gained an appreciation for the collaborative giving model, finding satisfaction in working with like-minded women who aim to give back and positively impact the community.

Laurie was born and raised in Los Angeles and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earning a degree in journalism. She and her husband Ron are empty nesters in Encino, and love spending time with family and friends, especially their two grown sons who live nearby.

Jeremy Rosen is a partner at Horvitz & Levy LLP, where he specializes in civil appeals in state and federal appellate courts.  His cases have involved numerous important issues regarding anti-trust, environmental law, class actions, wage and hour law, employment law, breach of contract, intellectual property, California’s Unfair Competition Law, CEQA, the enforceability of arbitration clauses, hospital peer review, the scope of public employee whistleblower protection, and the application of the primary assumption of risk doctrine. He is also nationally renowned for his proficiency in numerous issues arising under the First Amendment and California’s anti-SLAPP law. Using that knowledge, Jeremy has helped a wide variety of clients – including churches, private businesses, and individuals – defeat lawsuits that seek to impose liability on clients for exercising their rights of petition, free speech, and free exercise of religion.  Mr. Rosen received his J.D. and L.L.M. in International and Comparative Law from the Duke University School of Law, where he graduated magna cum laude and Order of the Coif. He received his B.A. from Cornell University where he graduated magna cum laude and was involved in Phi Beta Kappa. Upon graduation from law school, he served as a judicial law clerk to the Hon. Ferdinand F. Fernandez on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and for the Hon. Wm. Matthew Byrne, Jr. on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. He served as President of Stephen Wise Temple from 2023 to 2025.

Lauren Campbell was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. After graduating from U.C. Berkely, Lauren worked in Chicago for several years before pursuing her M.B.A. at Chicago Booth. Lauren returned to L.A. to work for Nestle USA and worked there for 20 years in a variety of roles in Marketing, International Business, Corporate Strategy and Innovation. She is presently the CMO of Firefly Recovery, an athletic recovery company.

Lauren has five children and is active in philanthropic pursuits. She served on the Friends of Lanai Board, the Head of School Leadership Council at Viewpoint School and chaired the Youth Education Committee at Leo Baeck Temple for many years. Lauren was an advisory board member at the USC Marshall School of Business Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab for 10 years and also served as an advisory board member of Influential.

Nancy Epstein is a long-time Los Angeles resident and a Stephen Wise Temple member.  She is passionate about working with children, having created parent/toddler programs for synagogues and churches in Brentwood and across the San Fernando Valley.  She has also mentored underserved teens and served as a life coach for young girls.  Nancy has been an active and dedicated volunteer for Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, Vista Del Mar and Assistance League, among other organizations.  Her newest endeavor is serving as a Big Sister for Jewish Big Brothers & Big Sisters of Los Angeles.

Steven Fishman has lived in Los Angeles his entire life and attended UCLA (’78). He and his wife Jodie have been married for forty six years, have three children, and seven grandchildren. Steve has been very involved in Jewish Community leadership for a long time and has served as the president of Stephen Wise Temple and Schools where his family has been a member for the past twenty-five years. He also serves on the Board of the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, is chair of the Finance & Administration Committee, and member of the executive, real estate, strategic planning and distribution, budget, and risk committees.  Steve is also a very strong supporter of AIPAC, a national board member of Birthright Israel and Elnet.  Steve is also on the board of Wise Readers to Leaders, an emeritus board member of the National Board of Governors of Hebrew Union College, a board member of the Impact Forum, and a supporter of JINSA. He is also a trustee of the Washington Institute. He is the managing partner of the tax, accounting and advisory firm of Fishman, Block + Diamond, by Cerity Partners, and has practiced for 40 years.

Lori Goodman, originally from Toronto, Canada, has been a member of Stephen Wise Temple for 43 years. She joined the Temple Board of Directors in 2017, its Executive Committee in 2020 and is a member of the Development and Tikkun Olam Committees.

She has volunteered with Wise Readers to Leaders, assisting in the classrooms and reading stories to scholars. Lori was instrumental in arranging a field trip for 140 Readers to UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance to participate in a interactive and educational arts experience sponsored by Design for Sharing. Lori also serves on the Anti-Defamation Art Works committee.

She has been on the board of Wise Readers to Leaders since 2020 and is grateful to be a part of such a wonderful organization helping underserved children to succeed and flourish.

Dana Perel Katz is a lifelong Angeleno with a degree in Political Science from Tufts University. After a 17-year career in commercial real estate at CBRE, specializing in landlord and tenant representation, she shifted her focus to family and community service.

Dana has served on the board of the Collins & Katz Family YMCA for over 25 years, including 11 years as Board Chair, and continues to co-chair its Community Partnerships and Board Development Committees. She also serves on the Board of Governors Steering Committee for the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles.

In 2007, Dana and her family founded UCLA Health Operation Mend, providing free medical and psychological care to post-9/11 veterans. As Director of Community Engagement and Buddy Programs (2007–2024), she helped build the program’s national volunteer base and co-created the Buddy Program with her husband, Todd. She also co-founded the Operation Mend Board of Advisors in 2019.

Dana currently serves on the boards of UCLA Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Wise Readers to Leaders, and UCLA Women & Philanthropy. Each summer, she and Todd volunteer as directors of a YMCA resident camp in Big Bear.

Dana and Todd have four grown children, two dogs, and a tank full of fish.

Martine Singer is the President and CEO of Children’s Institute, a social impact organization that works in communities impacted by decades of racism and underinvestment.  CII helps children and families achieve educational success and emotional wellbeing through early education, counseling, parenting support and other resources.  She oversees one of LA’s oldest and largest child and family agencies, managing an annual budget of $110 million and 1,000 staff.  Martine was previously President and CEO of Para Los Niños and held executive positions with several global media companies, serving as the founder and publisher of the first foreign-language edition of The New York Times and launching the Los Angeles Times’ first online edition. A native New Yorker, she holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and an MBA from the Yale School of Management, where she was named a Donaldson Fellow in 2024.   She is one of the few nonprofit leaders to have received the school’s highest honor, sharing in the Donaldson Fellows’ dedication to solving complex problems and pursuing positive change in the world.

Martine serves on the boards of the California Behavioral Health Association, Eisner Health and Wise Readers to Leaders.

Glenn Sonnenberg is President and CEO of LaSalle Debt Investors, Inc., a real estate investment firm specializing in debt products. He also is President if Latitude Real Estate Holdings, a real estate equity investment company. Previously, he was CEO of Prudential Carbon Mesa and ING Real Estate Investors.

Glenn serves on the Board Directors of several community non-profits including Bet Tzedek—the House of Justice, the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, Wayfinder Family Services, the Children’s Institute, the AJC, Wise Readers to Leaders, and the Center Theatre Group.  Glenn is co-chair of the annual USC Law School Forum on Real Estate Law and Business and serves on the Board of Counselors of the USC Law School.  Glenn has been awarded the Bet Tzedek Founder’s Award, the USC Alumni Award, the Los Angeles Jewish Federation Maimonides Torch of Justice, the Claremont McKenna College Debate Award, the USC Libraries Ex Libris Award and the USC Law Real Estate Lifetime Achievement Award.

A graduate of the University of Southern California, B.A. 1977, history, magna cum laude, phi beta kappa, Mr. Sonnenberg also received his J.D. in 1980 from USC.  Mr. Sonnenberg began his career as a real estate and finance partner in the Los Angeles law firm of Allen, Matkins, Leck, Gamble and Mallory.

Rabbi Ron Stern has been serving Stephen Wise Temple for 27 years. He is the Co-Founder, along with Andrea Sonnenberg of the original Wise Freedom School which has become the Wise Readers to Leaders independent program. In addition to serving as a pastoral, pulpit, and educational rabbi of Stephen Wise, he also directs the Center for Tikkun Olam—the department that directs all of Wise’s social and community justice work. As such, Rabbi Stern is charged with the task of broadening and deepening the social justice commitment of the congregation. He has expanded the reach of the congregation into several partnership organizations including: Reform CA (Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism); Hope the Mission (homeless services), IsraAid, and the VA’s homelessness initiatives. Rabbi Stern also works with a range of organizations, as well as the a Wise Task Force, to combat the rise in antisemitism in the US over the past few years. He continues to support Wise Readers to Leaders as an important partner for the engagement of our Wise youth and young adult community. Its combined goals of improving the lives of our fellow citizens in Los Angeles and providing the Jewish community with a means of communal service are the true realization of Tikkun Olam.  He also serves as vice-chair of the board of Hope the Mission.