Last week, 80 young adults from Los Angeles met up in Las Vegas and joined together with more than 1,500 of their peers from all across the United States and Canada for the 2nd annual TribeFest. Let’s hope that what happened in Vegas doesn’t stay there!
In addition to 3 action-packed days of workshops, break out groups, seminars –and of course having a great time Vegas-style, our Angelenos had a special reception with David Siegel, the Consul General of Israel in Los Angeles, and Lenny Krayzelburg, Olympic swimming gold medalist. Our Federation’s own Esther Kustanowitz helped organize the pre-TribeFest Shabbat programming, including bringing a bunch of Got Kosher pretzel challot to give everyone a taste of L.A.’s favorite Shabbat bread. Plus, Sarah Rachelle Fortman, a cantorial student from Los Angeles, helped lead the Friday night service.
TribeFest, a program of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), is an entertaining, interactive and educational celebration for Jewish young adults (ages 22-45) from across North America. Through presentations by dynamic leaders in politics, entertainment, music, art, food, religion and other aspects of Jewish life, TribeFest offered attendees many ways to connect to their own Judaism and how they see themselves as part of the community.
TribeFest participants heard from headliners like comedian and Saturday Night Live star Rachel Dratch, and best-selling humorist and author A.J. Jacobs. “Convening with other Jews is one of the most important things we can do to keep Judaism alive,” Dratch told the audience at the opening plenary.
“It’s been an amazing couple of days,” said TribeFest Co-Chair Jason Rubinoff of Toronto. “We all came to TribeFest to be a part of the same Jewish tent. We have seen that there are so many ways to become more involved, and strengthen our communities, our connection with Israel and our Jewish identities.”
Speakers at TribeFest included Jewish innovators and social activists. Jonny Imerman and Rochelle Shoretz spoke of their respective organizations to help Jewish cancer patients. Hadas Malada-Matsree, an Ethiopian-Israeli, told her story of becoming a medical officer in the Israeli Air Force. Filmmaker and lawyer Brooke Goldstein and former Israeli journalist Stav Shaffir presented about their experiences in social activism.
TribeFest’s innovative format fostered social interaction and learning. In the “Big Show” exhibit hall, hit Jewish musical acts from Israel and North America like Hatikva 6, Moshav, Diwon and Aya Korem took the stage each evening, while participants danced, networked and visited the booths of partner organizations featuring ideas on everything from Jewish art to Israel experience programs.
The program also stressed Jewish community service. More than 600 attendees delivered backpacks filled with over 6,000 books to young children in the Las Vegas public school system through a service project sponsored by PJ Library and the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.
Rachel Wright of Detroit, TribeFest Co-Chair, emphasized the goal of encouraging Jewish communal life. “We’re really just getting started at TribeFest,” she said. “This was an opportunity to see what’s out there in the Jewish world, and how you can take advantage of it all. Now we want participants to take some of what they’ve seen here, heard here and experienced here, and apply it to their own lives.”
