Benjamin David is the senior rabbi at Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel in Elkins Park. Lisa David is the executive director of URJ Camp Harlam in Kunkletown.

KI is one of the largest synagogues in the Philadelphia area. URJ Camp Harlam is one of the biggest operations in the 14-camp Union for Reform Judaism family.

The Davids are also married to each other. And yes, they occasionally see each other, too.

“Part of what allows us to do this work is that we’re both highly organized, highly efficient, good communicators. We have calendar meetings. We review our schedule,” said the rabbi.

The Davids are both turning 50 this year and celebrating their 25th anniversary. In the fall, their oldest child out of three will head off to college.

Over the summer, Lisa is at camp, and as the director of pipeline strategy for URJ as well, she spends time visiting other camping operations within the network.

Summer happens to be the time when Rabbi David is most available, as synagogue life is quieter and High Holidays are still a couple of months away. The rabbi tries to visit Camp Harlam when he can, though he’s still spending six or seven days a week at KI.

“We’re often working when the rest of the world isn’t,” Rabbi David said.

That is also true during the school year. But that’s the time on the calendar when Lisa David is less busy.

So, she joins her husband at services most Friday nights. Then, after the public work is done, the couple goes out to dinner.

“That’s sort of become a custom for us: to be at services and then have dinner with just the two of us,” Lisa said.

The Davids also have three kids who are busy with school and extracurricular activities. The rabbi said their mornings are “very well-orchestrated.”

“At night, it’s not uncommon for both of us to be on a Zoom of some kind. We just have to lean into our type A nature and be hyper-committed to our Google calendar,” Rabbi David said.

“We’ve also had to ask for help. We had help with childcare when I had an office to go to. Now I work from home,” Lisa added.

The Davids have known each other since they were 11, the year Lisa started attending Camp Harlam. Rabbi David had already been going there for two years.

“We don’t have any memory of meeting, but we’re the same age at camp,” Rabbi David said.

They both went back every summer, through camper, counselor and even supervisor years.

“And I guess over time the circle shrinks a little bit. Lisa and I had more of a chance to get to know each other,” the rabbi said.

They were friends growing up, but they really connected as seniors in high school. Both were involved in NFTY, the youth arm of the URJ, during the school year, and they frequently hung out during NFTY events.

“We were friends, and we were friends with each other’s friends,” Rabbi David said.

Then, they worked at camp all summer and continued to hang out.

Both found it easy to talk and be together. They also recognized they shared values and a commitment to Reform Judaism.

David’s father — Rabbi Jerome P. David — served at Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill for 47 years. The son knew early on that he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps.

He saw that his dad had access to people’s lives through moments of joy and moments of pain. He also recognized the job would allow him to teach, write and work with teens.

“To be a rabbi is to be able to do all of these things, often on the same day,” he said.

Lisa was a camp person. It was where she discovered her strengths. So, in college, she got an internship at a JCC operation.

There, a leader told her that camping was actually a field of study and a career path. She hadn’t realized that before.

“From the time I started graduate school, Jewish camp was the place that brought together all these things I wanted: this immersive community, this intentional community, this investment in people,” she said.

The Davids were together at such a young age that they knew all this about each other. Both saw these time-consuming paths coming before they even started college.

“We get each other’s work,” Lisa said.

They also got used to spending time apart. Rabbi David went to Muhlenberg College in Allentown, while Lisa attended the University of Maryland.

They did the long-distance thing, but like they do today, they found ways to visit each other. They also spent an entire semester together in London.

Both look back with appreciation on that period. They were together for seven years before they got married, but they also felt like they got a chance to explore the world on their own.

“We visited each other when we could. We always knew we had the summers,” the rabbi said.

“I’m grateful we got our independent experiences while in college,” Lisa added.

Today, the Davids remain motivated to serve Reform Judaism.

“I think we both felt a deep sense of concern about the world around us. I think we’ve always been moved by the ways in which the world is broken. I think that always mattered to us. And I think we’ve always sort of made a real effort to not grow numb to that,” the rabbi said.

They also remain committed to each other.

“In some ways, we’re still those 17-year-olds running around Harlam. It’s hard to believe we’re turning 50, sending our kids to college,” Lisa said.

jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com