Sandy Sussman, contrary to Benay’s often-quoted statement, first came to Svara in 2017 “primarily to learn Talmud.” Recently retired and having studied Talmud in translation for more than 20 years, she literally was “sitting at home, wishing [she] could learn Talmud” in some deeper, more meaningful way. What Sandy didn’t know was that she would become passionate about learning Talmud the Svara way and, specifically, within Svara’s warm, welcoming, diverse, and queer community. Sandy grew up in Chicago and has lived in Princeton NJ since 1981. A life-long administrator, she actively organizes and participates in a range of Jewish social and educational activities in her community and the National Havurah Committee. An avid traveler, bicyclist, hiker, fiction reader, and lover of live performances, Sandy values and nurtures relationships with family and friends.