by angela privin
correspondent
More than 500 revelers, mostly from the Russian Jewish community, gathered in their finest attire to celebrate this year’s Émigré Gala on Jan. 26 at the Westin
St. Francis in San Francisco.
There was more to toast than just good food, good friends and community fundraising. This year marked the 40th anniversary of the Soviet Jewry movement, an international effort of Jewish activism that spurred the largest Jewish exodus of modern times.
The Bay Area was a leader in the Freedom for Soviet Jewry movement for decades, and is now one of the largest and most active Russian émigré communities in the United States. More than 40,000 Jewish émigrés have made their home in the Bay Area since Jewish emigration from the former Soviet Union began in the late 1970s.
When émigrés arrived in the Bay Area, Jewish Family and Children’s Services provided vital services to get them on their feet, and has continued to serve and involve émigrés over the past quarter century.
In his speech at the Gala, event chair Alex Lakovetsky succinctly summed up the warm relationship between the agency and the émigré community, saying, “We need to understand how much our community depends on JFCS, and how much JFCS depends on our community.”
As the community’s affluence grew, individuals came back to JFCS as volunteers, donors and board members to help less fortunate members of their community. Through this participation, the idea for JFCS’ Émigré Community Gala was born, and each year’s fundraising effort is more ambitious and successful than the last.
This year, the seventh annual Émigré Gala raised more than $350,000 for services JFCS provides to thousands of clients. Funds also benefit victims of trauma and tragedy in Israel, providing counseling, financial assistance and healing programs for children and families.
Many attending the event came to the Bay Area penniless decades ago, and now are able to pay at least $300 a ticket to benefit those in need. Many also sponsor the event, and make donations of much larger amounts.
Yan Rozovsky is one example. The 33-year-old San Francisco resident, who brought wife, Irina, to the party, emigrated from Odessa, Ukraine, in 1989 at the age of 17.
“I feel fortunate enough to be able to give back,” he said. “My family came to the U.S. with pocket change and a few suitcases and we were able to succeed. I came here tonight to get in touch with my community and do my part.”
For volunteers and gala committee members Tatianna and Igor Cherkas and Irina Kazimirsky and Felix Gofman, the nine months they spend preparing for the event serve several purposes.
For the Cherkases, their work is an affirmation of their Jewish values and identity, expressed as the desire to help others. Kazimirsky and Gofman said they are concerned with building a strong and philanthropic Jewish community, to set an example for their children and future generations.
Mixed in with the émigrés were local political figures and members of the American Jewish community who appreciate the European-style charm, opulence and energy of a Russian-style party.
Mollie Schneider, director of young adult programs at San Francisco’s Congregation Emanu-El, said this was her favorite event of the year. “I love the Russian food, looking at everyone’s outfits and the performances. I also love that the dance floor is packed until 3 in the morning,” she said.
Like the émigré crowd it caters to, the event mixed Russian, Jewish and American cultures, and featured a band that belted out renditions of the hora, “Hotel California” and Russian pop classics with equal ease. The food was a fusion of challah and gefilte fish, caviar and blinis, and California seaweed salad.
The mood and theme of the evening was perhaps best captured by JFCS Executive Director Anita Friedman, who joked from the podium, “As Jews, historically we observe three top Jewish behaviors: Collect money, study Torah and, of course, eat!”
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California