From Rabbi Florence at Beit Sefer

Read weekly letters from Leah below, and please visit our blog to see and read more about the activities in our program.

Dear Beit Sefer Families,

When I was a young girl, I lived in a community that did not provide a full Jewish education for young women or the opportunity to become bat mitzvah. So I pursued Jewish learning on my own.

As I grew more mature, I continued that search. If there was a class available – I attended it, always trying to find my place. It wasn’t until I moved to California and joined University Synagogue that I found a home. I made up my mind to become bat mitzvah as an adult and in March 1993, I did!

But it didn’t stop there. Although it took me a long time to decide whether or not to enter rabbinic school, when I finally “signed up” I knew it was the right decision. Though I always loved being Jewish, it wasn’t until I started at AJRCA that I really fell “in love” with Judaism.

That love is what I hope to convey to the students in our Beit Sefer. As I integrate that love into my work at TBI, I look forward to involving parents and families right from the start as we develop ways to ensure our students are excited about coming to Beit Sefer and come to see it as a place to explore their own feelings about our faith and traditions and gain insight into our rich heritage.