Meet our Staff

Howie Bierbaum, Executive Director

For over 35 years, Howie Bierbaum (he/him) has celebrated arts, activism and community. A Portlander since 1981, he most recently served as Executive Director of the Portland Saturday Market and as a marketing consultant for “Beyond Van Gogh - The Immersive Experience”. Bierbaum began his career as Executive Director for Portland’s Echo Theatre/Do Jump!. He then went on to head the Portland Area Theatre Alliance, Portland Symphonic Choir, Third Angle New Music Ensemble and Oregon Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. In 2004 he co-founded and managed Wonder Ballroom, leaving that position in 2008 to become Tour Manager for the band, Pink Martini. As an impresario, Bierbaum has presented performances by over 75 artists including Quentin Crisp, Ari Shapiro, Storm Large and Eve Ensler. Howie has served as a grants panelist for the Regional Arts + Culture Council, the Oregon Arts Commission, Prosper Portland and the Oregon Community Foundation. He recently volunteered for the Earthquake Ready Burnside Bridge project and fundraises for the QDoc Film Festival. He is also Executive Producer of “Beatlore” a documentary examining Oregon’s mental health crisis. He is guided by Jewish values in all the work he does: Tikkun Olam, Tzedakah and Justice. Check out the interview we did with him here.

Eric Stern, Events Coordinator and Cultural Arts Ambassador

Eric Stern (he/him) is a performer, producer, and arts advocate. As a performer, he’s appeared on NPR and has performed at the Kennedy Center, throughout the Northwest, and internationally from Portland to Paris to Poland. Best known as the founder and leader of Vagabond Opera, Stern has returned in recent years to his Jewish roots, studying and playing Oud (a kind of lute that is played throughout the Mizrachi, and Sephardic world). Along with Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb he founded the Jewish Theater Project in New Mexico, Vagabond Opera in Portland and Hungry Opera Machine, a modern-opera company. He has produced productions from intimate cafe events to full-scale theatrical performances and is looking forward to working with the EJC community to make the Commons a hub that nurtures and showcases Jewish culture in all of its facets. Eric loves to hike with his son Jascha, and his wife, Jill. He is a beginning birder and enjoys kayaking with friends at Smith and Bybee lakes. He is the representative for the lakes for Portland's Metro Advisory Committee. Oddly, he also enjoys creating budgets.

Mervin Kurnaiawan, Events Support: A/V Specialist

Mervin (he/him) is an Indonesian-born, first-generation immigrant to the United States, having moved to the Portland area when he was four. He is a graduate from Oregon State University with a degree in Economics. He was also a radio DJ and Internet content engineer at the campus radio and television station, KBVR. This is where he began his interest in audio and visual equipment. Beyond his technical experience, Mervin also has a passionate interest in spiritual practice and the mystic traditions of the world religions. He enjoys the works of teachers such as Abraham Joshua Heschel, Thich Nhat Hanh, and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. He also enjoys spending time baking, engaging in social activism, and having restful moments with his wife and cat.

EVENT STAFF

Abrielle Cogen