House of Israel Lawn Program Attracts Hundreds of Well Wishers

By Miriam Gershenson

SAN DIEGO – Words cannot express the joy of Sunday, June 16. The House of Israel Lawn Program was an event that has filled my cup and made me feel overjoyed. This community-led event was made possible by amazing volunteers who came together last minute and pulled off what is hands- down the best event I had been able to participate in since moving to San Diego back in February.

There were nine different organizations staffing booths. Every single one of the booths had an activity from face/ arm painting by Helena Faitelson, to a virtual-reality experience of Israel, and writing letters to IDF soldiers.

The kids had a chance to make things for abba (dad) to celebrate Father’s Day. Parents enjoyed having a safe space in Balboa Park for their kids to run around and go nuts.

There were four vendors, two were food options and two were selling products. The food was provided by Hamitbach and Meats and Eats. Both had amazing choices that filled our bellies. Chai VeKaiam and Lilah Love were the two item vendors selling clothing, bags, and dog bandanas. I think I appreciated the fact that there were few vendors because this wasn’t a shopping event, this was truly a community event where the vendors were meaningful contributors.

The stage performers were phenomenal. First, we had an impromptu violin and keyboard performance. The MC for the day was Ori Lerer, a student leader at SDSU who owned the stage with his presence. Ruth Mastron came on stage and gave a speech that kicked off the festivities. Shanee Zamir, who was a contestant in Eurovision in 2013 (she went on to win 1st place in the popular vote) sang both the American and Israeli anthems. Right after, Shirim B’Lev Choir invited people in the crowd to come on stage with them and they sang popular Israeli songs.

Then we had the cutest little girls come up and dance for us. The girls were followed by Zamir coming back on stage to put on a show for us. We finished the stage performances with a class led by Barbara Birenbaum of Israeli Folk Dance Fun.

Honestly, the weather was perfect. The day couldn’t be any better. I was happy that there was plenty of security, no problems with protests, and plenty of positive vibes. The best part is, it isn’t over yet, there is an opportunity giveaway that is still happening until June 23rd. Go to the House of Israel website and buy your tickets for chances to win some incredible prizes. All proceeds will further the mission of the House of Israel.

I think this is a great time to remind everyone, the House of Israel is 100% volunteer and donation run. With it being a center of Jewish life in the San Diego area, I find it to be incredibly important to remind everyone that any and all help is appreciated. Go volunteer when you have free weekends (sign up on their website!), donate funds for general upkeep and further programing, and just enjoy meeting all the wonderful people of our collective community.

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Miriam Gershenson is a freelance writer based in Escondido.