Moms Who Rock Around Our Towns: Dobbs Ferry's Leslie Kahan

Each week, we're going to share with you a local mom who we think is awesome. We'll ask her some questions and hear about how she manages life with kids in our area. We hope you'll enjoy getting to know some of our neighbors.

Leslie Kahan lives in Dobbs Ferry with her husband, Cliff Kahan, and their two children, Max (13) and Ella (almost) 9 and dog, Cooper.  Leslie is a photographer and owns Leslie Kahan Photography and is also a Spinning instructor at , teaching 4 classes each week.

1. How do you balance being a mom and working?

Leslie shares that "it is very difficult," and she is getting better at it.  Because she  works for herself,  she can set her own hours and try to work around the kids’ schedules.  She also notes that "her husband is very supportive, and it also really helps to have friends with kids – we all help each other out as much as we can." She believes that it truly does "take a village and that is the case here in Dobbs Ferry."

2. We'd love to hear more about your work- tell us about it!

Since she was 16, Leslie has been a photographer, and enjoys taking pictures of everything. Recently, she has done some " food photography for  in Hastings, and Gluten Free Living (magazine) also in Hastings."

She also does corporate portraits throughout the tri-state area. Many companies require headshots of employees and she travels to offices and takes the photos. She also does model and acting headshots, portraits of kids and family portraits.  

Leslie appreciates "digital photography because it is liberating and easier to learn and try new things." She also loves photographing her kids’ sports teams and sharing the images with other parents.

Leslie "really enjoys teaching spinning at in Dobbs Ferry. It combines so many things that she enjoys including "exercise, teaching and a real love for music." She loves that in spinning, "the   classes are so fun and can go by so quickly that you barely realize that you’re exercising." She has a strong dedication to her students "likes to share that experience with others and the group setting is very motivating."

Leslie also volunteers when time allows. Since 2007, she has filled a variety of "techie" roles for the Dobbs Ferry Schools Foundation (DFSF). Her most significant contribution is being the webmaster. She adds that the DFSF is in need of more "techie" volunteers!

3. When you find time for yourself, what do you enjoy doing locally?

Leslie says she "rarely finds time" for herself, and like many working moms, is "working on it." She always enjoys seeing friends and family and catching up with them.

She spends time volunteering in programs that impact her kids and the community. She likes to work out at  She has a passion for listening to and discovering new music too (just come to one of her spin classes!).

Leslie also likes to visit the store in Dobbs  and  "loves sailing and tries to get out on the Hudson River" whenever she can.  

Leslie and her husband enjoy playing golf  and try to find time to play on public courses in Westchester.

4. What are some of your top things to do around Westchester with your family?

The Kahan family can be found walking their dog, Cooper, in Hillside Woods.

Like many families, they spend time together at the various sports programs the kids are involved in.  Max now plays modified soccer and lacrosse at the Dobbs Ferry Middle School.    

Ella plays lacrosse with the Dobbs Ferry Youth Lacrosse program and also plays soccer for the Rivertowns United Soccer Club/AYSO 324. Leslie is very appreciative of all the volunteers that help make both these sporting programs a success. 

Ella is also very involved in theatre and has attended the in Hastings since she was six years old. She has taken singing, acting and dance lessons and now is part of the ensemble.

During the summer, they enjoy attending the Jazz Forum Arts concerts in at the Dobbs Ferry Waterfront Park. The family also enjoys sailing.  Max goes to the Shattemuc Yacht Club sailing academy in Ossining. For Leslie, it is a special time as she "grew up sailing and it is exciting to do it again now as an adult and with her son. 

While the Kahans eat at home most of the time because Leslie's husband is an "amazing cook," they do enjoy eating out at and , both in Hastings.

5. What is your favorite thing about living in this area?

Leslie loves "being so close to the Hudson River and living in an area with the windy, hilly roads and streets that are densely lined with trees." She also appreciates living in the Rivertowns "because of the small, tight knit community and the “low-key” feeling." Leslie also loves having such a diverse community in Dobbs Ferry.

For her, she welcomes the "level of involvement that parents have in volunteering for local organizations and sports teams.   It takes so much effort to make things happen and it’s great that so many people care about these towns." 

And, like many that choose this area to live, she likes that the stores in the villages are the kinds "where you go in and people know your face and your name… places like Greenleaf Pharmacy in Hastings and Chase Bank in Dobbs Ferry." 

Leslie's children attend Dobbs Ferry Public Schools and she thinks they are terrific, especially Springhurst, which she believes is  "a magical place."  She is hopeful that the "other schools in the district will continue to improve with so many positive changes in our district this past year."

6. Anything Else You Want to Share?

Leslie and her family are members at Temple Beth Abraham in Tarrytown and just recently, her son just became a Bar Mitzvah.  The family really enjoys the sense of community there.

Also, Leslie is adjusting to some of the local changes. She misses Brother’s Market in Dobbs Ferry and added that her "son will miss G & L Deli!"

Is there a question you'd want answered by our Moms featured here? Tell us!

Don't forget to nominate a mom you think is amazing!

Submit your nomination in our comment box below or e-mail the information to elizabeth@patch.com