Meet the Rabbi

Rabbi Daniel Treiser

Rabbi Daniel Treiser is thrilled to be joining the Temple B'nai Israel family as its rabbi. Prior to coming to Clearwater, Rabbi Treiser served as the Associate Rabbi of Temple Kol Ami Emanu-El in Plantation, FL. He came to South Florida in June 2000, following his ordination at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York. While earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from Queens College in NY in 1993, he worked with various youth groups and was a counselor at the regional Reform Jewish camp. Upon graduation, Rabbi Treiser dedicated a year of his life to community service in Israel on Project Otzma, working in various communities throughout the country.

When he returned to the States, Rabbi Treiser served as a Hillel program coordinator and Assistant Chaplain at Hofstra University and Adelphi University on Long Island before being accepted to the Hebrew Union College.

After his first year of rabbinic study in Jerusalem, Rabbi Treiser went to the Los Angeles campus of HUC, where he earned his Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters in 1998. While there, he served as student rabbi of Temple Bat Yam in South Lake Tahoe, CA for two years, and was the Wexner Summer Rabbinic Intern at Sha'arei Am: The Santa Monica Synagogue. He also was a part of the Interfaith Chaplaincy Program at the City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, CA. Upon transferring to the New York campus of HUC-JIR, Rabbi Treiser became the rabbinic intern for Temple Sinai of Bergen County in Tenafly, NJ.

As Associate Rabbi in Plantation, Rabbi Treiser worked closely with all the programming groups in the congregation, with a particular focus on the Youth and Educational programs.

On a community level, Rabbi Treiser has been involved in a wide variety of activities. He was Vice-President and is the immediate Past President of the Broward County Board of Rabbis. He served on the Board of the United Jewish Communities of Broward County, and sat on the Search Committee to find the new Executive Director. Rabbi Treiser was Vice-President of the Plantation Association of Clergy, coordinating the Interfaith Thanksgiving Service and the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast. He has also served as Youth Committee Chair, Kallah Coordinator, and Newsletter editor for SEACCAR, the South East Association of the Central Conference of American Rabbis. He serves on the Rabbinic Faculty for the URJ Camp Coleman, as well as for NFTY-STR's Winter Regional Kallot. Rabbi Treiser is married to Rachel, a teacher with a Master's Degree in Elementary and Special Education. Their daughter Elana is entering the first grade, and son Ethan will be a student in Temple B'nai Israel's Early Childhood Program.

Rabbi Treiser and his family have already felt so welcomed by the entire Temple B'nai Israel family, and look forward to being part of the Jewish community in Clearwater for many years to come.