About Us | GatherDC

What is GatherDC?

GatherDC helps thousands of young adults across the DC-area find their people and place in our Jewish community. We are the one-stop-shop for everything 20s and 30s need to live their best Jewish life in DC. Whether you’re looking for Jewish events, people, synagogues, housing, jobs, rabbis, kosher food, or anything in between – we connect you.

Why Do We Gather?

– We envision a future where every Jewish 20- and 30-something finds a lasting, compelling connection to Judaism.

How Do We Gather?

– We form personal relationships with thousands of 20s/30s and introduce them to a vast network of DC-area young adults.

– We provide a comprehensive online list of local events, jobs, kosher food, housing, rabbis and more that make it easy for thousands of young adults to find their fit in the Jewish community.

– We create curated experiences to reach uninvolved young adults across Jewish DC.

– We meet young Jewish adults where they are, regardless of their future plans for marriage, children, or synagogue.

– We lead thought-provoking Jewish learning experiences that inspire a meaningful connection to Judaism.

– We serve as the pulse of the community, connection 20s/30s to the Jewish life that is right for them.

What Does Our Community Say?

“With no denominational or political agenda, Gather has emerged as the agreed-upon atlas for the DC Jewish community.” – The Slingshot selection committee

“When I moved to DC, I didn’t feel like a part of anything. I figured getting involved with the Jewish community could be a gateway to making friends, so I signed up for GatherDC’s Beyond the Tent retreat. Flash forward to today, I attend weekly learning sessions with Rabbi Aaron Potek (Gather’s Community Rabbi), facilitated a later Beyond the Tent retreat, and made most of my closest friends throught Gather” – Daniel W., age 25

“GatherDC introduced me to Jewish DC. When I became a Moishe House resident, Gather was my go-to resource to collaborate on programs. Gather has a great way of engaging those who are skeptical of or not engaged in Jewish life through meaningful programs that inspire deep connections. Through Gather’s Open Doors Fellowship, I met my closest friends, and developed personally and professionally.” – Tiffany., age 31

“It’s not lost on me how many of my amazing insights, experiences, and friendships in DC are owed to the hard work that GatherDC does, and that young adults across DC, including myself, get to benefit from it. “ – SJ., 28

What Do We Expect?

We are deeply dedicated to creating a culture of inclusivity, compassion, and respect across the DC Jewish community. It’s up to all of us to achieve this. We expect that as a participant at a GatherDC experience or member of our online community, you will treat each and every person with kindness.

We have zero tolerance for bullying, harassment, illegal activity, hate speech, violence, spam, abusive or threatening behavior of any kind. We have the right to remove you from our event or online community at our discretion if we feel that you are violating our Community Guidelines. If you feel that someone is violating these guidelines, please tell us at info@gatherdc.org or 202-656-0743.

Who Are We?

Rachel Gildiner
Executive Director

As GatherDC’s Executive Director, Rachel could easily be called “connector in chief,” as well. She loves making meaningful connections with people and using GatherDC’s extensive network of people, organizations, and programs to help people find the place where they feel most themselves, most welcome, and most valued in Jewish DC.

What else gets her excited? Baked goods, getting free return address labels from organizations she supports like the World Wildlife Federation, Jewish learning and new leadership books (nerd alert!), and seeing her three amazing (and objectively adorable) kids learn and grow every day.

Reach out to Rachel to learn more about GatherDC, or if you think you can finally teach her how to ride a bike.

Jackie Zais
Assistant Director

As GatherDC’s Assistant Director, Jackie helps navigate the day-to-day of the office and spearhead the programs our community has come to know and love. Every day, she gets to meet and connect amazing people in DC, dream up new ideas for our community, meet people for coffee, and help build vibrant Jewish life here in DC.

When she’s not crushing it at the GatherDC office or grabbing coffee with community members, you can catch her reading at the zoo, cooking a feast for friends, or making hysterical pop culture references that make every conversation a little more awesome.

Reach out to grab coffee to talk about Jewish life in DC… or your favorite band coming to town!

Rabbi Ilana Zietman
Community Rabbi

Rabbi Ilana loves meeting new people and creating real and meaningful connections with them. As GatherDC’s Community Rabbi, she is thrilled that she gets to meet young Jews all over the city. She loves exploring Jewish ideas that are relevant and alive for people in their 20’s and 30’s. Rabbi Ilana is excited to help people find their own unique connections to Judaism and Jewish life and create new expressions that are so needed today. She can’t wait to continue Gather’s work of creating spaces where people can question, explore, laugh, grow and find themselves and community. Whether you are new to DC or have been here for a while, Rabbi Ilana would love to meet you and is here to talk, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to her.

When Rabbi Ilana isn’t officially Gathering, she can be found cooking in her kitchen, practicing yoga, going on hikes, desperately searching for good pizza in DC (seriously, help her find some!) and watching a lot of tv.

Welcome Ilana to the staff and get to know her over coffee!

Allison Friedman
Communications Director

As the GatherDC Communications Director, Allison (you can call her Allie) manages Gather’s daily internal and external marketing efforts. She is always looking out for new, innovative ways to engage and connect with young adults wherever they are. Allison is a native of Potomac, Maryland and has five years of experience working in the Jewish nonprofit and marketing industries. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from The University of Michigan (go blue!) with a Bachelors of Communications Studies. Allison is deeply passionate about using integrated marketing and social media strategies to help Jewish organizations strengthen their engagement with community members in order to build a more vibrant and welcoming Jewish life.

When she’s not designing on Canva or posting on social media, she loves hiking in the great outdoors, whipping up new vegan recipes, watching reality television, and relaxing in Bethany Beach.

Reach out to Allie with ideas for blogs, social media posts, Jewish Person of the Week suggestions, or just to say hey!

Josef Palermo
30s Engagement Director

As GatherDC’s 30s Engagement Director, Josef leads Gather’s efforts to connect hundreds of 30-somethings across the DC area to each other, to Jewish opportunities, and to a meaningful adult Jewish identity. He spends his days meeting new folks over coffee, coming up with creative contemporary connections to ancient Jewish concepts, and collaborating with other organizations in the community to make intentional spaces and innovative experiences available for Jewish (and “Jew-curious”) folks in their 30s.

Outside of GatherDC, you’ll likely find Josef at the park with a good book, wandering around an art museum, checking out a new play, or on a scooter zipping across town.

Send him an email to connect over caffeine!

Julie Thompson
Office Manager

As GatherDC’s Office Manager, Julie helps keep Gather’s wheels turning behind the scenes. After three years working in administration and development for a local youth development nonprofit, she is excited to take the skills she learned and help the Gather team connect their Jewish peers to all of the awesome events, opportunities, and people that Jewish DC has to offer!

When Julie isn’t at the GatherDC office, she’s probably out with friends trying a new restaurant across DC, planning her next big trip to explore a new corner of the world, or snuggled in with a good book and her rescue cat, Chloe.

Reach out to Julie to grab coffee and find out about her skydiving adventures!

Alex Fosco
Community Coordinator

As GatherDC’s Community Coordinator, Alex strives to bring humor and fun into the daily grind. Alex has a firm belief in the unqiueness and individual value of every person’s Jewish journey. She wants to help them build solid foundations and connections so they can thrive in Jewish DC. Coming from a small Jewish community, she has first-hand experience at how challenging it can be to show up with your whole self and navigate the plethora of options for Jewish engagement in DC. In her role at Gather, Alex is excited to grab coffee with the diverse and vibrant Jews (and Jew-curious) young adults that are new to the area, and help them build meaningful connections.

When she’s not sprinting across the city to meet someone for coffee, you can find her exploring Georgetown, noshing at one of DC’s amazing restaurants, or traipsing through the Virginia wilderness with her friends.

Say hi and ask Alex about her love of costuming!

Want to Chat?

Looking to get involved in Jewish DC, but not sure where to begin?

Want to promote your upcoming Jewish program to a new audience?

Just want to meet a new friend in this big city?

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