Jewish Chaplaincy Services

Rabbi Joe has enjoyed a fulfilling career as a pulpit rabbi, educator, prolific author and board-certified chaplain for more than 40 years. He has worked full-time at JCFS Chicago since 2005 and presently serves as Rabbinic Counselor and Jewish Chaplaincy Services Chaplain.

Rabbi Joe is the immediate past President of the Chicago Board of Rabbis and currently serves as a national officer of Neshama: The Association of Jewish Chaplains. A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Rabbi Joe completed his undergraduate (honors) work at Loyola University Chicago, was ordained with Semicha at Skokie’s Hebrew Theological College, and received a Doctorate from Lancaster Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania.

Rabbi Joe’s first book, To Walk in God’s Ways: Jewish Pastoral Perspectives on Illness and Bereavement is considered a standard in the field of Judaism and Pastoral Care.

Fortunée is a Conservative Cantor and board-certified Jewish Chaplaincy Services Chaplain. She is a member of the Cantors Assembly and Neshama: The Association of Jewish Chaplains, and enjoys the best of both worlds.

As an educator, Cantor Belilos is an innovator of inclusive Jewish Sabbath and holiday programming suitable for seniors in residential settings, replete with opportunities for self-expression and interaction. She also serves NorthShore University Health System hospitals, CJE SeniorLife and Ezra Habonim Niles Township Jewish Congregation in Skokie.

Cantor Belilos graduated from Miller Cantorial School at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America.

Rabbi Paul is a Reform Rabbi and Jewish Chaplaincy Services Chaplain. He has worked with Hillel at several universities, and served as Executive Director of The Hillels of Illinois from 1995-2012.

He completed chaplain training with an internship at Rush Medical Hospital and was a resident chaplain at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. He was ordained by Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion, and received a Master’s of Social Work from the University of Missouri and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago.

Rabbi Paul has been a member of Orthodox synagogues for 30 years and is a long-time member and former president of Congregation Anshei Sholom, B’nai Israel in Chicago.

Rabbi Dimarsky is a Russian-speaking Orthodox rabbi and Jewish Chaplaincy Services chaplain who grew up in Kiev, Ukraine. After receiving his ordination from Rabbinical College Telshe, he founded Heritage Russian Jewish congregation in 1998, and remains the rabbi of this congregation. He received his chaplain training at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital.  Rabbi Dimarsky graduated from Kaunas Polytechnic Institute in Lithuania with a Masters in Computer Science, and has lived in Israel where he studied in various rabbinic institutions. He is also a certified life coach. 

Rabbi Suzanne Griffel has enjoyed a varied rabbinic career for nearly 30 years. She has served as a Hillel rabbi at the University of Chicago, Rabbi of Congregation Or Chadash, a synagogue with special outreach to the Jewish LGBTQ community, and after a year-long residency in Clinical Pastoral Education at Rush University Medical Center, she served as a chaplain at JourneyCare hospice. In 2017 she became the rabbi of Sinai Temple in Indiana and recently became a Jewish Chaplaincy Services Chaplain. Rabbi Suzanne is a board-certified member of Neshamah: Association of Jewish Chaplains and a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis.  She has served on the Chicago Board of Rabbis and the Chicago Association of Reform Rabbis, is an active member of the Progressive Chevra Kadisha, and serves on the board of the Selfhelp Home. 

As Jewish Chaplaincy Services Coordinator, Elana is responsible for developing community partnerships, as well as coordinating and implementing the chaplaincy initiative. Prior to joining JCFS, Elana was on the Board of National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore and also worked as the Outreach Coordinator on their Federal Courts initiative doing outreach and advocacy. Elana obtained a J.D. Degree from Georgetown Law and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Jewish Professional Studies from Spertus Institute. Elana lived in South Africa and England before immigrating to the United States.