New York—”Jew in the City” hosted its second annual “Top 10 Orthodox Jewish All Stars” Awards and Red Carpet event on November 24 at the newly renovated Lincoln Square Synagogue in New York. U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Nobel Laureate Robert Aumann were among ten individuals named 2013 Orthodox Jewish All Stars by Jew in the City, the organization dedicated to re-branding Orthodox Jews and Judaism to the world through digital media.

This year’s All Stars are an extremely accomplished and diverse group and, in addition to Secretary Lew and Dr. Aumann, include: Sarah Hofstetter, who was promoted last month to CEO of 360i in the U.S. (the No. 2 advertising firm on Ad Age’s Agency A-List); Ari Pinchot, co-executive producer of the star-studded and critically acclaimed new film, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, featuring Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey; Naama Shafir, the first Orthodox female professional basketball player; Joseph Shenker, chairman of Sullivan and Cromwell (the No. 3 law firm in the country according to Vault Rankings); Rama Burshtein, writer, director and producer of the awarding-winning film, Fill the Void (and the first Hasidic woman to make a film for general audiences); Anne Neuberger, director of the National Security Agency’s Commercial Solutions Center; Issamar Ginzberg, a marketing guru who was named one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 10 Entrepreneurs (and is the grandson of prominent Hasidic rebbes); and Dr. Laurel Steinherz, director of pediatric cardiology at Memorial Sloan Kettering and co-founder of Camp Simcha, a renowned camp for Jewish children with cancer.

Among the many exciting participants at the event were reality star and professional American soccer player Ethan Zohn, celebrity chef Jamie Geller, hasidic alternative rock girl band Bullet Proof Stockings, Jewish a capella phenomenon The Maccabeats, and The Brooklyn Jazz Warriors.

“Our event was a mash-up in all sorts of ways; of Chanukah and Thanksgiving, red carpet fashion being written up by fashion bloggers alongside ancient Torah wisdom from some of New York’s great rabbis,” said Allison Josephs, founder of Jew in the City. “It’s so important for us to have these great participants and honorees lend their names and accomplishments to our program. Seeing Orthodox people achieving greatness in fabulous ways in America helps show others it’s really possible to live an observant live while still accomplishing wonderful things in the secular world. It enables us to present an accurate, attractive image of Orthodox Judaism.”

Jew in the City, founded and directed by Allison Josephs, harnesses the power of social media to break down stereotypes about religious Jews and offer a humorous, meaningful look into Orthodox Judaism. Through a website (JewintheCity.com), YouTube channel (where its videos have been viewed over a million times), and via Facebook and Twitter, Jew in the City explains important Jewish concepts like Shabbat, keeping kosher and mikvah, and tackles difficult topics like the Orthodox Jewish approach to homosexuality, feminism and conversion. With a mix of light humor and rich content, Jew in the City explores these topics in a pleasant and easy to understand fashion, appealing to anyone who is curious to learn more about Orthodox Jews and observant Judaism, whether Jewish or not.

Photo credit to vinnews.com

By Rebecca Modell