The Lesher Foundation and the Zellerbach Family Foundation are presenting a special panel at Newsmakers: Lesher Speaker Series that is comprised of faith leaders who will be talking about leading through divisive times and bridging the hardest divides.

PANELISTS:

Hurunnessa Fariad, Vice President of Strategic Funding and Relations, TAOFL

Hurunnessa Fariad is a respected Muslim American community faith leader and advocate known for her ability to build meaningful bridges across diverse communities throughout the United States. She is a passionate champion of multifaith collaboration and provides strategic planning, training, and partnership development for organizations committed to equity and inclusion. Ms. Fariad is the Founder and Music Director of ADAMS BEAT Choir which is the first and only mosque youth choir in the country.

Dr. Joel Rainey, Lead Pastor, Covenant Church

Joel Rainey is the Lead Pastor of Covenant Church, an evangelical congregation in West Virginia’s eastern panhandle, just outside the Washington, D.C. metro area. He has served as a pastor, missionary, church planter, and denominational executive for more than 30 years, with experience engaging diverse cultures across five continents. Joel is a published author and regular contributor to national conversations on faith and public life. His writing has appeared in Christianity Today, The Washington Post, and Lifeway, and he has represented evangelical perspectives in media outlets including The Baltimore Sun, Al Jazeera, and The New York Times.

Aaron Alexander, Senior Rabbi, Adas Israel

Rabbi Aaron Alexander is the Co-Senior Rabbi at Adas Israel Congregation, one of the largest Conservative Synagogues in the world. Prior to serving Adas Israel, he served for 10 years as Associate Dean and Lecturer in Rabbinic and Jewish Law at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles. He is also on the Strategy Team & Board of Directors for the Washington Interfaith Network, D.C.’s premier multi-faith community organizing network.

MODERATOR:

Andrew Hanauer, CEO of the One America Movement,

Andrew Hanauer is the CEO of the One America Movement, a network of faith leaders working to address the spiritual crisis of toxic polarization. Under Andrew's leadership, One America has grown to become one of the largest organizations in the US working to reduce division, supporting more than 3,500 faith leaders across the religious, racial and political spectrum. He has spoken about faith, polarization and peacemaking at the National Governors' Association, Oxford University, the CATO Institute, and on podcasts of all kinds. When he's not fighting toxic polarization, he's focused on wishing for the return of the glory days of the Golden State Warriors.