Meet our President, Debbie Smith

I was born in 1971 at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia and raised in Broomall, PA (except for 2 years when my family lived in Phoenix, Arizona).  I was Bat Mitzvahed at Beth El Suburban in Broomall, Pa and confirmed at SJCC Bnai Aaron in Havertown, PA.  In addition to regular High School, I attended Gratz College Hebrew High School in Wilmington, DE (3 days a week for 4 years) and upon graduation, I received a certificate to teach in Jewish Schools.  For my  secular studies, I graduated from Marple Newtown Senior High School. I attended York College of Pennsylvania and also East Stroudsburg University from which I graduated in 1994 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Recreation and Leisure Services Management.  Upon Graduation, I married Shawn Smith, whom I had met a year earlier during my 12-week military recreation internship at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Georgia. I spent 6 weeks on the USS Canopus and he was a Marine stationed on the same ship. We moved several times during our first few years of marriage. (Kings Bay, GA, El Paso, TX and Colorado Springs, Co.) When he decided not to reenlist, we returned to Pennsylvania and lived in Newtown Square, Mount Pocono, Bath and finally settled in Bangor, Pennsylvania.

I began my career as a Hebrew School teacher in 1989 as a substitute teacher while still in High School. After graduation, I taught Hebrew School in York, Pa, El Paso, TX and Colorado Springs, CO.  I have been teaching at Temple Israel of the Poconos since 1997 and have been the Administrative Director of the Hebrew School since 2006. In 2008, the Jewish Federation of  Northeastern Pennsylvania presented me with the Yitzhak Rabin Memorial Award for Teacher Excellence.

As for my other careers, I started early as a babysitter, moved onto camp counselor at Hunters Run Day Camp every summer in Aston, PA and then during high school and college I worked as a photographer's assistant. After I received my bachelors degree, I worked as an Activity Director in various nursing homes. I have been a Certified Activity Director since 1997.

From 2000-2013,  I worked for Fitzmaurice Community Services in Stroudsburg as their Recreation Director.  After the state cut the funding for their recreation program,  I decided to leave and that same year, I founded the non-profit, Special Recreation Services.  We provide recreation for adults with intellectual disabilities, autism and/or mental illness.  The state of Pennsylvania still will not fund group recreation so the participants have to pay out of their own pockets and I do not receive any pay for leading those group activities which are 2-3 days a week. We have about 40 active participants in our private pay program.

In 2019,  we were approved to be a provider for the state and now receive waiver funding to take out individuals (who qualify for waiver) into the community. Unlike other providers who take out their individuals in groups of 3, our organization provides 1 staff per individual.  This way the individual receives their staff's full attention and all their needs are met while they are out in the community working on their goals.

In my personal life, as stated above, I have been married to Shawn Smith since 1994 and we have 2 children.  I am active in the local community.