Get to know our 2024 Board Members!
The CBH Board of Directors is an engaged group of dedicated members. Our interest is to help guide and support our congregation. If you would like to know more about the CBH Board, please contact our president, Peter Isbister.
Peter Isbister, President: I am honored to serve as CBH Board President for two years starting this year. My family and I joined CBH in 2009, shortly after we arrived in Atlanta because we were moved by the CBH mission of inclusivity, social justice and (for us) allyship with the LGBTQ+ community. I was born in Santa Cruz, California. At CBH I have served as a Representative at Large on the Board, a member of the ritual committee, the Envisioning Committee and the Settled Rabbi Search Task Force. I also teach at our CBH Community School. My wife, Robyn Painter, is also a civil rights attorney. We have three children, ages 14 and 10 (twins). We are an interfaith family (Lutheran), deeply interested in modeling the richness of the interfaith path to our kids and exploring all that journey entails with other parents. I am an attorney at the Southern Poverty Law Center where I work on behalf of people detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. I also founded Metro Atlanta TransParent, the GA chapter of TransParent USA.
Julie Fishman, 1st Vice President I have been a member of CBH since 2000 and part of the CBH Chorus since 2004. We are an interfaith family, and our children became B'nai Mitzvah at CBH in 2016 and 2023. I have been on the CBH Board twice prior to my current Board service. I have been involved with various CBH projects and volunteer efforts over the years, including most recently co-chairing the 2023 L'Chaim fundraiser, serving on the Music Director Search Task Force, and helping to spearhead CBH's involvement with the Daffodil Project. I am honored to serve as CBH's First Vice President to deepen my involvement with and stewardship of this special community. My husband and I both work in the field of public health. I have lived in Atlanta since 1993, and our family currently lives in Ormewood Park.
Marci Alt, VP Communications: I’m CEO of Gayborhood (30 years strong and growing) and one of the founders of the Atlanta Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. I’ve served as Vice Chair of Lost-n-Found Youth from 2016 to the present. I am honored to serve on the CBH Board as I have been around here for over 25 years! CBH has become my spiritual and religious home. I’m proud and excited to have my children grow up in our synagogue. I am ready for the challenge to help grow our congregation in many ways.
Eric Gilbert, Secretary: I am originally from Berkeley, CA and have lived in Decatur more than 20 years. I am a faculty member in the Department of Biology at Georgia State University, where my laboratory research is focused on applied and environmental microbiology. My wife Cindy and I joined CBH because we wanted a synagogue that shared our progressive values. Most of our first experiences with CBH were with the community school, which our kids Abby and Coby attended from third grade until they had their b’nai mitzvah in 2019. I love the activism, the music, the spirituality, the thoughtfulness, the warmth, the inclusiveness - and the humor! - of the CBH community.
Jackie Sherman, Treasurer: I was the Treasurer of CBH from January 2020 – January 2024. In October 2024 I volunteered to step in as Treasurer when the position opened up. I volunteered to serve out the rest of 2024 and for 2025. Being Treasurer is a natural fit for me. I have a BA, MS, and Ph.D. is economics. I like numbers, I’m not afraid to talk about money, and I value effective money management. I’ve run my own business since 1999 – an organizational change consulting and leadership coaching practice The Jackie Sherman Group. I work with leaders in organizations (for profit and not-for-profit) to support them to achieve their most challenging goals – www.jackieshermangroup.com I’ve been a member of CBH twice – once from 1995-1998, and again starting in 2011. I love CBH and I want to see us thrive in all aspects of our organizational life. From 2015-2016 I worked with the CBH board to develop a Strategic Plan. In 2018 and 19 I worked on getting the 2nd Rabbi Process going. And I worked on the Financial Sustainability Taskforce. During COVID I worked to obtain 2 PPP Loans and get them forgiven, and to get a refund of payroll taxes (ERC) for retaining employees during COVID. I am committed to improving CBH’s financial processes as well as its financial health.
Valerie Singer, Member at Large: Dr. Valerie Singer has been a member of CBH since 2007. She is a single mom with two children, Jonah (21) and Rafi (14), both of whom went through the CBH Community School and Brit Mitzvah processes. Valerie has been a member of the CBH Chorus for most of the years since 2010.
Professionally, Valerie has been a residential Realtor for over 12 years. She has helped many CBH members and their families buy or sell throughout the Atlanta metro area. In her prior career, Valerie taught Anthropology for many years, including 7 years at Oxford College of Emory. She has a PhD in Cultural Anthropology, and did her dissertation research in Brazil. Her research interests centered on the connection between religious values and activism. Her main research was on an environmental organization run by poor Afro-Brazilians in the Chapada Diamantina region of Bahia, Brazil. Issues of social justice, environmentalism, and spirituality have always been close to her heart.
Valerie is also an ardent animal lover and currently shares her home with four cats and one dog, as well as her two legged children.
PC Ganger, Member at Large: I am a teacher of the visually impaired for Gwinnett County Public Schools and a parent to an amazing five-year-old, Ada (who tries to dance at every CBH function). I serve as the faculty sponsor for the pride club at the high school where I teach. I am non-binary and legally blind. I have previously served as president and vice-president of the East Georgia Chapter of the Georgia Council of the Blind. My wife Lauren and I grew up in the Atlanta area, and moved back here after living near DC for four years, where we converted to Judaism in 2019. We began attending CBH events virtually in 2020 and became members the very next year. I cherish the spiritual home we have found here at CBH and I am honored to dedicate my time and energy to serving on the board!
Liza Marks, Member at Large: I have been a member of CBH since about 2017. I am a clinical social worker focusing on trauma healing and navigating the polycrisis. I am passionate about working with others to create a world that is better than the one we were born into. I am a committed environmentalist and believer in the connectedness of all living things, which is an important part of both my clinical work and my faith practice. I have been married to my amazing husband, Max, for 15 years. We have two children -- Elijah, 11, and Ruth, 9. I belong to CBH because my family appreciates the warm, informal, inclusive vibe, and I wanted to give myself and my children a community that could help sustain us through hard times -- which CBH has done. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to serve on the Board and learn more about how best to support and grow our community. In my free time, I enjoy reading sci fi and fantasy, spending time outdoors, and doing arts and crafts.