Clergy
Rabbi Steven Edelman-Blank received his Ordination from the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, CA. Previously, Rabbi Edelman-Blank graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Studies. His eclectic experience includes interning at Burbank Temple Emanu El in Burbank, California, directing youth programs at Congregation Beth El in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, assisting with research in the field of psychology at Boston University, serving in AmeriCorps and an array of community service. Rabbi Edelman-Blank’s passions lie in community development and making Torah meaningful in our daily lives. Rabbi Edelman-Blank’s wife, Deborah, is a clinical psychologist in Des Moines.
Cantor Deborah Bletstein earned her Cantorial Investiture and Master in Sacred Music from the H.L. Miller Cantorial School at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York, NY. Cantor Bletstein previously received a Master of Music degree from Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor of Music with distinction from Ohio Northern University. Cantor Bletstein has served as guest hazzan, speaker, and scholar-in-residence at numerous congregations throughout the United States, and is sought after as a concert artist for her ability to seamlessly cross over genres of opera, musical theatre, classical hazzanut, contemporary Jewish music, jazz, pop and folk stylings. Cantor Bletstein is a proud member of both the Cantors’ Assembly and the American Conference of Cantors.
Cantor Emeritus Pinchas Spiro, z”l received his Cantorial Ordination from the Jerusalem Cantorial Institute. He previously attended the Julliard School of Music and graduated from Syracuse University. Cantor Spiro’s musical talents placed him in the forefront of Jewish musical liturgy in the United States. Cantor Spiro served congregations in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Cleveland as well as authoring numerous books in the field of Jewish liturgical music. Among the major works that Cantor Spiro introduced to Tifereth Israel and the Des Moines community include: Retell the Story, a Hanukkah musical, the oratorios Haggadah and Havdalah, and the premiere of the Kristallnacht Oratorio Stars in the Dust.