Spotlight: Eli Gutman

A West Hartford native and Hebrew Academy alum, Eli returned from a trip to Israel with a renewed connection to his Judaism—and has since become one of the most active, welcoming faces in the Greater Hartford Jewish community!

Urban Dor: Tell us about what you like about the Greater Hartford Jewish community, and when did you first hear about Urban Dor?

Eli: I love the sheer breadth of choice here when it comes to level of observance, everything from Chabadnik and Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) to a classic Reform shul. There’s truly a place for every kind of Jew in West Hartford. I first heard about Urban Dor from Simon after returning from a long trip to Israel, when I wanted to re-engage with my Judaism. It’s been an amazing experience ever since.

Urban Dor: What do you do professionally?

Eli: I work in tech, specifically in the private-markets fintech space, as a product manager. Practically, that means I serve as the translator and nexus between business, technology, and design, so we can build the best versions of software products for our stakeholders. I help engineers make informed choices and turn business needs into clear, buildable requirements.

Urban Dor: You grew up in West Hartford, attended the former NEJA lower school, Hebrew Academy, and then Hall High School. How did your early Jewish education influence where you are now in life? What memories linger with you?

Eli: "My early Eli" Jewish education gave me a strong foundation that made it much easier to return to Judaism in adulthood and become an observant Jew. It made learning and re-learning more natural. I’d be lying if I said the strict Orthodox environment didn’t also push me away for about 15 years. The memories that linger are the camaraderie, how wildly misbehaved many of us were, and the awkwardness of having very serious, ultra-Orthodox kids in the same room with us secular kids. I still feel embarrassed for what those kids (and their parents) had to put up with from us back then.

Urban Dor: You love talking politics, but we don’t, so on to the next question.

Eli: Noted. Onward.

Urban Dor: Mazel tov! You’re getting married in less than a week. You and Nancy are our favorite success story: you met through Jewish programming, bought a home in West Hartford, and you’re frequent flyers at Beth David Synagogue. There’s a question in here somewhere, find it!

Eli: If the question is “What role did community programming play in your life?” The answer is: nearly everything. I have the life I have in West Hartford today because of programming like Urban Dor. I met my fiancée, soon to be my wife, through Jewish programming. In many ways I even found my current job, a lot of my closest friends, and my path back to observant Judaism through this community.

I’m incredibly grateful. My encouragement to anyone reading this: it’s not that hard, just keep showing up. You’ll find friends, you’ll find community, and you might just find the person you’ll marry.

Urban Dor: How can people meet you to chat about politics and life in West Hartford?

Eli: I’m easy to reach, even though I’m a workaholic, I’m completely Shomer Shabbat, so I’m around every Shabbat. You’ll usually find me at Beth David (sometimes Young Israel or Chabad), every single Saturday. You can also reach me in the group WhatsApp chat we all share; if you don’t have access, contact Simon. I’m part of a community and I want to expand it, if you’re feeling lonely, isolated, or just need a hand, reach out. I’ll help myself or find someone better suited to help. As for politics, I try to live by a simple philosophy: clean your side of the street. It makes the world a lot better than demanding other people clean theirs.

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Urban Dor is a 100% volunteer-led nonprofit organization for Greater Hartford young adult Jews and founded by Simon Lichter - connect with Simon on LinkedIn.

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