Rav Shaul Leiter grew up in New York in the '60s, an authentic child of that fascinating decade. And when he was out for a run one day, wearing nothing but a pair of running shorts and with his long hair in a ponytail, he had no idea that his life was going to change forever, eventually leading him to Israel in 1979. He wound up in Tzfat where he, his wife and two other couples built an absolute gem of an organization – Ascent, but we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves.

I sat with Reb Shaul recently in his Tzfat office, to hear his story, some lessons, and the best darned description of eating falafel that I think I’ve ever heard.