NEW ASF CHAPTER

The American Sephardi Federation of Orange County was formed in early 2005 by a diverse group interested in keeping alive and transmitting our unique Sephardic heritage.

As its inaugural event, the ASF of Orange County hosted the Sephardic Experience Shabbaton in March, 2005. The event featured Rabbi Marc Angel of Congregation Shearith Israel in New York and Rabbi Albert Gabbai of Mikveh Israel in Philadelphia, and celebrated the 350th anniversary of the Sephardic Jewish presence in America.

Following the Shabbaton, a strong local desire for a Sephardic congregation led to the establishment of weekly Shabbat services in Irvine, California according to the traditions of Congregation Shearith Israel in New York and Mikveh Israel in Philadelphia.

Our future activities include both religious and cultural events. For Pesach, we will be hosting a Sephardic Haggadah for the community. In the near future, we will host cultural events including those focused on music, art, crypto-Jews, and ladino culture. For the High Holidays, we will announce our venue shortly and hope to draw hundreds from the local area who are interested in Sephardic services and meals.

The goal of the group is to establish a permanent Sephardic Congregation and Cultural Center in Orange County to serve the growing community of Sephardim from many lands. Orange County is home to approximately 100,000 Jews and over 30 congregations, none of which are Sephardic. Fund raising for this important project is expected to begin by mid-2005.

To reach our group, please contact SephardicOC@earthlink.net or call our 24-hour voice-mail hotline at 949-257-0897. We welcome Jews of all backgrounds and affiliations and look forward to our continued growth over the next year.

We express our deep gratitude to Esme E. Berg and the leadership of the American Sephardi Federation with Sephardic House for helping us plant the seeds in Orange County to transmit and share our rich culture.

ASF of Orange County Organizing Committee

Miriam & Michael Rodrigues Pereira
Shirley & Marcel Behar
Donna & Serge Cohen
Zack Irani
Odette & Abraham Matalon
Steven & Brigitte Lehat
Hiroko & Bart Garry
Karen & Marco De Oliveira Pereira