DERECH ETZ CHAIM STAFF

Betzalel Gersten

From humble beginnings, R' Betzalel worked in the fields of accounting and actuarial sciences to meet the expense of college, all the while maintaining his commitment to learning Torah. As a staff member of Manhattan Beach Jewish Center and Sportstar Academy, Betzalel cultivated his interest in reaching out to young adults. In 2002, Betzalel made aliyah with his family and spent three years in the Shaarei Mevaseret Zion kollel before joining Derech Etz Chaim. He and his wife Fay are the proud parents of Elisheva, 9; Ezra, 7; Elazar, 3; and Noam, 1.

At Derech Etz Chaim, Betzalel is a versatile member of staff, who runs the command post from the administrative side of things. Throughout the day, Betzalel is readily available to help students with a piece of gemara, a 'mid-seder crisis', or just to chap a shmooze. He is always standing by to lain the Torah for DEC and can generally be found playing hoops with students in the gym on Monday nights.

Betzalel portrays to talmidim the significance of a balanced approach between Torah and parnasah. He tries to imbue students with the value of time management and a strong work ethic in their service of Hashem.

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