Young Israel of St. Louis will hold its Annual Dinner on Tuesday, June 13 at the Clayton Plaza Hotel in Clayton.

The shul will honor Jonty and Juli-Ann Felsher for their leadership at Young Israel for more than 30 years. 

“For over three decades, since their arrival as newlyweds from Johannesburg in 1993, Jonty and Juli-Ann have been at the center of the Young Israel family, welcoming new members, raising their children here, supporting their children’s Jewish education at Epstein Hebrew Academy, and being ambassadors for Jewish life in St. Louis and particularly the Young Israel community,” a news release noted. 

In addition to various board roles in the past, Jonty has served as Young Israel’s president for the past seven years, the congregation’s longest consecutive run as president. Young Israel is welcoming a new, incoming president, Max Oppenheimer.

Jonty is co-founder of RPI Therapy Services, a multidisciplinary rehab company providing Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapy and Wellness Services in outpatient clinics and senior retirement communities in St. Louis, the Metro East and Chicago. Juli-Ann is a realtor in St. Louis. The couple has three children, Joshua, Gabriel and Adam.

Rabbi Moshe Shulman of Young Israel praised the couple’s dedication to the shul. About Jonty, Shulman noted, “There isn’t a part of a Synagogue operation that didn’t benefit from Jonty’s dedication, care for details, and vision, from youth programming and adult education to board management and fiscal responsibility.  He led by example, and that’s the strongest kind of leadership.” 

Shulman said Juli-Ann is “the best ambassador we could have. She greets people with an extraordinary smile and makes them feel like they are instantly her best friend. Sometimes she serves literally as the first point of contact with the community, and we are truly blessed.” 

For more information about the Young Israel gala, contact the shul office at 314-727-1880 or email [email protected].