Our Rabbi

Rabbi Gideon Estes became the head rabbi at Congregation Or Ami in July 2010, and is now in his fourteenth year as the congregation’s spiritual leader.

Rabbi Estes was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) in New York City.

He also earned a Masters Degree from JTS in Jewish Studies with a concentration in Pastoral Care.   Rabbi Estes was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.  He graduated Cum Laude from UCLA in 2003 with a BA in Jewish Studies with concentration in Jewish History.    He has studied at the Union Theological Seminary in New York, The Hebrew University and the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem.

While in Rabbinical School, Rabbi Estes worked as Mashgiach, Kosher supervisor, in the JTS cafeteria under Rabbi Joel Roth, served as the Rabbinic Intern at Congregation Beth El in Fairfield, CT, and served as a Chaplain Intern in the UCLA Medical Center providing spiritual care to both Jewish and non-Jewish patients.   He served as the coordinator of the Interseminary Dialogue, one of the oldest continuous Christian Jewish Dialogues in the country.  Currently, Rabbi Estes is a member of the Executive Council of the Rabbinical Assembly and is immediate past president of the Houston Rabbinical Association.

He serves on the Board of Directors of Houston Hillel and the Board of Representatives of CanCare.

To schedule a meeting with Rabbi Estes, please contact the office at (713) 334-4300. You may contact Rabbi Estes at rabbi.estes@gmail.com.