While many Israelis remain quite uninformed of American Jewry and its variety of institutions, Michal Kohane is an exception.
The Israeli native is the new director of the Jewish Federation of the Sacramento Region. She thinks she may be the only native Israeli to lead a federation in the United States.
She is also a divorced mother of six children. While she identifies as Modern Orthodox, she has taught at Reform and Conservative synagogues as well as in a community where there was no synagogue at all.
“I really do not like the boxes inside Judaism,” she said. “I strongly feel that wherever there’s Jewish people, there’s part of my family there. Diversity and acceptance is what has kept us alive.”
As director of a smaller federation (as opposed to those, for example, in the Bay Area), Kohane has many challenges. While the synagogues in the Sacramento area are strong, tightly knit communities, there are few options for less religious Jews to connect.
The last six months has seen some new activities that are attracting Israelis in the area, she said. Kohane believes Israelis in the Sacramento area are mixing more with the Jewish community because there are fewer Jews to begin with.
“Smallness has its advantages in that you get to know everyone,” she said. “And people that would be less active are more needed here, and have the opportunity to participate.”
Kohane, 44, grew up in Haifa, the child of German immigrants. Her father was a founder of the Conservative synagogue there, and Kohane has early memories of attending services with him. But he died when she was 7, and her mother was not nearly as religious.
At the University of Haifa, Kohane studied Israel education. She held a number of jobs, and then like so many young Israelis, she took a backpack and went to travel the world. Upon arrival in the United States, she made her way first to Los Angeles, and then to Grass Valley.
Kohane jokes that she had to come to California to become traditionally observant.
A Jewish community center existed in Grass Valley, but no synagogue. Kohane’s background made her a natural to teach religious school, and once she started doing that, she began teaching b’nai mitzvah classes too. Soon, parents of her students approached her and asked her to teach adult education too. She began leading services, b’nai mitvah and conducting lifecycle events. She meanwhile got married and obtained a certificate from Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles, certifying her as a lay rabbi.
When her oldest child reached sixth grade, Kohane was concerned about her children’s Jewish education.
“I really felt great about my years in Grass Valley, but felt that it was time to do something different,” she said. “The kids needed more of a Jewish community.”
The family moved to Sacramento, and her kids began attending the Shalom School, where Kohane worked as a teacher. After a year or two, she became the head of the Hebrew and Jewish studies department, and also taught Israeli folk dancing.
Over the years, she managed to obtain two master’s degrees, one in Jewish studies and education, the other in clinical psychology.
Because the Shalom School shares a campus with the federation building, Kohane became interested in what was going on there, and when she heard they were looking for a new director, she applied. She took the reins last November, continuing to do consulting for the school and teaching whenever time permits.
Kohane now has a lot on her plate: The Shalom School is moving to a new site in the next few years, which will affect the federation, since they share a campus.
“The federation needs to work on programming, the campaign and on its community relations,” she said. “I feel really good about the challenges ahead.”