Michael Prival studied at the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism to become a Madrikh (leader) in our movement, and is currently a member of the Board of Governors of the Institute.
Michael and his wife, Joan, joined Machar around 1982. Michael soon found himself teaching in our Sunday school, which, at that time, had a total of three students, two of whom were his children. Raised as a secular Jew, teaching at our school was his first serious encounter with the Bible, and led to his writing of a book to help nonreligious people teach the Bible to children. He has officiated at numerous weddings, funerals, and other life cycle events; given many talks at our High Holiday services; served as chair of our Social Action Committee; and enjoyed being a part of Machar as it grew and promoted positive human values. Now blissfully retired from his paying career as a microbiologist at the FDA and from most of his Machar responsibilities, Michael looks forward to leading some adult education activities each year. He currently serves as chair of the Liturgy and Rabbi Committees, mentor of the Evening Study Group, and e-mail List Manager.
Congregational Administrator
Jackie Kropman
Will and his wife Marty have two daughters who both were a bat mitzvah at Machar. They have been members of Machar since 2017.
Outside of Machar, Will is President/CEO of DTSV, Inc., a 1,300 person federal government services contractor specializing in high-volume application processing and security support services.
Will is a member of Young Presidents’ Organization and of the Virginia Bar. Will received his MBA and JD, cum laude, from the University of Pittsburgh, and his BA from the University of Virginia.
Joyce previously served as board secretary and as an At Large member. Joyce also helps with Machar’s public relations effort. She and her husband Greg Rosenthal, joined Machar in 1998; their children, Ellen and Mitchell, both attended Machar’s Jewish Cultural School and went through the b’nei mitzvah program. Joyce especially enjoys attending Machar’s Adult Education programming.
Elaine was born in Kiev, Ukraine where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. In 1990 she came to the US with her then 13-year-old daughter as a refugee where they were supported and guided by HIAS all throughout the immigration process.
Elaine and her daughter settled in Philadelphia, PA where she earned a technical degree in computer science while working full time and supporting her family of two. Elaine married Bill Terwilliger in 1996 and then lost him to a pancreatic cancer in 2007.
Later she met Barry Dancis, who introduced her to secular Judaism. Elaine and Barry were active members of the Jewish Children’s Folkshul of Philadelphia, a secular school and adult community. They moved to Maryland in 2010 after their wedding and became members of Machar.
Since retiring in 2018 – after working in the IT department at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for 19 years – she became an entrepreneur, buying and renovating houses for rental.
Elaine has been leading Machar’s WITs group and is a supportive member of the Social Action committee. She is a trained volunteer in HIAS, where she is involved in the refugee program.
Larry Lawrence joined Machar in 1995 when his daughter, Liz Lawrence, enrolled in the Jewish Cultural School. Liz was Bat Mitzvahed in 1999. Larry was a member of the Machar Board in the early 2000s, serving as Treasurer for several years. Larry also became a member of the Society for Humanistic Judaism’s (SHJ) board and served as SHJ President for two years, 2014-2016. Larry retired from a career in information technology (especially improving transparency in financial regulation) in 2012 and since then has taken many adult education courses at American University’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. With his wife, Amy Kotkin, Larry’s other retirement activity is domestic and international travel to France (repeatedly), New Zealand, Central Europe, Oregon, and the West Coast.
Cathy’s parents escaped Nazi Germany in 1938, and raised her in a very secular household. (Cathy’s mom: “Tell me what being Jewish got us?”) As an interfaith family, she and her husband, David, were happy to find Machar in 2000. Their son and daughter both attended JCS and were b’nai mitvah’ed in group services at Machar. After several years away, Cathy and David rejoined Machar in 2020. Cathy has been active on the Social Action Committee, Machar Sisters, and served on the Board since 2023. She is a retired Clinical Psychologist, long time activist, and volunteers for immigrant rights.
Cathy Bergmann is serving as an At Large Board member Expand Amy Tryon is an At Large Board Member Expand
Elaine Dancis is the current Machar SHJ Representative. Expand
In addition to being the Rabbinic Liason, Darlene has served as chair of the Book Club for several years and is an active member of WiTs. She has worked for the Federal Government for almost 30 years and currently is a foreign affairs analyst for the Department of State with a focus on Russia. A Los Angeles native, she has a B.A. in political science from University of California, Berkeley, and an M.A. in international affairs from The American University. Darlene loves to travel and explore local crafts. She inherited her father’s love for photography and enjoys taking loads of pictures of her journeys. Darlene lives in Silver Spring with her cats Tolstoy and Anna.
Larry Lawrence serves as a member of the Board of the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism. He is a Past President of the Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ). Expand
Larry Lawrence joined Machar in 1995 when his daughter, Liz, started at the JCS. Liz was Bat Mitzvah in 1999. Larry was a member of the Machar Board in the early 2000s, serving as Treasurer for several years, Larry also became a member of the board of the Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ). He left the Machar Board to serve as SHJ President for two years, 2014-2016. Larry retired from a career in Information Technology (Financial Regulation) in 2012 and since then has taken many adult education courses at American University and has begun studying French.
Marlene Cohen serves as an SHJ Board of Directors member. Expand
Marlene serves on the SHJ Education Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee. She is excited about the strategic plan’s focus on increased technology communication. She is a former Jewish Cultural School Director and Vice President of Machar. Currently, she co-chairs Machar’s Adult Education Committee, chairs the New Members Committee, and works on special projects. She’s in her 30th year as a professor of communication at Prince George’s Community College and for 6 years has been its coordinator of the International Education Center, which gives one-on-one support to immigrant and visa students. Husband Michael Kidwell was raised Methodist but is a secularist who enjoys Machar; he just won’t eat the gefilte fish. Son Alex Kidwell lives in Baltimore. He was schooled and Bar Mitzvahed in Machar; his religious beliefs mirror those of Bill Maher’s in Religulous.
Rick Gold serves as an SHJ Board of Directors Member. Expand
Rick joined Machar in 1999, and also serves as Prior Past President, a member of the Adult Education Committee, and chair of the Social Action Committee. He assists organizations that implement rule of law and human rights programs for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other international donors. He retired from USAID in 2008 after 29 years, having served in Senegal, Morocco, Mali, the Philippines, and Egypt. Rick comes from Pikesville, MD, where he was confirmed by Baltimore Hebrew Congregation (Reform). He visits Jewish communities during his travels and has written articles and lectured about the Jews of Morocco, Egypt, and Timbuktu. Rick is married to a Moroccan Muslim, Bouchra Chati. They were married in Gibraltar and own a house in Morocco. Their children, Sarah and Adam, attended Machar’s Jewish Cultural School.