David Cutler, a resident of Staten Island, will be inducted into the Ben Zakkai Honor Society (BZHS) at its National Scholarship dinner on Sunday evening, January 10, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Manhattan.
NCSY is the Orthodox Union’s international youth movement and the Ben Zakkai Honor Society (BZHS) is NCSY’s Alumni Hall of Fame. Proceeds from the scholarship dinner will be used to enable teens to attend NCSY life-changing national initiatives, including summer travel and study programs and the National Yarchei Kallah experience of five days of intense Torah study for public school teens during their winter break.
For over a decade David has served as the Director of NCSY Summer Programs.
Vivian Luchins, Chair of NCSY Summer Programs and Dinner Co-Chair, said, “David sees first-hand the impact an NCSY summer program has on the life of a Jewish teen. In many cases, it’s life changing. NCSY Summer became David’s passion and he is always pushing to expand and improve NCSY summer programs.”
David Cutler grew up in a family in which community service and working with youth were important values. His father, Rabbi Joel S. Cutler was a chazzan, teacher and youth director in various Jewish communities throughout David’s youth. His mother, Ellen Cutler hosted many community and youth events in their home. So it’s no surprise that David became involved in his community and with youth as well.
David was a youth leader and active participant in the youth department as a teenager. He then followed in his father’s footsteps to become the youth director of the Young Israel of Staten Island for 18 years. David and his wife Marilyn had an open home where teens would come for Shabbat get-togethers; late nights BBQ’s; and numerous sporting events, such as the annual Super Bowl party.
Under his leadership as Director of NCSY Summer, expanded the number of NCSY Summer Programs offered from seven to 14. This coming summer about 1300 campers are expected to join the programs, according to David.
The secret? Customer satisfaction. “At NCSY we ensure that everyone on our summer programs has an impactful and life-changing experience,” he concluded.
For further information about the dinner, contact Elaine Grossman at grossmane@ou.org or 212-613-8350 or Rhoda Farbowitz at 212-613-8110.