Honors
Leor Hersh of San Francisco was one of 21 teens selected for United Synagogue Youth’s third annual Heschel Fellowship cohort. The fellowship is designed for students not currently enrolled in a Jewish day school who are young leaders involved in community service, civic engagement, athletics and dedication to Torah. Hersh attends the Bay School of San Francisco and volunteers with Jewish Family and Children’s Services.
Rabbi Nicki Greninger of Temple Isaiah in Lafayette has been selected to receive a 2024 Hakarat HaTov Award at the 135th Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) convention in Philadelphia in March. The Hakarat HaTov award recognizes Greninger for her leadership as co-chair of the CCAR Ethics Task Force for the past two years.
Happenings
More than 200 community members participated in Jewish Silicon Valley’s 15th annual Jewbilee, a Day of Jewish Learning. The multigenerational event on Jan. 28 featured a Tu Bishvat-themed track for adults called “Longing for the Fruits of the Land” that explored the day’s lessons through the senses. Activities included a workshop to create clay flowers that will become part of a community memorial installation, a floral-design workshop, yoga sessions, singing groups and discussion circles. Jewish Silicon Valley also presented a Kids Jewbilee that day for nearly 150 students from local Jewish day and religious schools. It was co-sponsored by Congregation Beth David, Congregation Shir Hadash, Congregation Sinai, PJ Library, Temple Emanu-El and Yavneh Day School.
This year marks Osher Marin JCC’s 75th anniversary of serving the Marin County community. To celebrate, the JCC hosted a donor gathering on Feb. 4 and will offer special programs through August including live concerts, film screenings, talks and family-friendly events.
Jewish LearningWorks supported the creation of three new sensory spaces for children through its Special Needs and Inclusion Initiative, which provides grants designed to help children thrive in educational settings. The Jewish Life and Learning LabPlaySpace at Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco is a multisensory, multimodality “moadon,” or clubhouse, for exploring Jewish identity through touch, smell, sound, taste, sight and movement. The JCC East Bay sensory room is a calming, soothing space for children on campus. The Calm Corner for Oakland Hebrew Day School’s first grade is part of a larger plan to create physical environments in school that support calm, creativity and connection. The Calm Corner is a cozy space where a student who feels overwhelmed or needs a break can take a few minutes to get back to feeling centered.
Comings & Goings
After 15 years, Vicki Allen is stepping down as administrator at Congregation Ner Shalom in Cotati. Over the years she has been instrumental in assisting the congregation, including managing the office, overseeing the facilities, serving on committees, organizing volunteers and more.
Shalom Bayit has several staff changes. Rabbi Eric Weiss is stepping down as interim co-director after 18 months.
Lev Amor returns to the organization in a new role as the first-ever director of programs and operations. Amor previously served as Shalom Bayit’s community outreach program manager from 2016 to 2021.
Noa Oberman is a new domestic violence counselor/advocate, providing crisis intervention, resource navigation, counseling and support to clients. She previously was a summer intern with Shalom Bayit’s Love Shouldn’t Hurt youth program.
Kinneret Katz is the development assistant, supporting the fundraising and events teams. Katz previously wrote for JGirls+ magazine and has been involved in a variety of community and Jewish nonprofits.
Rabbi Leo Fuchs will join Congregation Rodef Sholom in San Rafael as assistant rabbi, beginning July 1. He will be a full member of the clergy team, involved with lifecycles, Shabbat and holiday services, b’nai mitzvah, adult and youth education, social justice and more. Fuchs has been serving as rabbi educator and director of youth and family education at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco. He was ordained at Hebrew Union College. Prior to entering rabbinical school, he worked in Oakland public schools as a special education teacher, assistant principal and, for 11 years, as founding principal of the Learning Without Limits Elementary School.
Opportunities
JIMENA: Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa, which is based in the Bay Area, is launching its first in-person Los Angeles cohort of the National Sephardic Leaders Fellowship, beginning March 17. The fellowship is tailored for emerging Sephardic and Mizrahi Jewish communal professionals and lay leaders who are early in their career or service to the community. It features weekly sessions of learning and engagement facilitated by Mizrahi and Sephardic thought leaders, scholars, activists and rabbis from around the world. Submit applications by Feb. 25. n