My name is Leah Golomb. Actually I used to be called Lori Levy. Born and raised in the U.S.A. in New Jersey, I went to Jewish Day schools from Kindergarten till 12th grade. My parents raised us 4 kids in a Modern Orthodox home although both my parents were baalei teshuvah at a time when teshuvah wasn’t a byword.

My father,z’l, was my first teacher who taught me to question what I hear and what I see and to think for myself. He also imbued me with a sense of the comfort of faith. My Mom still teaches me about courage and perseverance and the richness of family ties.

Some of my school teachers helped me on my path. Rabbi Teitz,z’l, the Dean of the JEC (yes, I am a Bruriah graduate of the class of ’71) forced me to even question the use of my own intelligence as my guide. Reb Moshe honed my brain as my teacher and chavruta for a year of delving into the depths of Torah, especially Gemora (the Talmud).

When I met Reb Shlomo Carlebach,z’l, I felt I had met my rebbe. Reb Shlomo taught me how to learn and encouraged me to teach. His gift of looking inside each and everyone of us and actually seeing the potential of our special souls gave me the courage and the inspiration to plumb the depths of my soul and the heights of Torah. Reb Shlomo gave me the ability to trust my own learning.

I have been giving over Torah for 30 years – always praying for it, always refining myself and the torahs I teach and always weaving the tapestry of my life within the Torah I am learning.

Hashem has blessed me greatly to have met and recognized my soul mate and partner Michael. Together we have been blessed to build a home based on Avodat Hashem (service of Hashem) and Shalom Bayit. We have 6 incredible children and 4 beautiful grandchildren. My children have been amazing teachers to me – teaching me diligence, responsibility, patience, worry, faith and so much love. Michael has been the person who is consistently and constantly standing with me, laughing with me, crying with me. He has taught me much about sharing and letting our veils down and about dedicating our complete selves to Hashem and of course, about not being afraid.

All my family and friends and fellow journeyers and the many women and men who come and have ever come to my shiurim have taught me about being humble and open and have inspired me to inspire them.

Sooooooo,

This is my intro to who I am. I have been a mikva lady for over 22 years, I have been a Kalla teacher for many years, I have taught swimming in the U.S. and in Israel for many years and I have had numerous crazy jobs and positions throughout the years. I have raised 6 kids on a moshav when our main source of income still remains a mystery to me. I have placed my trust in Hashem and I know He has given me a gift to give over Torah in a way that inspires and encourages and touches the people who hear me. I never make light of this gift, but rather I try to constantly be worthy of it.

I teach in many settings in Israel and in America ( occasionally)  but by far I think the most successful and ongoing classes are the ones in which different special women have opened their homes to me and the many people who come to hear me teach based on the Jewish months, holidays and weekly Torah portions.

About My Classes CHOCHMAT HALEV — WISDOM OF THE HEART In building the Holy Mishkan in the desert all the people who were involved in making parts of it including the design and the weavings and so on, they were all called “wise of heart”. I learn with my heart and I teach from my heart. However we cannot act only from heart. We are taught that we must also use our minds to make decisions, to make choices. My heart can also lead me astray and so I must become wise of the heart in order to live Torah. Wisdom is culled from experience and from desire to learn from before and it is also inspired by our dreams of the future. My heart can act in the moment and therefore is my true expression of myself in this very moment. I chose to call this website “Wisdom of the Heart” because it rings true for me as the best way I would describe the experiential learning that I do within the classes I teach. I hope you will agree.