The Cincinnati Jewish community is so proud of our very own Phyllis Binik-Thomas. She was ordained this week as a maggid educator – or Jewish storyteller – after three years of rigorous study, at the same time battling cancer. Phyllis is an incredible educator in the Cincinnati Jewish community. She is the director of Mercaz High School and served as education director at Beth Israel. She is a beloved Sunday School teacher to many in the Cincinnati Jewish community. 

Storytelling is in Phyllis’ blood. She created an award-winning intergenerational storytelling program between senior citizens and high school students, and co-chaired the Jewish and Israeli Film Festival. Phyllis was featured in the Forward this week, a national Jewish newspaper and website. We congratulate her on this wonderful accomplishment and on her dedication and passion to educate the Jewish youth of Cincinnati​.

Originally published by Forward

For several years, Phyllis Binik-Thomas dreamt of becoming a storyteller, or maggid, to take her commitment intergenerational Jewish communication to another level.

She wasn’t going to let cancer prevent her from reaching that goal.

As beaming family and friends gathered in her Cincinnati living room, Binik-Thomas was ordained as a maggid educator on Tuesday afternoon in an emotional ceremony held as she battles against a rare and fast-moving form of the disease. More >