20 | JANUARY 4 • 2024 J
N

W

hen Temple Kol 
Ami’s Rabbi 
Natalie Shribman 
first told her parents about 
her installation weekend, 
the response was, “What’s an 
installation?” This being the 
first installation experience 
for either her or her husband, 
Rabbi Benjamin Altshuler, 
the rabbi struggled with an 
answer! 
So, her mother did some 
research and shared with 
Shribman that a rabbinic 
installation “is a sacred 
occasion where the rabbi, the 
congregational leadership 
and the entire congregation 
come together to express 
their commitment to the 
future of their synagogue and 
the Jewish people,” Shribman 
said. 
“The installation 
proclaims a new chapter 
has begun for both the 
rabbi and the congregation. 
This installation is a 
time to review, recount 
and reenact the history 
of the congregation and 
highlight the significant 
accomplishments of the 

congregation.”
And with that, she 
chose the Shabbat during 
Chanukah for her special 
weekend because “when 
lighting the chanukiah, we 
use the shamash to light. 
The shamash creates the 
light and the beauty of the 
holiday. In an installation, 
the congregation becomes 
that shamash to create the 
celebration.”
Shribman invited two of 
her mentors, Rabbi Ron 
Symons and Rabbi Gila 
Ruskin, to participate in the 

special Friday night Shabbat 
service. Shribman has known 
Rabbi Symons for 15 years, 
having grown up with him 
and then shadowing him 
for a year at Temple Sinai in 
Pittsburgh. 
“He would take me to 
funerals, weddings, adult 
education, to name a few. He 
would then spend time with 
me reflecting, helping me 
learn that this could be a job 
I could do and really enjoy,” 
she said.

Ruskin (who grew up 
at Temple Kol Ami) was 
Shribman’s assigned rabbinic 
mentor from ordination and 
advised her to apply for the 
TKA job.
“(She) has mentored 
me through the Central 
Conference of American 
Rabbis for four years,” 
Shribman said. “She has 
supported me through some 
challenging job changes in 
Wisconsin and has always 
helped me realize my impact.”

OUR COMMUNITY

Rabbi Natalie 
Shribman 
Installed at 
Temple Kol Ami 

She is only the fourth senior 
rabbi in TKA’s 57 years.

PAUL GROSS SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

Rabbi Ron Symons 
blessed Rabbi Shribman 
and handed her the Torah.

Rabbi Shribman with her family, who traveled in from San Francisco, 
Chicago and Pittsburgh for the installation weekend