Winter 2021 - NYC-Metropolitan Area

Work in the NYC-Metropolitan area has been nonstop! We had a wonderful Sephardic Young Professionals Hanukkah Party in December with over 50 people enjoying Raki, Keftikas, Sufganiyot, and a communal menorah lighting. The highlight of the night was live Greek, Sephardic, and Israeli music from our friend Avram Pengas, a native Sephardic and Romaniote son of Athens. In addition to our incredible National Sephardic Community Gala, we held a spectacular International Sephardic Shabbaton at our affiliate synagogue in Manhattan, Kehila Kedosha Janina, with nearly 75 different participants from around the globe. The Shabbat program included special Shabbat services led by guest Hazzanim from Seattle, Florida, and of course our very own community members in NYC.

We were especially honored to have Rabbi Izak Alaluf, the Haham of the Neve Salom Synagogue of Istanbul and a Member of the Beth Din of Turkey, in attendance as a special Scholar-in-Residence. In partnership with the American Sephardi Federation and the Sephardic Foundation on Aging, our 5th annual Ladino Day in New York was a fantastic celebration of all things Sephardic, with special virtual presentations from around the world. Our spring programming schedule is going to be very exciting, with planned events for our Turkish young families in the Metro-area, a Sephardic Cooking class, and a special Sephardic concert at Carnegie Hall. Make sure to keep an eye out for new announcements coming soon!