Jewish Federation of San Diego

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Jewish Federation of San Diego Jewish Community News, Events and Services in San Diego www.JewishInSanDiego.org Your connection to the Jewish Community – at home and around the world.

Thousands of individuals and families in San Diego County turn to Federation as their connection to the Jewish community.

We’re thrilled to welcome our inaugural Belonging Lab cohort! Thirteen participants from thirteen different initiatives ...
10/14/2026

We’re thrilled to welcome our inaugural Belonging Lab cohort! Thirteen participants from thirteen different initiatives came together this week, each bringing a project focused on helping people feel a stronger sense of belonging.

Over the next six months, our goal is to help these leaders build belonging into the culture and everyday life of their groups, using practical design principles and real data on how people experience community. Each participant will test, learn, and refine their own project and share what works, so the whole community benefits.

The cohort brings a wide range of perspectives and a shared commitment to strengthening community. We can’t wait to see what they build!

Last night, more than 120 of Federation’s leading philanthropists came together for Cornerstone, our annual major donor ...
10/12/2026

Last night, more than 120 of Federation’s leading philanthropists came together for Cornerstone, our annual major donor appreciation event. It was an evening of gratitude, connection, and celebration as we honored our donors’ generosity, leadership, and enduring commitment to Jewish life.

As we celebrate Federation at 90, we reflected on the generations of donors whose vision and generosity built the community we know today and looked ahead to what we can make possible for those who come next.

That connection between generations was at the heart of the evening’s conversation with our guest speaker, Dr. Mijal Bitton, a spiritual leader, community builder, and sociologist. Drawing on Jewish wisdom and contemporary insight, she explored community, legacy, and belonging, inviting us to consider what has sustained Jewish communities over time and how we carry that legacy forward.

Thank you to our generous donors for your continued commitment to Jewish life in San Diego, Israel, and around the world, and to Dr. Bitton for sharing her insights with us. We’re grateful for all you make possible and for the opportunity to celebrate together.

Most residents have now returned to Nachal Oz, and everyday life is beginning to return with them. Flowers are blooming ...
10/09/2026

Most residents have now returned to Nachal Oz, and everyday life is beginning to return with them. Flowers are blooming across the kibbutz, children are playing, and families are rebuilding their routines.

For a community that suffered so deeply on October 7, 2023, those moments matter.

During a visit to Nachal Oz this summer, leaders from San Diego's Jewish community heard directly from local leaders about their hopes for the kibbutz's future. They don't want the kibbutz to be seen only as a place of danger. They want people to also see the beauty, possibility, and strong sense of community that have always been part of Nachal Oz.

Nearly three years later, that future is beginning to take shape as residents return home and continue rebuilding the place they love.

For more stories and resources to help you remember and commemorate October 7 at home, visit https://hubs.la/Q04zQGWj0.

We’re excited to welcome Amit Levi as our new Community Shlicha, an Israeli emissary who will spend the next two years h...
10/09/2026

We’re excited to welcome Amit Levi as our new Community Shlicha, an Israeli emissary who will spend the next two years helping strengthen connections between San Diego and Israel.

Through a partnership between Jewish Federation of San Diego, RootOne, and The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), Amit will work with organizations, schools, synagogues, youth groups, and community partners to create meaningful opportunities for Israel engagement and connection.

Amit brings five years of experience in leadership development, facilitation, and building connections across diverse communities, including work focused on women’s leadership, disability inclusion, dialogue across difference, and support for soldiers and combat-support personnel in Israel. She holds an M.A. through the Ruderman Program, where she focused on the relationship between Israel and Diaspora Jewry.

As she begins this new chapter, she’s looking forward to listening, learning, and getting to know the people and stories that make up Jewish San Diego.

Join us in giving Amit a warm welcome! 💙

Ofir Libstein z”l was more than the head of the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council. To many in San Diego, he was also a fri...
10/08/2026

Ofir Libstein z”l was more than the head of the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council. To many in San Diego, he was also a friend. Over the years, Ofir built deep relationships between Sha’ar HaNegev and our community, helping strengthen a partnership that connected people across thousands of miles.

On October 7, 2023, Ofir was killed while defending his community. His son, Nitzan z”l, also lost his life that day.

In the years since, young leaders from Sha’ar HaNegev have found a way to carry their memory forward through Nitzanim shel Ofir, a program created in honor of Ofir and Nitzan that helps local youth build leadership skills, confidence, and a strong sense of responsibility for their community.

With support from San Diego, Nitzanim shel Ofir is helping young people across Sha’ar HaNegev grow as leaders while carrying forward Ofir’s belief in community and responsibility for one another.

May the memories of Ofir and Nitzan Libstein z”l be a blessing.

Photo credit: מועצה אזורית שער הנגב | Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council

Today, we remember the lives forever changed on October 7, 2023. We remember those we lost, those who were taken hostage...
10/07/2026

Today, we remember the lives forever changed on October 7, 2023.

We remember those we lost, those who were taken hostage, and the families and communities across Israel who continue to carry the weight of that day.

We hold especially close our brothers and sisters in Sha’ar HaNegev, where the loss was profound and deeply personal. There, as across Israel, remembrance exists alongside the ongoing work of rebuilding, returning home, caring for one another, and choosing hope even in the presence of grief.

Over the past three years, we have seen that hope in families returning home, communities coming back together, and people continuing to care for one another while remembering those who were lost.

Today, we remember. We grieve. We hold Israel and our family in Sha’ar HaNegev close. And we choose hope.

May the memories of all those we lost be a blessing.

For resources to help you remember and commemorate October 7 at home, visit https://hubs.la/Q04znF_t0.

When a delegation of leaders from San Diego’s Jewish community visited Kibbutz Kfar Aza this summer, Roni Steinbrecher p...
10/06/2026

When a delegation of leaders from San Diego’s Jewish community visited Kibbutz Kfar Aza this summer, Roni Steinbrecher proudly walked the group through the site of a new community fitness center now under construction.

He stopped to show them the equipment he had personally selected, explaining why each piece had to be the best.

Roni’s daughter, Doron, was taken hostage from her home in Kfar Aza on October 7, 2023. Yet even while Doron remained in captivity, Roni was thinking about the day his community would come home. He championed the creation of the fitness center as a place that would be ready for them when they did.

Today, Doron is back with her family. And after nearly three years of displacement, Kfar Aza is beginning the long process of coming home, too.

Construction can be seen throughout the kibbutz as homes and community spaces are rebuilt and prepared for returning residents. Among that work is the fitness center Roni began imagining long before this moment arrived, taking shape with care for the community he knew would one day return.

For more stories and resources to help you remember and commemorate October 7 at home, visit https://hubs.la/Q04zn0ZF0.

This week, as we mark three years since October 7, we’ll be sharing stories from our partner region of Sha’ar HaNegev, h...
10/05/2026

This week, as we mark three years since October 7, we’ll be sharing stories from our partner region of Sha’ar HaNegev, honoring those we lost and the people and communities continuing to heal and rebuild.

Livnat Kutz z”l believed deeply in the healing power of art. An artist, educator, and beloved member of the Sha’ar HaNegev community, she founded Beit Melacha as a place where children and adults could create, learn, and find connection through art.

Livnat’s life and work were cut tragically short on October 7, 2023, when she, her husband Aviv, and their children Rotem, Yiftach, and Yonatan were killed in their home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

In the months that followed, the work Livnat began continued. Beit Melacha operated from temporary spaces, bringing creative programs to families displaced from their homes and giving people a place to create, connect, and heal together.

That work is now finding a permanent home. With support from Federation, our San Diego Jewish community, and other partners, the new Beit Melacha is expected to open this fall, with spaces for art, ceramics, carpentry, science and innovation, therapy, and community gathering.

The building will be new, but the heart of Beit Melacha remains rooted in Livnat’s vision: a place where creativity brings people together and helps a community heal.

May the memories of Livnat, Aviv, Rotem, Yiftach, and Yonatan Kutz z”l be a blessing.

For more stories and resources to help you remember and commemorate October 7 at home, visit https://hubs.la/Q04zdZ4g0.

On Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, we pause, celebrate, and begin again. Shemini Atzeret offers a moment to simply be...
10/02/2026

On Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, we pause, celebrate, and begin again.

Shemini Atzeret offers a moment to simply be present, while Simchat Torah brings us together in joy and celebration around Torah. As we complete the annual reading of the Torah and return to its very first words, we’re invited to appreciate where we’ve been before turning toward what comes next.

Swipe to explore a few lessons from these holidays about slowing down, being present, and finding meaning in the moment between ending and new beginnings.

Chag Sameach! 💙

Big news for The Community Trip!Thanks to the generosity of the Zeff family, the First Timers Pre-Trip is now $1,199 per...
10/01/2026

Big news for The Community Trip!

Thanks to the generosity of the Zeff family, the First Timers Pre-Trip is now $1,199 per person, double occupancy. That’s $1,000 less than the original price!

And for travelers 45 and under, a limited number of $1,000 subsidies are available toward The Community Trip. Plus, thanks to the Feldman family, young adults 45 and under can also receive a $1,000 subsidy toward the Budapest post-trip extension.

If you’ve been thinking about joining us, now is the time.

Ready to make the journey with us? Learn more and register here: https://hubs.la/Q04yYMpL0

45 or under and interested in a subsidy? Email Dana Koenig at [email protected] to request your unique coupon code.

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