Jonathan and Dayna Eisen have been members of Midbar Kodesh Temple since their 2018 wedding, but the

Midbar Kodesh Temple members Jonathan and Dayna Eisen have been members of Midbar Kodesh Temple since their 2018 wedding, but their Midbar Kodesh roots go deeper than than that, as three generations of Eisens go back to when Midbar Kodesh Temple became a synagogue. Jonathan arrived in Las Vegas when he was 3 years old, when his parents, Andy and Diane Eisen, returned home after medical studies took the family to Chicago, Illinois and Scottsdale, Arizona. Jonathan attended MKT ECC and MKT Religious School and celebrated his Bar Mitzvah at Midbar Kodesh Temple. He often helped out with the audio and video equipment. He was an active MKT USYer and still shows up to help at large USY events.

In August 2012 Dayna, born and raised in Great Neck, New York, moved to Las Vegas from Marietta, Georgia to attend UNLV. The two of them met through AEPi and Hillel at UNLV. They both traveled as delegates to AIPAC student conventions as campus activists. Jonathan earned his degree in Integrated Marketing Communications and Dayna received her degree in Hospitality Management. Dayna continues to advise the collegiate chapter of Sigma Sigma Sigma at UNLV, in which she was very active during her time in college.

Jonathan is a jack of all trades and works as a software engineer full time, but enjoys his part-time roles as the Logistics Director for McCary Media Group and as an AEMT with Community Ambulance. Dayna is currently a Resort Services Manager at the Venetian Resort, and also works as the Operations, Funding, and Events Coordinator for the Collaboration Center Foundation. Especially during the quarantine, Jonathan and Dayna have both developed a love of cooking, with Jonathan mastering the techniques of smoking meat. Bernie, an Australian Cattle Dog mix and Hilo, a full bred boxer, share their home and keep them entertained.

Jonathan's entire family were on the original membership rosters of Midbar Kodesh, and Dayna recounts that she "was 'grandfathered' into this amazing community" when the two started dating in 2014. Dayna brings her talents to MKT by working on Membership, Programming, and Fundraising, and has taken on other special projects for the synagogue.

Dayna and Jonathan were married by Rabbi Tecktiel and Cantor Gale in 2018, and look forward to celebrating many more milestones and happy occasions with their Midbar family. Dayna said "that our lives are centered around and among the Jewish community and that is something that we both value deeply." They hope to instill that same sentiment in their future family.

"Knowing that we have our Midbar community during these difficult and uncertain times is something that we can all share, even if it is from a distance for now," said Dayna. She reminded us that "as Jews, we say 'Next Year In Jerusalem' but maybe we can settle for 'Next Year, Not On Zoom' for the time being. We are sending love and warm wishes to our entire community as we navigate this new normal, and hope everyone remains safe and healthy."