When volunteer leaders, parents, faculty, staff, alumni and other supporters of the Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva (RPRY) in Edison gather on Wednesday, May 28 at Bell Works in Holmdel for RPRY’s annual dinner, they will pay tribute to three honoree couples who represent a high standard of commitment to the yeshiva. And they will also be marking the 80th anniversary of the school, an institution that shows a great deal of vigor and fitness as it prepares for the years ahead.

Honorees Sigal and Donny Epstein reside in Edison with their four children.

Donny received his J.D. from Rutgers Law School-Newark, continuing a three-generation family legacy at this prestigious institution. Today, he leads Epstein Ostrove, LLC, a trial law and litigation firm with 20 attorneys, widely recognized for its client-centered approach and outstanding case results. Alongside his legal career, Donny remains active in the arts as a producer of films and Broadway plays. His work has earned multiple accolades, including an Emmy nomination for the documentary “Paper Clips.”

Sigal, originally from San Diego, began her career in the nonprofit sector, working with New York based nonprofits and philanthropic organizations. Upon the birth of their first child, Sigal transitioned to an administrative role at Donny’s firm. Most recently, she has taken on the full-time roles of CEO and COO of the Epstein household.

Sigal has been a dedicated leader within the RPRY community. She served as RPRY PLUS parent-teacher association treasurer from 2020 to 2022 and as co-president from 2022 to 2024. During her tenure, she helped foster a warm, inclusive environment for students, staff and families—expanding volunteer participation, prioritizing teacher appreciation, and enhancing RPRY PLUS programming to enrich school life.

The family regularly supports the #onegift campaign, have answered the call to assist with the Dream It Capital and Innovation Campaign, and have initiated scholarship options to ensure access to quality Jewish education for those in need.

Honorees Harriet and George Blank were both born in Europe. Harriet immigrated to the United States before the Holocaust, and George arrived afterward. Their families settled in New York City, where Harriet and George met in high school. Upon Harriet’s graduation from Adelphi College and George’s from NYU, they were married.

George served as first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, then he and Harriet moved to New Jersey. George joined Johnson & Johnson, where he rose to vice president of manufacturing at Jelco Labs. Harriet was a CPA in public accounting. In 1979, George and Harriet started their own company, The Med-Tech Group—later renamed Vention Medical—an international company that designs, develops and manufactures medical products.

Harriet and George are parents to Howard, who is married to Sandra Moed, and Leslie, who is married to Josh Ostrin. They are blessed with eight grandchildren, five grandchildren-in-law, and eight great-grandchildren.

Harriet and George have been long-standing leaders and supporters of RPRY. George served on the RPRY board and co-chaired the financial controls strategic committee, and Harriet volunteered in the business office for many years. Together, they are active members of the Dream It Capital and Innovation Campaign Committee, and co-chaired the RPRY Excellence and Innovation Campaign.

Community leadership is central to the Blanks. Harriet is the co-founder of the Women’s Philanthropy of the Jewish Federation of West Central, NJ and was the treasurer of its Hebrew Free Loan Society. George is a member of the National Council of AIPAC and of the national leadership of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

Harriet and George established the Blank Fellows Leadership Program of the JFWCNJ and they co-chaired a scholarship endowment campaign for the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy. They are advisers to the Steinsaltz Yeshiva in Tekoa, Israel. Since 2015, they have co-chaired a scholarship fund supporting students at Bronx Community College. In 2017, George became chairman of Friends of Yemin Orde / ImpactIsrael, and currently serves on their executive committee, while Harriet served on the board of directors.

Honorees Leslie and Josh Ostrin are the proud parents of Alex (RPRY ’15), Uri (RPRY ’17), Ayelet (RPRY ’20) and Sigal (RPRY ’20).

Leslie currently serves as corporate counsel for Micro Stamping Corporation, a medical device manufacturing company. Josh is the president and founder of Aamatex Power Cleaning.

Inspired by their parents, Leslie and Josh have been active members of the Highland Park community for over 28 years. Leslie has been a member of the RPRY board for over 15 years, serving on the executive committee, and as president of the board from 2014-2018. Leslie led the yeshiva’s first ever recruitment and retention committee, following a transformative strategic and benchmarking initiative that reshaped RPRY’s growth trajectory. She was also the driving force behind many of RPRY’s public relations and communication innovations. Under her leadership, the yeshiva’s governance was modernized with a new constitution and structure. Leslie has also served on two RPRY head of school search committees.

In addition to overseeing the scholarship fund and annual dinner, she helped introduce creative new fundraising initiatives such as the RPRY Color Run, RPRY Corporate Golf Outing, and the Excellence and Innovation for the Future campaign, which raised over $1 million to retire the school’s mortgage. Seven years ago, Leslie led the establishment of the #onegift campaign, significantly increasing participation and donations year after year.

Leslie championed a bold effort to modernize RPRY’s campus with the The Dream It Capital and Innovation Campaign. Thanks to a talented and committed Dream It team as well as the generosity of many RPRY families, Phase 1 renovations and upgraded security enhancements are slated to begin within the year.

For 15 years Leslie has volunteered to teach law-themed courses to RPRY fourth- to seventh-graders including Legal Lunch & Learn, U.S. Law and Government and Landmark Supreme Court Cases. A passionate basketball fan, Lesie has also coached RPRY’s girls’ basketball teams for many years.

Leslie’s volunteerism reaches far beyond RPRY. She is a founding member of Teach NJ’s executive committee and has served on the boards of several organizations, including Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, The Jewish Federation in the Heart of NJ, and Congregation Ahavas Achim. She continues to be a passionate advocate through OU Advocacy, NORPAC and, along with Josh, is a proud supporter of AIPAC. Leslie has been on the HP/Edison Peace of Mind committee for over 10 years, helping the community host and honor IDF high combat reservists.

Josh built the RPRY Israel Parade banner frames that are still in use to this day, repaired the yeshiva’s roof, installed the washing station, and painted the beit midrash, early childhood classrooms and hallways. Josh is an active member of the RPRY Dream It Capital and Innovation Campaign Committee. He has coached RPRY’s boys’ and girls’ basketball teams for over 10 years, leading several teams to championship games. Outside of RPRY, Josh has been an integral part of Congregation Ahavas Achim for more than 20 years, serving in key roles including house VP, membership VP and recently, as president for four years.

For more information on the RPRY dinner, please see: https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2025/

Harry Glazer is the Middlesex County editor of The Jewish Link. He can be reached at [email protected] and he welcomes reader feedback.