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Name: Rabbi Susan Falk

Occupation: Rabbi of Congregation Kehilat Shalom, Belle Mead

Address: Princeton

Community Activities: Member of Jewish Family Service Ohr Tikvah Advisory Board, a chaplaincy service geared to unaffiliated Jews situated in nursing homes, hospitals, prisons, etc. Recently joined the Montgomery Township-Rocky Hill Municipal Alliance and Youth Services Commission, a consortium including members of municipal, school district, clergy, and service organizations whose mission is to provide youth risk prevention management and other services.

Hobbies: "I love music -- especially classical, opera, and all kinds of Jewish music. I also play the guitar and sing. I'm also a birder with an over-200 species bird list, and I enjoy swimming."

Self Portrait: "I'm thoughtful, compassionate, and deliberate in decision making. One of my big concerns is promoting liberal American Judaism to ensure that liberal Jews have a voice in Jewish tradition and in defining their own spirituality."

Motto: "These and those are the words of the living God." "This is a saying that concludes a dispute between the rabbis in the Talmud. When they can't figure out how to resolve their disagreement, they agree to disagree, or they agree to give both opinions weight. Our ancient rabbis were masters of conflict resolution and we could learn a lot from them."

Greatest Accomplishment: "I became a rabbi in midlife."

Bad habits: "Not saying no."

Favorite TV: "All forms of 'Star Trek'."

Favorite food: "I love Italian food, especially my own risotto made with a short-grained rice, slowly cooked by adding broth gradually. It takes patience."

Best childhood memory: "Watching the first landing on the moon with my mother. She woke me up in the middle of the night to see it on TV. She made me hot chocolate and both of us were riveted by the TV screen. It's a great memory for me because I was always interested in space flight and it's a really nice memory of me and my mother."

People don't know that I... "Like anything to do with theoretical physics. I love anything to do with the infinite and the infinitesimal. With physics you have cosmology on one hand and quantum mechanics on the other. It's fascinating to me."

Last book I read: "Waiting for God: Spiritual Explorations of a Reluctant Atheist," by Lawrence Bush.

The biggest asset in the local Jewish community: "Our youth. We have really great kids in our community, from the little ones to those in Hebrew High. They are really active in leading services, raising money for the community, as well as doing projects around the building."

The biggest problem in the local Jewish community: "Like all working people today, Jews are really busy. So, those not living in Orthodox communities are struggling to find time to blend their secular life with synagogue life."

If I had more time I would... "Do more adult education than I am doing now and study and write on Jewish subjects."