Jewish Fest Celebrates Diversity

WOODLAND HILLS — Some 40,000 people celebrated the diversity within the Jewish community Sunday at the Valley Jewish Festival, which featured a multicultural blend of live entertainment, exotic food, educational seminars and children’s activities.

A rainbow of cultures, including members of the North American Conference of Ethiopian Jewry and the Iranian Jewish Eretz Cultural Center of Reseda, displayed their common ties to Judaism at the daylong festival held at Pierce College.

“We are showing that Jews don’t all come in one color, ethnic strand or socioeconomic level,” said Jonathan Cookler, president of the Jewish Federation/Valley Alliance, the event’s sponsor.

At the main stage, Arnie Sohinki was among the 500 people swaying to the sounds of ESTA, a New York City band that plays rock-style traditional Jewish music. After working all day in a booth run by five Jewish community centers, he was finally getting the chance to unwind. “Today is a time when everyone drops their barriers and enjoys themselves.”

The numerous temples, schools, social-service agencies and community outreach programs serving the estimated 225,000 Jewish residents in the San Fernando Valley were also showcased in 200 booths lining the college’s winding walkways.

“When you stroll down [the midway] you see a vast assortment of agencies that provide a myriad of opportunities to help others,” Cookler said. “We believe that when people recognize that we are interdependent, they will better care for one another.”

Parents used the occasion as an opportunity to pass on their Jewish traditions to their children through song, dance and arts and crafts.

Youngsters spent the day painting trinket boxes shaped like the Star of David; crafting mezuzot, pieces of inscribed parchment paper placed in containers and attached to doorposts; and making covers for challa, an egg bread served at Shabbat dinners on Fridays.

“We try to make learning their history fun without stuffing religion down their throats,” said volunteer Judy Nussenblatt, as children busily worked at tables set up under a tent. “Being Jewish is not just a religion, it’s a way of life.”

Sandi Gilbert of Calabasas, who was watching her 7-year-old daughter, Rebecca, fashion a replica of Noah’s ark out of construction paper, recalled a comment her daughter made in nursery school that reflected her pride in her heritage. “She said: ‘Some people don’t know how much fun it is to be Jewish,’ ” Gilbert said. “I try to reinforce that through holidays, traditions, synagogue and community events like this one.”