April 22, 2026
As you may recall, we announced to the congregation last fall that Julie Sapper would be retiring from her role as Director of Musical Programming at the end of May. I am pleased to share that Debbie Costa, our longtime Cantorial Soloist, will become our new Director of Musical Programming beginning June 1.
In the fall, the Beth Tikvah Board of Trustees appointed a small task force to work with me on this transition. Members of the task force included Ted Fons, Clint Koenig, Cindy Barker, Barb Mindel, Scott Gordon, Aaron Taylor, Rabbi Martin, and Morissa Freiberg-Vance. Together, we evaluated the strengths of our current music program and reflected on opportunities for growth. We determined that our priorities include valuing our longtime staff, maintaining continuity in our music, and fostering continued innovation.
As Director of Musical Programming, Debbie will continue to serve as Cantorial Soloist for approximately half of our Friday evening services and half of our Shabbat morning B’nai Mitzvah services. She will also direct our Shironim and other vocal ensembles and coordinate all musical programming. Our longtime Cantorial Soloist, John Stefano, will continue in his role and lead the other half of our Friday evening and Shabbat morning services. We are close to hiring an accompanist who will become part of our regular Shabbat worship experience, and over the summer we will also hire a Religious School Music Teacher. Julie will continue to be part of our prayer life a few times each year, including our Shabbat Neshama prayer experience.
We are all excited for Debbie’s leadership. She has served as our Cantorial Soloist since 2015 and has been one of our B’nai Mitzvah mentors for the past three years. Debbie has been an incredible partner and has contributed greatly to making our prayer services meaningful. She brings many years of experience directing synagogue choirs, including at Temple Beth Shalom, and she directed choirs and assisted with bands in the Licking Heights Local School District for more than 20 years. In addition, Debbie serves as an adjudicator for band and student music performances. For over a decade, our community has benefited from her leadership, her voice, and her musical expertise, and we look forward to her continued partnership for many years to come.
We hope you will join us on Friday evening, May 29, at 7:15 p.m. as we celebrate Julie’s retirement. A formal invitation will be forthcoming.
With blessing,
Rabbi Rick Kellner