by dan pine
staff writer
Go west, young mensch.
That’s the message the Orthodox Union will send out at an Emerging Communities Showcase on April 6 in New York. Featuring presentations by rabbis from 13 cities, each with a growing Orthodox presence, the goal is to get inveterate East Coasters to consider a life west of the Hudson River.
Two local rabbis will be heading to the event to sing the praises of the Bay Area: Rabbi Judah Dardik of Oakland’s Beth Jacob Congregation and Rabbi Joshua Strulowitz of San Francisco’s Adath Israel.
Like fruit vendors at a farmer’s market, each will set up a booth at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on 42nd Street and talk up their respective communities.
“So many people don’t know what lies beyond [New York],” said Dardik. “The OU looked around and said ‘we have great, up-and-coming, growing communities out there that have the infrastructure to offer to people considering a move.’”
In addition to Oakland and San Francisco, other cities strutting their stuff at the showcase include: Dallas; Denver; Houston; Indianapolis; San Diego; Seattle; Charleston, S.C.; Columbus, Ohio; Memphis, Tenn.; Omaha, Neb.; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Edmonton, Alberta.
Native New Yorker Dardik looks forward to championing Oakland as a super location for Orthodox Jews.
“I’m pitching life out here,” he said. “I live in a place that is cosmopolitan, gorgeous, open-minded and that embraces diversity. For many, that may not be attractive, but for the few who say it might be, you can come here and be yourself.”
Dardik and Strulowitz not only will talk up local accessibility to mikvahs, minyans, kosher food, Jewish day schools and Judaica stores, but they also will tout the region’s job market. The Orthodox Union Job Board will also take part, matching participants with possible job openings.
While some people might be surprised that two Bay Area cities made the final cut to be part of the program — ahead of some more notably Jewish metro areas — it comes as no surprise to Dardik. He says this region has been on the OU’s radar for some time.
The Bay Area “has gotten on the map for Yeshiva University and the OU,” says Dardik. “The university has been sending younger rabbinical students here for five years now to see what a different community could be like.”
Considering New York has long been the center of gravity for American Orthodox Jewry, it might be tough to dislodge many families. But Dardik thinks it’s not only possible, but necessary.
“It will be an incredibly healthy thing,” he insists. “My sense is that Orthodox Jewry would be better off getting out there in the world. It would be a great thing having less concentration. As Orthodox Jewry spreads out, that could bring invaluable religious passion.”
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California