20 | SEPTEMBER 8 • 2022 

N

ancy Kaplan is a lifelong learner 
who has made it her mission to 
help others learn about and con-
nect with Judaism.
Recently retiring from her role 
at Congregation Beth Ahm in West 
Bloomfield, where she 
worked on rebuilding the 
daily minyan from 2007-2016 
and various adult learning 
initiatives, Kaplan is now 
enjoying more free time.
She’s looking forward to 
visiting her daughter Amy, 
son-in-law Oren and grand-
children Amarya, Levona and Raya in 
Israel very soon.

In addition, she’s also helping her son 
Dan make aliyah to Israel to be with his 
sister.

FINDING JUDAISM
While Kaplan, 75, of West Bloomfield has 
a close relationship to Judaism and has 
devoted much of her career to helping 
others create the same, it was a path she 
pursued on her own.
Growing up in a secular suburban 
Philadelphia family that she says wasn’t 
fond of organized religion, Kaplan, the 
oldest of four children, never went to 
Hebrew school.
Still, there was a growing interest in 
Judaism throughout her life that she 

couldn’t ignore.
In her 30s, while living in Brookline, 
Massachusetts, with her husband, Mike, 
Kaplan decided to attend Hebrew edu-
cation classes. There, she learned how to 
read prayerbook Hebrew, a goal she had 
always wanted to achieve since childhood.
After moving to Metro Detroit in 
August 1988 for her husband’s new 
job, Kaplan became involved with local 
synagogues. Over the years, she’s been 
involved with Temple Israel, Adat Shalom, 
Temple Beth El, B’nai Moshe and, most 
recently, Beth Ahm.
Although Kaplan has no formal creden-
tials in Jewish education, it was a career 
she pursued as a true consumer and avid 

OUR COMMUNITY

continued on page 22

Rabbi 
Steven 
Rubenstein

A Lifelong 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Learner

Nancy Kaplan, a force of nature for Judaism 
and Jewish education, retired from Beth Ahm.

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Nancy with her 
son, Dan, during 
his bar mitzvah 
rehearsal at Temple 
Beth El in 1991

