Jewish Singer Debbie Friedman Is Dead

Luke Ford writes:

I first remember hearing about Debbie Friedman when I came to the Mountaintop Minyan at Stephen S. Wise temple in Bel Air in April of 1994.

The cantor, Linda Robbins, was an acolyte of Debbie Friedman. Our Sabbath morning service was heavily influenced by Debbie Friedman’s singalong style. I loved it. This was an accessible way into the Jewish liturgy.

Dennis Prager started going to the minyan in 1992 and fell in love with its singing on his first visit. He then quit his shul, Young Israel of Century City, and started driving to the minyan most every Shabbos morning he was in town.

After services and a potluck lunch, we’d all sit around and sing some more. We’d usually end by putting our arms around each other and singing a Debbie Friedman tune such as “May we be blessed as we go on our way…”