S’lichot Program & Service

From Out of the Depths, Finding Hope: Lessons and Reflections from Sha’ar HaNegev About Finding the Courage to Hope Again  Presented by Heidi Gantwerk, President and CEO, Jewish Federation of San Diego and Beloved Congregant

Join Heidi Gantwerk as she delves into the theme of this year’s High Holy Days: From Out of the Depths, Finding Hope. Following the October 7th attack and the ongoing chaos and trauma, hope can feel elusive. Families in Sha’ar HaNegev and throughout Israel are still grappling with how to envision a future. This journey is not linear; it requires us to engage with barriers to hope and moments of doubt and despair.
In this program, Heidi will examine the ways in which the partnership between the San Diego Jewish community and Sha’ar HaNegev has brought moments of pain and moments of hope on both sides. Together we will explore how we think about hope, and what experiences or actions have helped to pull us out of the depths, this year, and throughout our lives.

View the S’lichot Program & Service online (YouTube).

Heidi Gantwerk is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Jewish Federation of San Diego County. Prior to joining Federation, Heidi served as the founder and principal of HG Consulting Group, LLC.  where she served as a longtime consultant to Federation and many Jewish organizations.

At HG Consulting, Heidi provided customized design and facilitation for the public and private sectors, with diverse clients including the San Diego Airport Authority, the Port of San Diego, the Cities of Vista and Carlsbad, and she focused in particular on San Diego’s Jewish agencies and organizations. Clients included the Jewish Community Foundation, Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, Jewish Community Farming Initiative, Leichtag Foundation, The Butterfly Project, Hillel of San Diego, and many others.

Previously, Ms. Gantwerk was Vice President of Viewpoint Learning for 10 years, where she led work in civic engagement and public policy research, building on a background in community relations and media production combined with experience as a foundation program officer.

She is an expert at leading strategic planning processes, community and stakeholder dialogue, scenario development and civic engagement.

Ms. Gantwerk holds a B.A. in psychology from Yale University. She has been a highly engaged lay leader in San Diego’s Jewish Community for nearly two decades, most recently as Board Chair of the San Diego Jewish Academy, and as a board member of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture and Hillel of San Diego. She was born in Israel and is one of the team of musical service leaders at Congregation Beth Israel. She lives in San Diego with her husband and has 3 adult sons.