At Shabbat Stop & Go, Rabbi Erica Burech and Cantorial Soloist Emily Kaye are the dynamic duo leading the community in vibrant and inclusive Shabbat and Jewish holiday experiences. Rabbi Erica brings a wealth of knowledge and passion for Judaism, drawing on her years of experience as a spiritual leader to guide the congregation with warmth and wisdom. Her insightful teachings inspire individuals of all backgrounds to connect deeply with their faith and community.
Complementing Rabbi Erica’s leadership is Cantorial Soloist Emily Kaye, whose soulful voice and musical talents enrich the Shabbat services with melodies that uplift and unite. With a background in music education and performance, Emily infuses each prayer with heartfelt emotion, creating an atmosphere of spiritual resonance and joy. Together, Rabbi Erica and Cantorial Soloist Emily Kaye create a welcoming and spiritually fulfilling environment at Shabbat Stop & Go, where everyone feels embraced and uplifted by the power of Jewish tradition and song.
Learn more about them below and visit shabbatstopandgo.com for more information and dates of an upcoming event.
Rabbi Erica Burech
Rabbi Erica is a Mom of two children, (15 year old Yoni and 13 year old Maya) whom she and her husband Craig strive to raise as mensches. Being a rabbi is an extension of being a Jewish Mom. Erica and Craig met in Israel as students at Hebrew University and have been married for twenty-three years. There is lots of laughing, joking and irreverence in their home that is filled with 4 humans and 6 dogs. One of the 6 canines is a therapy dog whom Rabbi Erica takes to work with Child Crisis Arizona here in the valley.
Originally from St. Clairsville, Ohio, a small town that borders Wheeling, West Virginia; Erica believes that all of her greatest attributes were cultivated from growing up in a small deeply committed Jewish community and attending Jewish summer camp.
Immediately after graduating from Brandeis University, she attended Hebrew Union College for rabbinic school where she received her rabbinic ordination in May of 2000.
When Rabbi Erica was first ordained, Craig and she became citizens of Israel—they made aliyah and lived in Jerusalem, Israel. Rabbi Erica was a part of Hadassah’s Young Judaea Year Course where she served on a team with a Conservative Rabbi and an Orthodox Rabbi.
She spent seven years as the rabbi of a small community, Congregation Merkaz Ha-Iyr in Central Phoenix. This small kibbutz like congregation gave her the opportunity to teach family and inter-generational educational programs. Rabbi Erica takes pride in welcoming families where one member is not Jewish. It is extremely important to her that these individuals feel part of our community.
Rabbi Erica has spent more than 20 years in the Valley of the Sun having also been the Director of Jewish Life at Pardes Jewish Day School and the Director of Religious Education for Congregation Beth Israel. She has also been a part of the Phoenix Jewish community as the Judaic Programming Director of Camp Charles Pearlstein in Prescott.
Rabbi Erica is currently working towards obtaining certification as a recovery and transformation coach. She strives to work in this space to help Jews and non Jews to uncover his/her/their truth and to follow life’s twists and turns while expressing oneself with authenticity.
This future career path pairs beautifully with her work as a rabbi since her Jewish beliefs and practice present opportunities to learn, to grow, and to evolve. Rabbi Erica is committed to living and leading others to live a rich spiritual Jewish life. She hopes to inspire others to live mindfully, to better ourselves, humanity and our world; thereby enhancing the frequency around us.
Cantorial Soloist Emily Kaye
For the past twenty years, Emily has filled the community with her beautiful and uplifting voice. She has brought Jewish music to life in many local congregations, communities, and events all over the Valley.
Emily has a love for all music including classical, jazz, pop, and country, and has had the honor of singing in many duos and bands throughout her career. Emily has lit up the stage all over Arizona, Europe and Asia. She also has a huge passion for voice over acting, where her voice has been featured on many local and national commercials, and videos, and radio.
Emily received her Bachelors of Arts with honors in Music Education from Ottawa University. For ten years, she owned and operated a music lesson studio in Scottsdale where she taught voice, piano and guitar. She currently is teaching voice lessons in Scottsdale and accepting new students.
When she is not singing, you can find Emily at one of her offices in Scottsdale at VIP Mortgage and My Home Group where she is a loan officer and real estate agent. She loves helping people become homeowners, providing top notch customer service, and taking people through the exciting home-buying process!
Emily is so excited to work alongside Rabbi Erica and for the possibilities of Shabbat Stop&Go to flourish and fill a need in the community.
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