Temple Beth Israel of Pomona recently announced Ambassador Edward Marks as the inaugural speaker of the Brenda Rosenfeld Shabbat Scholars Series.

Marks, who is Rosenfeld’s brother, will speak during Shabbat services on Friday, Nov. 21.

He was appointed to the Foreign Service in 1956, with assignments in Kenya, Mexico, Angola, Zambia, Belgium and Zaire. Senior positions included Ambassador to the Republics of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, the Department of State’s Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Visiting Senior Fellow on terrorism at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Deputy Chief of Mission in Sri Lanka, and Deputy United States Representative to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations in New York.

Since retiring as a Foreign Service Officer in 1995, Marks has engaged in consulting, lecturing and writing, primarily on terrorism, interagency coordination, United Nations Affairs, and complex international emergencies. He has written extensively on these topics and has co-authored the book “U.S. Government Counterterrorism

Programs: Who Does What.” Marks was recalled to active duty in 2002-2005 to serve as the Department of State’s advisor on terrorism to the United States Pacific Command.

The Brenda Rosenfeld Shabbat Scholars Series will bring highly regarded speakers to Temple Beth Israel. Rosenfeld, a 40-year member of Temple Beth Israel, was a founding member of the Temple’s Social Action Committee, chaired numerous adult education events and served on Claremont’s Human Relations Council. The Shabbat Scholars Series will serve to affirm her values and to memorialize her tireless commitment to Jewish life, learning and healing the world.

Shabbat services begin at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call Temple Beth Israel at 909-626-1277.