Rabbi Erez Farkas

Home » About Us » Teachers » Rabbi Erez Farkas

The Aish Couple: Erez and Jane Farkas

By: Amanda Buckstein

Rabbi Farkas and his wife Jane have been working as one of the Rabbinic couples with Aish Campus for the past two and a half years.

Jane, who was born in Siberia and Erez, who was born in Forest Hill, were not raised in an observant background, but both found themselves attracted and interested in learning more about Judaism after a Birthright trip. Again, they followed the same path in choosing Aish HaTorah as the vehicle through which they learned and discovered more about their heritage. Erez studied for 5 years in Aish HaTorah Jerusalem where he obtained his Rabbinic ordination.

In June 2006, Jane and Erez both took the opportunity to become madrichim on a Jersusalem Fellowships trip. It was on this trip where they were introduced to each other by their good friends, the beloved Rabbi Mark and Rachel Zelunka. Jane and Erez married in May 2007, and are now the parents of a beaufiful baby boy.

As one of the Aish Campus Rabbis, Erez along with his wife Jane lead and organize trips to Israel and other venues for campus students, run the Maimonides Program and others at U of T, Guelph and McMaster, teach classes, learn one-on-one, host Shabbat and holiday meals. With Rabbi Mark Zelunka, the Aish Campus Director, and the other Rabbis and their wives, Erez and Jane are part of a vibrant and exciting team working and educating Toronto University students.

Meet Jane and Erez Farkas. The two have been working for Aish Ha’Torah, leading Jewish youth in Toronto, since 2007. What you and most other people don’t realize is that they haven’t always been with Aish, nor were either of them observant religious Jews. In Jane’s case, she wasn’t even Jewish at all.

Jane was born in Siberia, and shortly after moved with her family to Israel. Her family then picked up and moved to Thornhill, where they lived a very secular life, up until her mother told her she wasn’t really Jewish. Jane took it in stride; it didn’t faze her, because she really believed she didn’t have any connection to being a Jew.

When Jane turned eighteen, she went on Birthright where she took advantage of everything the trip had to offer including the Jewish educational program. When she returned home, she realized that she had fallen in love with Judaism. Jane wanted more, and that’s when she rather accidentally found Aish Ha’Torah. They provided her with books to study, and she began taking some classes including the Maimonides program. It was at this point that Jane began the conversion process to become Jewish.

Erez, on the other hand, grew up as a non-observant Jew in Foresthill. After graduating from high school, he found himself at McMaster studying business. When he realized a business degree wasn’t what he wanted, he decided to spend some time on a Kibbutz in Israel to figure things out. Like a lot of young Jews, Erez applied for Birthright and planned on extending his trip to stay on a Kibbutz. Once he arrived in Israel, someone approached him and said, “why stay on Kibbutz, you won’t figure things out there.” Erez agreed, and he began researching Yeshiva’s. This is when he found Aish Ha’Torah, where he studied for five years learning to become a Rabbi.

In June 2006, Jane and Erez both took the opportunity to become madrichim on a Jersusalem Fellowships trip, where they met when introduced by their good friends, Mark and Rachel Zelunka. The two married in May 2007, and since then they have been leading their own trips to Israel and have their own students in the Maimonides program. They both love what they do and are truly an inspiration to Jewish youth. Together they share their passions, and are able to pass them along to others, which is the best part of it all!!

Rabbi Farkas can be reached at 416-880-3981or by email at efarkas@aish.com.
Jane Farkas can be reached at 416-995-0130 or by email at jfarkas@aish.com.

  

Home | About Us | Calendar | Branches | Donate | Site Map | Contact

Copyright © Aish Toronto. All rights reserved.