Shalom Schwartz grew up in Toronto and fell in love with Israel upon his first visit in 1972. After working on a kibbutz for six months, he met Rabbi Noah Weinberg zt'l, and this led to seven years of studying and teaching in Jerusalem. In 1981, he became the founding Director of Aish Toronto, a position he held for 10 years. In 1991, Shalom and his family made aliyah, where he organized and directed Aish's Russian Program, including Operation Community, an educational and social network for Russian Jews in Israel and the FSU. From 2001-2005, he led Aish Jerusalem's leadership development program. He was co-executive producer of the film, Relentless: the Struggle for Peace in Israel, and produced five short films for the Israeli market. He is currently leadership coaching for Aish Jerusalem, and developing Project Aseret, which aims to establish the Ten Commandments as a central element of Israeli national identity. Shalom and his wife Debbie have 7 amazing children and 6 delicious grandchildren.