My list of Almost 100 Things I Love Most About Being Jewish
I know that the prevalence and incidents of antisemitism we are witnessing have caught many of us not only off-guard but also with a feeling of helplessness as we are being hit with it from all sides. Comments made by politicians a…
How to learn and grow from our past
I have always been a student of history. Of all of the subjects I had in school, history was always my favorite. I enjoyed not only understanding what transpired but also why it happened. What led to whatever occurred was just as important to me as what o…
But Relevance Is Vital as Well
I believe it was in elementary school or junior high when I first learned about evolution. There was no controversy surrounding it; it was introduced as a science lesson, and I accepted it as fact. However, it wasn't until much later that I realized that it wa…
Evolving and becoming a better version of ourselves
I can honestly say that as a child, I used to dread this time of year. But, come on… what child didn’t since once the calendar changed to September… it could only mean one thing… school was just about to start. And yet, as an adult…
Pulling back the curtain to show some of the unseen work of the Jewish Federation
When I was a teenager, I participated in a retreat program in the San Francisco Bay Area that brought teens from all across the area for a series of 3-4 weekend retreats. These retreats were coordinated throug…
Our security concerns are ramping up
As you might imagine, a lot of things come across my computer screen each day. Whether it is what is taking place in Israel, updates from our local synagogues, information about how upcoming legislation at both the federal and state level could impact ou…
Camp More Important than Ever
Awww… summer. That time of year when the air is filled with the smell of barbeque, life feels more carefree and it is okay to wear white.
For kids, it is a break from the regular routine of the school year and a chance to just play and be a kid. But for …
Every Trip to Israel is Different
When I was sixteen years old, I and 45 other teens from northern California, specifically the East Bay, spent six weeks in Israel during the summer after our sophomore year in high school. It was an incredible experience, especially at such a young age, and…
It is hard to believe that it has already been a year since the first set of flyers, attributing everything from the COVID response and immigration to Disney’s “child grooming” and more to Jews, hit our communities’ driveways. Unfortunately, it seems like it has become a regular occu…
As a Jewish professional, there are rare moments when my personal and professional life comes together. This past week was one of those times. While we have seen an unbelievable increase of antisemitic incidents (including another round of hate-filled flyers being found in Upland in the last…
Never in my professional career have I dealt with or seen the amount of coverage surrounding antisemitism more than I have in the last several months. From the national reports on trends we are seeing to the very public displays of antisemitism and hatred, hatred has never been at the forefr…
As you may know, last week, I wrote an Op-ed on antisemitism. I was delighted that not only was it picked up by a few local media outlets, but many of you also shared with me how much you appreciated and liked it. My goal for writing the piece was to provide a local perspective on how this i…
In 2012, a group of people had a simple idea - let’s create a day encouraging people to do good. And with this, #GivingTuesday was established, and today marks the 10th anniversary of this desire to have a specific day set aside to support organizations that do incredible work in and for l…
Last Friday was a busy one for me. My day started representing the Jewish community at Monrovia’s 56th Annual Community Prayer Breakfast. This annual event brings together not only faith leaders from across the city, along with local elected officials, but also community members as well.…
Today is the day that many people have circled on their calendars for a long time. While we may not find out the results of today’s election for several days, there will be many happy and sad people at some point this week or next. I know this is a simplistic message, but I think it is imp…
