Steven Shapiro still remembers what it felt like growing up Jewish in South Florida, surrounded by a large and vibrant Jewish community. Today, raising his own family in Tampa, he thinks often about what it takes to sustain Jewish life in a smaller community.
“Judaism has survived because it’s portable,” he reflected. “How do we do it when we’re not all in Jerusalem? Education.”
That belief is what drew Shapiro — a current board member at Hillel Academy of Tampa Bay — into deeper involvement with the school and the broader Jewish community. For him, Hillel is more than a school. It is one of the institutions helping sustain Tampa as a place where Jewish identity, culture and connection can thrive for the next generation.
And for the Shapiro family, those lessons show up in small but meaningful moments at home.
At the family’s Passover seder, his children already know the songs. His 9-year-old son has begun reading Hebrew, often turning it into a game with his father.
“My son likes it when I pick up Hebrew text and challenge him to read it,” Shapiro said. “And he does that well.”
His 6-year-old daughter comes home excited to share holiday-themed arts and crafts projects and lessons about Jewish customs. Even ordinary moments have become reminders that Jewish identity is taking root naturally.
“My son will be at a social gathering and see pepperoni and say, ‘I don’t eat that.’ It enriches his sense of identity.”
For Shapiro, that immersion matters deeply.
“You have the exposure for the kids — it becomes like water to a fish,” he explained. “They’re always surrounded by it and exposed to it, which is a good thing.”
Born in South Africa and raised in South Florida, Shapiro attended Jewish day school through eighth grade. He met his wife, Gabriela (Gabi) in college at the University of Miami. Together, they wanted their children to grow up with both strong academics and a strong sense of Jewish identity.
After moving to Tampa in 2015 and graduating from the Federation’s Hope Cohen Barnett Leadership Institute (HCBLI) in 2016, Shapiro joined Hillel’s board, serving first from 2018-2020 and then again starting in 2022, getting to know what makes Hillel Academy special as a dedicated board member as well as being a parent of two children who attend.
“Everyone sends their kids to Hillel for different reasons,” he said. “It has academic excellence and you feel confident that your child is getting an education. Hillel also gives your child a rich and diverse notion of what it means to be a Jewish person. And it’s a caring place and a nurturing environment where you feel like family. If you need to talk to a teacher or someone else, staff members are very accessible.”
The school’s inclusivity and diversity also stood out to him.
“Hillel welcomes all students,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s still a Jewish institution, but it’s also a community school that welcomes children of different backgrounds. That sense of inclusivity runs through the mission both on paper and in practice.”
Shapiro appreciates that his children experience both the close-knit environment of Hillel and the broader Tampa community beyond it. As an assistant coach for his son’s team at Interbay Little League as well, he values the opportunity for his children to connect with many different types of people.
“My son has exposure to kids from Little League and kids in his class. It’s important to me as a parent to expose my kids to different groups of people.”
Professionally, Shapiro is a shareholder at Gunster, where he works as a tax and corporate lawyer. He enjoys navigating complicated areas of law and helping clients solve complex problems. Outside of work, much of his time revolves around relaxing and spending time with his family. He enjoys working on his photography hobby and watching sports.
Shapiro credits the Hope Cohen Barnett Leadership Institute (HCBLI) with helping him better understand the landscape of Jewish organizations throughout the region and demonstrating how much opportunity there is to make a meaningful impact.
“One of the great things about a community like Tampa is that you’re needed,” he said. “While it is not enormous from a numbers perspective, there are many people who care about and are involved in the Jewish community. Given its size, there is always the opportunity to get involved and make a meaningful difference.”
He has enjoyed serving on Hillel Academy’s board as the school has brought significant projects to fruition, including opening the Forman Early Learning Center and the school’s new event center. What he enjoys most, he said, is the collaborative process of bringing together people with different viewpoints around a shared mission.
“Being able to work together, relate to people and facilitate agreement among people with different perspectives has been very rewarding,” he said. “And the relationships I have established have been very gratifying (and fun!).”
Shapiro also values the board’s intentional effort to include a wide range of voices — parents, alumni, retirees and community members alike.
“We’re very focused on having diverse people involved,” he said.
Today, as he watches his children grow within Tampa’s Jewish community, Shapiro sees institutions like Hillel Academy as essential not only for education, but for the future of Jewish life itself.
“Jewish education is crucial to the survival of the Jewish people,” he said. “And it enables Judaism to flourish all over the world — including in a place like Tampa.”
This feature profiles the inspiring young adults of the Tampa Jewish community who are making a meaningful impact through volunteerism and leadership. These emerging changemakers embody the values of tikkun olam — repairing the world — by giving their time, energy and passion to causes that strengthen both the Jewish community and the broader world around them.