Tiburon Jewish Festival: Friendship & Fun

The Tiburon Jewish Festival returned recently for its second year at beautiful Zelinsky Park. This gathering- on a perfect summer day with a miraculous cool breeze in a season of excessive Bay Area heat- included great music by Jewish performers, healthy Jewish cooking demonstrations, Jewish wine tasting, Hebrew scribing lessons and more on the surprise and delight side.

On the world events side, however, and in response to the critical need for understanding and compassion for fellow believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, this gathering also included a panel discussion on how to combat antisemitism.  Jewish scholar Rabbi Dov Greenberg, Stanford’s executive director of Chabod, took part (he was also event Keynote speaker), along with Dr. Michael Harris, regional director of the Bay Area chapter of StandWithUs, Leslie K. Barry, Amazon best-selling author of Newark Minutemen: A True 1930’s Legend About One Man’s Mission to Save a Nation’s Soul from the German-American Bund; Dr. Oleg Ivanov, Assistant Director of the San Francisco office of the American Jewish Committee.  A special announcement was made at the end of the panel presentation regarding Dr. Ivanov accepting a position with StandWithUs. 

“Given this is a small space, and in a location that is as sheltered as Tiburon, a librarian at the facility near the event weighed in, “this is likely a safe place for this…”

That was an unexpected concept for this enthusiastic but, evidently, naïve reporter: just prior to this remark, and while visiting the Festival’s set-up team pre-event,  I had interviewed a woman from the local community who described herself as “not religious,” but Israeli and “supportive of the (local Chabad) community.” She shared that, after having been threatened by an anti-Semitic man at another, similar festival in Fairfax (he told her, “I want them all killed; I assume you are a Jew so I want you killed…” after which he gave her a Nazi salute…), she was enthusiastic and willing to give me feedback about the event but feared being identified. As I wrote the first draft of this piece- a report that should have been filled with joy and happiness in coverage of such a unique gathering- I found myself in tears- in tears, again, in fact, as I finalized and edited before posting…

“Hate is out of the question,” this young woman told me further as we eventually began discussing some recent experiences I had regarding unfounded assumptions made by others about my own Faith in God and specific events endured while trying to get non-discriminatory medical care at a local hospital.  “The current times are very scary for us,” she said regarding her cultural identity and Faith community.  “Smart people know that we are the canary in the coal mine because it’s not just us- it starts with us… and people don’t see it…”

Antisemitism and anti-Faith in G-d in our country, state, AND county is not a figment of our imaginations.

“As we witness an unprecedented level of antisemitic attacks across the globe, we also see a tremendous desire for fellowship and community,” Chabad of Tiburon co-director and Festival co-director Rabbi Levi Mintz says in his statement regarding one of the purposes of the gathering.  This reporter could not agree more.

There has been, indeed a shift in our World regarding the way people of Orthodox and other Faith are received.  While this reporter has always been acutely aware of this- ironically,embracing that same term of being “a canary in a coal mine,” too- hearing this sister in Faith share that she was afraid to have her name given in this piece tell me, “you can quote me anonymously… because I’m a little bit scared to be targeted afterwards…” underscored my own recent sense of unsafety.  The reality of spiritual battle as endemic in our own country- our own home town, for that matter- and not just on some unseen turf on a continent across an ocean- is shocking.

While the initial underlying tone of the gathering was somewhat somber and serious this year, reflecting world and local events, the afternoon was nonetheless supplied with moments of delight:  Children- as well as “big kids”- were laughing as giant bubbles filled the air and soared past the view of Old St. Hilary’s Church on the Hill, in my mind a perfect juxtapositioning of what it means to come together, people of all Faiths, to honor a common God and to be in community.  Music filled the air, too, as The Ferris Wheels, a vintage rock group led by an orthodox rabbi, Israeli reggae artist Lior Ben-Hur and his group Sol Tevel, and world music and classic rock pianist Jeff Labes shared their unique talents.  There was face-painting for the kiddos, and group “painting and sipping” (wine) for the adults.  And, of course, there was delicious food and drink of many kinds- combined with tasting of Kosher California vintage wines compliments of Covenant Vineyards.

Chadad is one of the two Jewish communities in Tiburon, and it is an orthodox branch of Hasidic Judaism with some 3,500 chapters around the globe.  The Tiburon chapter was founded in 2022 and the inaugural Festival was born that same year.  Rabbi Mintz and his wife, Mirel hosted the event in partnership with the Tiburon Diversity Inclusion Task Force.  Their aim was “to create unity, community and acceptance amongst the entire community.”  They and their team were hoping this bright and lively gathering would both strengthen the pride and identity of those attending who are Jewish, and also offer non-Jewish people an opportunity to learn more about the joys of the culture and this particular Jewish community.

“We really just hope to bring so much joy and Jewish spirit,” Chabad of Tiburon Rebbetzin and Co-director and event co-mastermind Mirel Mintz, said, “and let everyone who comes know that we are a strong nation, we’re joyful, we don’t let any opposition put our spirits down.  We’re proud of who we are and to celebrate who we are, and we would love other people to come and see that as well.  This is not exclusive to the Jewish people.  Anyone who wants to celebrate with us is welcome.  We have so many rituals in our tradition and Jewish culture, but today’s just a random Sunday that we chose to just come out and celebrate together with happy Jewish music, and good Jewish food, good connections, and just making everyone a good time!”  

“This festival is our opportunity to serve the community by showcasing Jewish life at its best,” Rabbi Mintz had stated in pre-event materials. The dynamic Mintz duo and their team of partners and volunteers definitely succeeded in their mission. This reporter enjoyed the outstanding musical performances, cooking demonstration with delicious samples of healthy food (toda raba lah, Chef Micah Siva), important talks sharing information about how to handle this new wave of anti-semitism, fun wine tasting (thank you Jeff and Jodie Morgan /Covenant Winery team), and perhaps most especially the enthusiastic cry for a Return to Holiness via contemplation, holy practices, and the sacred art of Scribing (toda raba relah, Rabbi Levi Potash).

If you missed this amazing and important day, be sure to get on the mailing list to receive information about any future events- and to learn more about Chabod of Tiburon- by visiting both the event team’s inspiring web site at tiburonjewishfestival.com and the Chabod of Tiburon site at jewishtiburon.com.

MUSICIANS: In order of performance-

Ferris Wheels, a Chassidic Rock band led by Rabbi Yehuda Ferris, returned for their second year at the festival.  Putting a Jewish spin on the lyrics of popular songs, transforming Lyrnyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” into “Sweet Aroma of Challa” and the Rolling Stones’ “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” into “I Can’t Get No Hamantaschen…”

Lior Ben Hur– In 2011 Lior founded Sol Tevel and gathered band members Jenevieve Francisco, Brett Cavanaugh, Yoel Bibas, Tim Vickers, Robbie Elfman, Rebecca Nobel, Jordan Feinstein, and Danny Cao.  In 2012, assistd by the legendary Israeli music producer Yossi Fine, produced the band’s debut album, WORLD LIGHT, which aims to shed a new light and contemporary interpretation on old Jewish texts, ideals and mysticism.  Along with his band, Lior Ben-Hur continues to focus on his passion for Reggae music, which has been a key inspiration on his musical creativity and spirituality.

Jeff Labes – a classic rock piano player and one of rock’s gems.  “Moondance” is widely considered to be on the list of top rock piano pieces, and Jeff is the keyboardist who laid down its tasty piano tracks.

SPEAKERS

Rabbi Dov Greenbrg on HATE RISING: Antisemitism on Campus

Dr. Michael Harris, Regional Director of the Bay Area chapter of StandWithUs

Leslie K. Barry, Amazon best-selling author of Newark Minutemen: A True 1930’s Legend About One Man’s Mission to Save a Nation’s Soul from the German-American Bund.

Dr. Oleg Ivanov, Assistant Director of the San Francisco office of the American Jewish Committee

TO BE SAVORED

COVENANT WINES:  This year’s festival featured the unique California wines of Covenant Winery, with complimentary tastings of their specialty wines.  Covenant wines are made from exceptional vineyards that stretch from Napa Valley, Sonoma, Lake Country, and Lodi in Northen California to the Santa Maria Valley and Santa Rita Hills in Southern California, to the Galilee and Golan Heights in Israel.

KONA ICE:  A frozen dessert with ice shaved into thin, delicate flakes, creating a soft and fluffy texture that melts in your mouth.  Flavored syrup is poured over the ice, resulting in a mouth-watering treat.  With Kona Ice, you can put on your choice of flavors, and create the perfect dessert.

PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS

PAINT & SIP:  A relaxed setting of art and friendship.  Participants could create beautiful Jewish-themed canvasses guided by a professional artist while enjoying delicious Kosher wine and snacks.

CHEF MICAH SIVA: An enriching and entertaining demo that highlighted unique foods of different Jewish culinary traditions. Plant-forward Jewish cuisine with a modern twist.

THE ART OF JEWISH SCRIBING:  A fascinating journey and hands-on workshop into the ancient art of Jewish scribing with skilled scribe Rabbi Levi Potash.

All photographs including title image by and copyright 2024 Michele Capario