Temple Beth-El Of Northbrook Names New Associate Rabbi

NORTHBROOK, IL — Temple Beth-El of Northbrook has appointed Rabbi Marina Yergin as its new associate rabbi.

Yergin will begin her tenure July 1, joining the congregation’s clergy team following a national search, according to Temple Beth-El.

She comes to Northbrook from Temple Beth-El in San Antonio, Texas, where she served as associate rabbi for the past 11 years. Temple Beth-El of Northbrook said Yergin has been recognized for her dedication to congregational life, Jewish learning, pastoral care and building relationships within the Jewish community.

A native of Hoffman Estates, Yergin grew up at Beth Tikvah Congregation and spent her formative summers at Olin Sang Ruby Union Institute. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota, where she studied Hebrew, sociology and Jewish studies, and was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in May 2015.

“We are thrilled to welcome Rabbi Yergin home to the Chicagoland area and to Temple Beth-El,” said Laurie Orenstein, executive director of Temple Beth-El of Northbrook. “Her warmth, experience, and passion for Jewish life will be a tremendous asset to our congregation. We look forward to the many ways she will inspire, teach, and connect with our community.”

Rabbi Sidney Helbraun, senior rabbi of Temple Beth-El of Northbrook, said Yergin’s professional accomplishments are matched by her personal qualities.

“We are so fortunate to bring Rabbi Yergin, a woman of tremendous strength, integrity, thoughtfulness, and caring, into our congregation,” Helbraun said. “Her time in San Antonio has given her the opportunity to share our Jewish tradition and values within and beyond the Jewish community. We look forward to her quickly becoming an integral part of our congregational family.”

Yergin said returning to the Chicago area and joining Temple Beth-El of Northbrook is especially meaningful.

“From my very first conversations with Temple Beth-El of Northbrook, I felt a genuine warmth, a love of learning, and a commitment to inclusion that make this congregation truly special,” Yergin said. “The opportunity to help people connect to Judaism, to one another, and to themselves is at the heart of why I became a rabbi, and I am honored to become part of this community’s next chapter.”

Yergin joins Temple Beth-El of Northbrook with her husband, Dave, and their two sons, Trevor and Joshua.

More information about Temple Beth-El of Northbrook is available at templebeth-el.org.