EXTRAordinary PEOPLE

DR. AMY ROTHENBERG has practiced naturopathic medicine since 1986. The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, 2017 Physician of the Year, she spearheaded the successful licensure of naturopathic doctors  in Massachusetts. She was the longtime medical editor for the Institute of Natural Medicine and has written and lectured widely about the benefits of preventive, natural and whole-person medicine.. When diagnosed with cancer in 2014,  Dr. Rothenberg sought care at a renowned teaching hospital and also added  naturopathic doctors who specialize in integrative oncology to create her medical dream team. Her book, You Finished Treatment, Now What? A Field Guide for Cancer Survivors is a roadmap for lifestyle and natural medicine to address health challenges that persist after care, and to reduce risk of recurrence.

Amy Solomon was working in the television industry for 10 years before changing careers and decided to make life a little “sweeter.” Together with her mother, she started Just One Bite, a cookie company specializing in bite size gourmet cookies and pies. Her cookies and pookies (pie+cookie = pookie) are handmade, using the finest ingredients and are just the right size so that you can pop them in your mouth. Their goal is to make someone’s day a little brighter through their delicious baked treats.  They are based in the northern New Jersey area and ship nationwide.

Dan Mulcahey is a radio host and voiceover artist who brings more than a decade of communications experience from corporate marketing and communications to the microphone.  Since 2012, he has been a weekend and fill-in host on Magic 98.3, New Jersey’s largest music station and one of 62 stations owned by national radio station operator Beasley Media Group.  He can also be heard on Spotify as the voice behind many national and regional brands coast-to-coast.  Dan began his audio career in college as general manager and host on Rutgers University’s heritage radio station, 88.7 WRSU-FM.

WARREN KASDAN is a retired lawyer with a passion for travel.  After 50 years of frequent voyages, he has now visited all seven continents, 111 present or former countries and 45 states.  Within days after graduating from Princeton University, he set off on a two-month, 14,000 mile automobile trip around the United States.  Within hours after completing the Bar Exam following graduation from Boston University Law School, he set off on a six-week trip to Europe, including a week in the Soviet Union.  Early trips took him to India, Nepal, Israel, China, Argentina, Brazil, Thailand.  Later, he visited Turkey, Kenya, Tanzania, Philippines, Egypt, South Africa, Australia, Bolivia, Peru.  After retiring, he saw Vietnam, Cambodia, Central America, Ukraine, Ecuador, Tunisia, Chile, the Central Asian Republics, Indonesia, Cuba, Myanmar, the Caucasus, U.A.E., Oman and Mongolia.  He has special fondness for exploring ancient ruins and observing remarkable geography.  However, he particularly enjoys his first, serendipitous walk around a foreign city.

CINDY RABINOWITZ is the Director of Cranford Senior Housing in New Jersey.  During the past two years, she has tirelessly worked to protect the welfare of the elderly and infirm during the Covid crisis.  Cindy has an extensive history caring for the senior population beginning with running the largest kosher Meals on Wheels program in Brooklyn through JASA, the Jewish Association for Services for the Aged.  She later created the NJ supportive services program at Cranford Senior Housing, and then developed the NJ State supportive services program at Cranford Senior Housing.

Nicole Marshall holds a bachelor's degree from Fordham University and dual master's degrees in Nurse-Midwifery and Women's Health from Columbia University.  Nicole's interest in women's health combined with her passion for social justice and women's rights drew her to a career in midwifery. She currently works as a staff midwife in a high volume urban hospital serving a resource poor community in Paterson, New Jersey.  Since beginning her career in 2006, Nicole has worked in many settings including as a research clinician at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, as a health educator in Uganda, and as a midwife in a small midwife-owned private practice in New York City.  Nicole provides holistic women's health care and is passionate about reproductive justice.

Ron Stallworth is a 32- year, highly decorated law enforcement veteran, who worked undercover narcotics, vice, criminal intelligence, and organized crime beats in four states. As the first black detective in the history of the Colorado Springs Police Department, Ron overcame fierce racial hostility to achieve a long and distinguished career in law enforcement.  Ron is the subject of the Academy-Award-winning BlackKklansman, directed by Spike Lee and derived from Ron’s book by the same title.  Ron is a noted speaker about his experiences and the importance of overcoming racism in today’s society.

Melissa Gelfman’s passion for the performing arts started at age 10. She began singing, dancing and acting throughout her grammar and high school years, did summer stock and regional theater eventually graduating from the University of Alabama with a BA in Performing Arts and English. After a few years, Melissa decided to put her dramatic career on the backburner while raising her family, and later worked as a Business Manager at Rutgers University. In 2011 Melissa was diagnosed with Parkinson's. As the stress of her job began to affect her Parkinson's, she retired from Rutgers in 2015. She then had time to resume her singing. At age 64, Melissa auditioned for her dream school, Juilliard, and was accepted. She was adamant that the PD not interfere with the bucket list of things she wanted to do in her life. She has decided to figure out a way to complete that list while living with PD. Melissa started taking speech therapy to help rejuvenate her singing voice while taking boxing classes (non-contact) to keep her mobility and flexibility. In addition, she has been singing in a non professional chorus to help her reacclimate to performing.

SHARON BENJAMIN is a writer, an author, and an exercise enthusiast. She has been participating in some degree of exercise most of her life. She now presents a Facebook Live Aerobics session, Monday - Friday, 6:00 AM, Facebook page, "Randall Sharon Benjamin." Sharon overcame an addiction more than 20-years past. She credits her consistent exercise and healthy eating habits for maintaining her recovery.

Karen Kaplan Klein began her career in illustration as soon as she could held a pencil and has not let go since!  Karen has illustrated several books and has shown her dioramas and “clayaramas" in numerous galleries throughout the United States since the 1970’s and has taught art to children and adults for over 49 years.  She also does workshops involving magic, dreams, and the mysteries integrated into art.