The Spark

Episode 71: How to Rekindle spaces for difficult conversations with Matthew Fieldman

I wanted to share a conversation with Matt Fieldman, executive director of Rekindle, that proves sometimes the most powerful movements start with one simple observation: our communities should stop working in parallel and start working in partnership. Matt's career has been a winding road through Jewish communal work—from leading Hillel services at University of Florida to volunteering in Israel, working for Federation in Cleveland and the Joint Distribution Committee in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 2020, standing on a Cleveland street corner watching the Jewish and Black communities run separate voter registration drives on opposite sides of the street, he had an epiphany: with so few resources and volunteer hours, we could be exponentially more effective working together. That observation became Rekindle, a space for Black and Jewish communities to build genuine relationships through difficult conversations. Starting with just his friends around a restaurant table, Rekindle now runs in 20 cities with over 400 alumni nationally and three full-time staff. Participants don't just walk away with good feelings. They start internship programs for Black youth at their businesses, join literacy programs, and invite each other to Shabbat tables and church services. Matt's lesson? Sometimes being a follower is just as important as being a leader, and there's a deep human need for connection that transcends our differences. When Black and Jewish folks ally, we become extremely powerful in fighting for democracy and civil rights.

Episode 70: How to Win Against Antisemitism with Yirmeyahu Yosef

I wanted to share a conversation with Yirmeyahu Yosef—host of That Jewish Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/that-jewish-podcast/id1779169768]—that beautifully illustrates how Jewish identity can be chosen, embraced, and lived with profound conviction. Yirmeyahu grew up Christian in rural Carbondale, Illinois, where Charlton Heston as Moses and Fiddler on the Roof were his only references to Judaism. Raised in the Church of God in Christ, he attended a Christian college in Memphis where his questions about scripture contradictions went unanswered. At 32, he left the church entirely and began a two-year conversion process with Rabbi Joel Finkelstein. He, his wife Chanah, and their three daughters compressed everything a Jewish child learns from age three to bar mitzvah into intense weekly sessions. A year ago, they completed conversion and even remarried in a Jewish ceremony with all three kids present. Now at Nike, Yirmeyahu navigates coworker questions about why he doesn't eat in the cafeteria or work Saturdays. He's open about his journey. His podcast, "That Jewish Podcast," evolved from personal spiritual journey into combating antisemitism through education. His philosophy: the biggest weapon against antisemitism is an educated Jewish person who knows their identity so deeply that no one can take it from them. What struck me most was his conviction that being Jewish is easier than converting—because now his future is in his hands, not waiting for approval. He chose Jewish day school for his daughters before even completing conversion because he understood its power in forming identity. As someone who deliberately chose this path, his perspective that Jewish education is about building the confidence kids need to face the world proudly knowing exactly who they are.

Episode 69: Memphis' Best Photographer from Bornblum with Eli Ostrow

"I was the textbook definition of ADHD. I color outside the lines." I wanted to share a conversation with Eli Ostrow [https://www.instagram.com/pixbyelij/?hl=en]that proves sometimes the best careers come from coloring outside the lines. Eli attended Bornblum as a self-described dork with a bowl cut, convinced he wasn't creative because he couldn't draw. He remembers crumpling up a coloring project in frustration because he couldn't stay inside the lines. Today, he's Memphis's favorite photographer—literally winning the Memphis Most award. He realized that with a camera, "you don't have to color in the lines anymore, they're already colored in." During COVID, he posted veteran advocacy videos wearing overalls to stand out, going viral and learning the algorithms. When an ex-girlfriend's sister told him to "never pick up a camera again," he kept shooting. When a 50-something photographer accused him of stealing clients, Eli realized: "If he's threatened by a 21-year-old entering the field, I'm doing something right." He started using negative feedback as fuel. Now in his third year as a full-time photographer, Eli captures people at weddings and bar mitzvahs, helps businesses reinvent their brands, and recently photographed a United Hatzalah concert featuring Eden Golan. He's passionate about lifting Memphis talent from within, believing the city deserves it. His advice? If you're going to fail, do it young.

Episode 68: The Special Needs Advocate Who Became a Jewish Storyteller with Benji Rosenzweig

"Finding Jewish joy isn't ignoring the pain—it's refusing to let pain be the only story." I wanted to share a conversation with Benji Rosenzweig [https://www.instagram.com/benjirosenzweig] that completely redefines what Jewish education can look like. Benji moved from Israel to Cleveland at age five and grew up Orthodox, the son of a rabbi. In tenth grade, during a yeshiva discussion about the Torah's perfection, he learned there are seven differences between Sephardic and Ashkenazi scrolls. When he pressed his teacher—they can't both be God's exact word if they're different—he realized he's an atheist who deeply believes in Judaism as community, culture, and peoplehood. He doesn't believe in God, but he believes Jewish culture is beautiful and worth celebrating, just like he believes Hindu or Native American cultures are worth celebrating without believing in their gods. His daughter Ellah was born with agenesis of the corpus callosum, missing the main bridge connecting her brain hemispheres. After four years of isolation, he discovered a Facebook community. During COVID, he posted videos of Ellah, who is nonverbal, singing along to Lizzo and Metallica while he played guitar. TEDx invited him to speak about using music to create language, which launched a consulting career teaching companies about nonverbal communication. For eight years he posted daily "morning mantras" with his older daughter on drives to school—affirmations that went viral and still hang as a poster in their home. He's also the founder of Storied, a live show combining storytelling with music through a Jewish lens, exploring contributions from the Beatles to grunge to reggae. At the recent reggae show featuring Matisyahu, a donor bought 100 tickets for students. They sold out 600 seats, with 95 young people learning about Jewish roots in Rastafarianism and Zion references throughout the music. Benji's teaching Jewish pride through joy—proving that education happens when stories make you proud to be part of this ancient, creative people, whether or not you believe in God.

Episode 67: The Enemy of Great with Alison Lebovitz

I wanted to share a conversation with Alison Lebovitz [https://www.alisonlebovitz.com/]—Emmy-nominated PBS host, motivational speaker, and author—that perfectly captures how the things we resist as children become our greatest gifts as adults. Alison grew up in Birmingham attending a Jewish day school in its infancy—literally a one-room school with partitions. She was the only girl in her graduating class of five and resented feeling socially isolated from the popular kids. Today, she realizes her parents gave her an extraordinary gift as pioneers of Southern Jewish education. Her path took her from Brandeis to Northwestern, then working for Coca-Cola during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where she met her Chattanooga husband. She now hosts a PBS show called "The A-List with Alison Lebovtiz" in its 17th season and runs a podcast with her comedian sister called Sis & Tell [https://www.sisandtell.com/]. Her approach to both? Don't let perfect be the enemy of great. The podcast went from kitchen joke to live in three days. Her most meaningful work is leading One Clip at a Time, extending the legacy of Tennessee's Paperclip Project. She started by collecting business cards at a Lion of Judah event where 75 women wanted to join something that barely existed. Sixteen years later, the organization runs Holocaust education programming in 37 states, Canada, and Israel. Everything meaningful in Alison's life traces back to that day school she once resented. She sight-reads Torah, speaks Hebrew, and for years hosted Shabbat dinners that became legendary with her sons and their friends. She wears "billboard sweaters" with messages like "Be Kind" because she wants to be a thermostat that changes the climate, not a thermometer that just measures it. She's built a life on curiosity, asking "what's your story?" and believing our shared stories unite more than divide us. Her only regret? Chattanooga doesn't have a day school beyond preschool. The foundation she once resisted became everything—proof that sometimes the gifts we push against become the ones we're most grateful for.