Sephardic Educational Center | 40th Anniversary

Special Edition

Hamerkaz AAPUBLICATION CENTER••AACENTER CENTERFOR FORALL ALLJEWS JEWS PUBLICATIONOF OFTHE THESEPHARDIC SEPHARDIC EDUCATIONAL EDUCATIONAL CENTER

CELEBRATING 40 YEARS

1980– 2020

CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF THE SEC MESSAGE FROM THE INTERNATIONAL DIRECTOR

SEC MISSION

The SEC is dedicated to strengthening Jewish identity for youth and young adults, and to building a new generation of spiritual and community leaders. From our historic campus in the Old City of Jerusalem to our various diaspora branches, the SEC’s philosophy of Classic Sephardic Judaism offers Jews an opportunity to connect with their roots in a warm, friendly and positive environment. At the SEC, tradition meets modernity, and the timeless values of intellect, unity, compassion and tolerance blend to create a meaningful connection to Judaism, Israel and the Jewish People.

BY RABBI DANIEL BOUSKILA

“FROM ZION SHALL EMERGE SEPHARDIC TORAH, AND SEPHARDIC WISDOM WILL COME FROM JERUSALEM” What makes the SEC unique amongst all other Sephardic organizations? While all other Sephardic organizations are based somewhere in the diaspora, the SEC stands out as the only Sephardic organization whose center is based in the heart of the Jewish world - the Old City of Jerusalem. The decision to build the SEC as an Israelcentered organization was the vision of our beloved founder Dr. Jose Nessim z”l, together with the many philanthropists and activists who supported his dream.

Basing the SEC in Jerusalem was a calculated decision, the benefits of which have been tremendous. First, the buildings that became the SEC Campus were once the headquarters of the illustrious Sephardic community that lived and thrived in the Old City. From that angle, the SEC would come to serve as the revival of the Classic Sephardic Tradition in the very same place where it once existed not so long ago. But there was something even deeper that Dr. Nessim and the others saw, 20 years before Birthright discovered this: trips to Israel are the most inspirational educational medium through

which we instill a deep love and pride for Judaism in our youth. A few other Jewish organizations already understood this back then, and the SEC is the first – and to this day the only – Sephardic organization that has placed its Israel trips and its headquarter campus in Jerusalem at the core of its organizational mission and philosophy. The success of this vision is seen through the thousands of young people that have gone on SEC signature trips to Israel – from the vintage 1980s’ versions through today’s Hamsa trips. 40 years apart, these trips share in common alumni who developed a deep love for Sephardic Judaism and Israel through their SEC trip. More than just a regular Israel trip, the SEC’s trip is unique in that we SEC are the only organization – Sephardic or Ashkenazic – that has its own campus in Israel, in the Old City, steps from the Western Wall. When our Israel trip alumni say “The SEC”, they don’t mean the organization, they mean the campus in Jerusalem – their “home away from home” In Israel.

Israel stands at the center of the modern-day Jewish

experience and Jewish identity for all Jews around the world. How blessed we are that for the SEC, we have placed Israel at the core of our mission. How wonderful that our founders had the vision to create a Sephardic organization rooted in the prophetic vision “Ki Mi-Tsion Tetseh Torah, u’devar Hashem Mi-Yerushalayim” - “For out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

Indeed, for 40 amazing years, we have seen the Torah of Sephardic Judaism go forth from Zion and penetrate the hearts and souls of thousands of SEC participants, and we have seen the wisdom of Sephardic teachings illuminate the minds of students, rabbis, educators and lay people who have experienced our beautiful Sephardic campus.

That was the vision of our Biblical prophets, and it was the vision of our SEC founders. Today and moving ahead, we are proud to keep that “Israel-centered, Jerusalem-based” Sephardic vision alive.

BOARD MEMBERS

Dr. Jose A. Nessim, (z”l) Founder

EXECUTIVE BOARD President: Neil J. Sheff

Vice-Presidents: Isack Fadlon Sarita Fields Lela Franco Ray Mallel

Abe Mathalon Freda Nessim Ronald Nessim Steven Nessim Nira Sayegh

BOARD OF DIRECTORS FLORIDA Elizabeth Mitrani

NEW JERSEY Simon Amiel

LOS ANGELES Yosi Avrahamy Robert Carlson Jeannine Sefton Moussa Shaaya Limore Shalom

NEW YORK Vivian Kron Murray Mizrachi Jessica Smooha

MEXICO Elias Harari

SEATTLE David Behar Joy Maimon

Rabbi Bouskila, SEC International Director email: rdb@secjerusalem.org

WORLD EXECUTIVE OFFICES

6505 Wilshire Blvd • Suite 320 LA, CA 90048 phone: 323.272.4574 email: info@secjerusalem.org SEC JERUSALEM CAMPUS Israel Shalem, Manager email: ishalem@netvision.net.il SEC JERUSALEM BOARD

Chair: Neil J. Sheff Steven Baral Steven Nessim Eliyahu Bentovim Moshe Nissim Sarita Fields Janet Levy Pahima Ray Mallel Nira Sayegh Shlomo Musali Shmuel Sisso Freda Nessim Hagai Sitton Ronald J. Nessim Orly Tamir SEC JERUSALEM - INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS

Batei Machasseh No. 1 P.O.Box 14326 Old City Jerusalem 91142, Israel tel: 02-628-2344 fax: 02-628-4480

CIRCA 1983

FROM THE ARCHIVES WRITTEN BY:

THE SEC VISION FOUNDER

DR. JOSE A. NESSIM

SEC: OUR PHILOSOPHY

The SEC is a world movement that opens its arms to all Jews. It respects and teaches traditional Judaism. The SEC does not demand from its members a certain degree of religious observance.

The question has been asked why the organization includes the word ‘’Sephardic” in its name.

The SEC was created to educate Sephardic youth, young adults and adults. Since then, thousands of Ashkenazi Jews have seen the beauty of Judaism as practiced by the Sephardic approach to life and religion. This philosophy includes tolerance, warmth, and what was described by Maimonides as a “middle of the road” approach which advocates respect of every human being.

This is something very lacking in our times among the different Jewish movements.

The Sephardic culture prides itself in not having the need in the past 1200 years to create a reformation resulting in different and divisive Jewish movements. These movements were created according to the degree of religiosity or based upon political ideology and lead to the divisions we know of today.

The SEC believes that there should be only one Jewish People and think of ourselves as simply “Jewish”. Every Jew should practice their own degree of observance and we should not criticize one another for not being ‘’religious enough” or “too religious”. G-d is the only judge of our spiritual life and the acts we perform.

The SEC hopes that all the Jewish sects and movements will reunite once more to create one educated and motivated People who will fulfill the sacred mission given to us by our G-d.

Your support will insure Jewish continuity and a bright future for our People.

T EL: (323)272.4574 E-MAIL: INFO@SECJERUSALEM.ORG

SEPHARDIC EDUCATIONAL CENTER

Jerusalem Campus

MUS COMING SOON

DONOR

OPPORTUNITIES & DEDICATIONS

Jewish Sephardic Heritage Museum $3,000,000 Available Patron Naming Opportunities in Museum Permanent Exhibit $330,000 Dedicated Founders Circle: $260,000 • Chai Builders: $180,000 • Trustees: $100,000

Main Building $3,000,000 Available Rishon Letzion Family Suites Building $1,000,000 Available Spanish Courtyard Building $3,000,000 Available Spanish Courtyard $1,000,000 Dedicated Rodesli Spanish Garden $180,000 Dedicated Sephardic Library $250,000 Dedicated Sephardic Synagogue $360,000 Dedicated Synagogue Heichal $100,000 Dedicated Synagogue Ner Tamid (Eternal Lamp) $180,000 Dedicated Social Lounge $500,000 Dedicated Museum Gift Shop

$250,000 Available Beit Midrash Study Hall

$250,000 Available Main Reception Lobby $250,000 Available Rishon Le’Zion Historic Lobby $180,000 Available Conference Room $180,000 Available New Residence Suites $26,000 Available (15) Main Kitchen

$180,000 Available Courtyard Kitchen

$100,000 Available

SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS

NAME AND ENDOW ONE OF OUR SIGNATURE PROGRAMS

Sephardic Publication Dedication Sponsors $1,800–$100,000 Available Rabbinic Leadership Program $250,000 Available Metivta Rabbinical Program

$250,000 Available Women’s Beit Midrash Program $250,000 Available Hamsa Teen Israel Scholarship Fund $5,000–$250,000 Available Sephardic Initiative Program for Educators $250,000 Available

MEZUZOT

Main Entrance Mezuzah $36,000 Museum Mezuzah $18,000 Street Level Entry Mezuzah $18,000 Residence Room Mezuzot

$1,800 Residence Room Mezuzot

$1,800

Dedicated Available Available Available (36) Dedicated (18)

For more information or to donate contact Rabbi Daniel Bouskila

T EL: (323)272.4574 E-MAIL: INFO@SECJERUSALEM.ORG

We will tailor any gift to your wishes.

FROM SPAIN TO JERUSALEM

The journey begins - this exhibit will simultaneously take you on a journey to a different place (Spain) and bring you to your present locale (The Old City of Jerusalem). An introductory film (5-7 minutes) will be narrated by Israeli Singer/ Actor Yehoram Gaon (native born Jerusalemite of Sephardic-Ladino Heritage). Through photos, video clips, animation and music, the film will tell the story of Sephardic Jewry in Spain - from the Golden Age to the Expulsion in 1492. The film will provide the historical background and context for this museum and will raise the important question of “what was lost when the Jews were expelled from Spain”? “Why was this expulsion so significant?”, and “How does that connect us to the story of the Spanish exiles who came to Jerusalem?”

EUM

JERUSALEM SEPHARDIC

HERITAGE MUSEUM ON THE SEC CAMPUS

LIBRARY

One of the focal points of the museum will be the life and teachings of Rabbi Meir Hai Uziel, the first Sephardic Chief Rabbi who studied and taught in this very place. The Classic Sephardic Rabbinic Leader, Rabbi Uziel was a modern-day link to the Golden Age of Spain - to Maimonides, Yehuda Halevi and the classic philosophers and legal minds of Sephardic Jewry.

Rabbi Uziel’s writings and teachings are a living exemplar of Classic Sephardic Philosophy.

The exhibit will display his family background and childhood, education in the Sephardic Talmud Torah and Yeshivat Tiferet Yerushalayim (both were in the current SEC campus), his rabbis and teachers. It will take us on his journey as Chief Rabbi of Jaffa (1911), and then of Salonika (1919-1921), Rishon L’Tzion/ Chief Rabbi of Israel (1939), and first Sephardic Chief Rabbi of the State of Israel (1948).

His lifelong messages of “loving truth and peace” will be a cornerstone of the exhibit.

The Emquies Family Sephardic Library will be re-designed to give the aura of a library and study hall at the turn of the century in the Old City. The library will feature the books & manuscripts, many originals, of Sephardic sages who once studied in these rooms. We have already been gifted with complete libraries of Rabbis who taught and studied here, which are used by our Rabbinical program in keeping with a vibrant and living spiritual legacy.

The library will also be used for screening of films about Sephardic Judaism in the 20th and 21st Century, serve as an academic conference center, as well as the room where groups can do special educational exercises or discussions about topics within the museum.

LOUNGE- CAFÉ

The Elias Family Lounge will be host to the Sephardic Kitchen & Café, which will be decorated like a classic “Sephardic Cafe”, modeled after an old Sephardic Living Room and Kitchen.

There will be special exhibits on Sephardic Food, with special emphasis on cuisine unique to Sephardic Jews of the Old City.

What can we learn from their cuisine? Where do we find their recipes? We will explore the unique world of Sephardic Women in Jerusalem, especially as the matriarchs of special cooking rituals, life cycle customs and holiday cuisine.

Bookcases will feature Sephardic Cookbooks and we plan to have Special Sephardic Cuisine and Food Seminars, as well as ongoing service of Turkish Coffee, Tea, Borekas, Biscochos and other Sephardic delicacies!

THE SEPHARDIC STREET

Upon exiting the permanent exhibit rooms, visitors will enter the “Sephardic Street” and journey through Sephardic Jerusalem’s communal institutions of old. Located in the lobby, near the stairs, and adjacent to the library, synagogue and lounge, this “street” will have 13 windows, and each will display and feature a different aspect of life in the community of old, including:

• The Sephardic Talmud Torah • Yeshivat Tiferet Yerushalayim • The Widow’s & Orphan’s Courtyard • Housing for the elderly • Misgav Ladach Hospital • The Sephardic Burial Society • The Synagogues • The Rabbinical Academies • The Primary & Secondary Schools • The Food Bank • The Ladino Press & Newspapers • Books, literature & writers • The Sephardic Communal Leadership

LA FAMILIA

THE CLASSIC SEPHARDIC FAMILIES OF JERUSALEM

Exhibits on some of the well-known Sephardic families of Jerusalem (including, but not limited to, Navon, Valero, Gaon, Kuenka, Levy, Meyuhas, Yehoshua, Eliachar, Nissim, Javilio, & Burla) will be explored.

Through their unique stories we will learn about their professions, their modes of dress, their day-to-day life at home and in the community, their cultural practices, their leaders, their literature, their religious customs, their relationships to other communities, the widows & orphans. We will also explore the role of the women in the community, the legacies these families left and what can we learn from their lifestyle.

A Sephardic Timeline in the Spanish courtyard will give a history of Sephardic Jerusalem in the 18th-19th Century.

SEPHARDIC SYNAGOGUE

Our Mallel Family synagogue will be re-fashioned with Sephardic “decor” reminiscent of the synagogues of Old Jerusalem with the 3-seat wooden benches with cushions, a beautiful Teva, Heikhal (dedicated

by Paulette and Ron Nessim) and a Ner Tamid (dedicated in memory of SEC-Argentina President, Salvador Sarfatti (z”l).

On one wall will be a special exhibit on the history of the Sephardic synagogues of Old Jerusalem. A sound system will continuously play pieces of classic Sephardic hazzanut, Torah reading and Sephardic liturgical poetry, all in the classic Sephardic style.

This will also continue to serve as our full functioning synagogue for Shabbat and Holiday prayers, bar mitzvas and more.

THE SEPHARDIC HEROES MEMORIAL WALL

A touching portion of the museum will be a Memorial in memory of the 13 Boys from the Sephardic Talmud Torah who fell in defense of the Old City in the 1948 War of Independence.

No such memorial has ever been created and the story of these boys is largely unknown and forgotten. This will connect the Sephardic story of the Old City to Zionism and the State of Israel. Photos and bios of each boy will be on the wall, including Nissim Gini, the youngest boy to ever fall in any battle for Israel (9.5 years old). This memorial will receive official recognition as a Military Memorial Site from the Ministry of Defense and the Israel Defense Forces, and will therefore have an official IDF Ceremony conducted there every year on Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day for IDF Soldiers)

SEC LOOKING BACK 1980–2020

President Yitzhak Navon (z”l) receives SEC participants at President’s Residence

1980–2020 SEC - A LIVING HISTORY Is the preservation of Classic Sephardic Judaism – a tolerant, moderate yet deeply traditional mode of Judaism – important to you? How about a strong future for Jerusalem, securing a Jewish presence in the Old City for eternity? If these are values you hold dear, please consider supporting the SEC, and here’s why.

As an organization headquartered in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, the SEC is proud of our illustrious Sephardic history in the Old City, and we are especially proud to continue being part of actively building and developing Jerusalem today.

During the Ottoman and British periods in the Land of Israel, our historic “Spanish/Sephardic Courtyard” building housed the four most important Sephardic institutions in the Old City: The legendary “Sephardic Talmud Torah,” the prestigious “Yeshivat Tiferet Yerushalayim,” and two socially conscious charity institutions: the Sephardic Orphanage and the Sephardic Shelter for widows.

From 1948-1967, our campus – along with the rest of the Old City – was under Jordanian occupation, but in the 6-Day War of 1967, Israeli Paratroopers liberated the Old City, paving the way for the renewal of Sephardic activities on our historic campus on the “Bar Mitzva” celebration of Jerusalem Day. In 1980, the SEC officially opened its doors, and today – 40 years later – our campus proudly preserves, promotes and teaches Classic Sephardic Judaism. We continue to grow and offer meaningful programs, including our Hamsa Israel Teen Experience trips, our Beit Midrash Shaarei Uziel

Rabbinical Programs (for Israeli rabbis and Metivta for Diaspora rabbis), special Sephardic Study Seminars for Lay People, Sephardic lectures and programs for various academic institutions and visiting groups, and programs for young adults, adults and communities. All of these programs are run in the rich spirit of Classic Sephardic Judaism, and we are the only institution in the Old City, in Jerusalem and in Israel that operates programs in this unique spirit and philosophy.

We also operate “Habayit Ha-Sepharadi - Sephardic House,” a successful Guest House/Hotel which hosts Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, weddings, special Shabbatot, and both Israeli and International tour groups. Anyone who enjoys a beautiful stay at Sephardic House also has the gratification to know that by staying with us, they are supporting and subsidizing the educational programs of the Sephardic Educational Center.

We are especially proud of being the official Old City residence for the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli Police, whom we regularly host – with love and open arms – on various occasions throughout the year.

We are well underway to building our exciting new “Sephardic Heritage of the Old City” Museum and Visitor’s Center. With our campus located in the heart of the Jewish Quarter, this new museum – which will tell the currently untold rich and beautiful story of the ancient Sephardic communities of the Old City – will make the SEC a featured destination for student groups, schools, soldiers, adult tour groups and visitors to Jerusalem.

Join us as partners and help us SECure the future of Classic Sephardic Judaism, and of Jerusalem.

SEC ISRAEL PROGRAMS 1980–2020

Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (z”l) meeting with Dr. Nessim (z”l)

Meeting Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef (z”l) before he greeted SEC participants, circa 1984

SEC ISRAEL PROGRAMS 1980–2020

SEC ISRAEL PROGRAMS 1980–2020

SEC LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS 1980–2020

David Siegel, Consul General of Israel 2011-2016

Jerusalem @50 Leadership Mission

SECSEATTLE

Hamsa Alumni

In 2018, SBH piloted a new teen program called HAMSA- Seattle.

With generous support from the Altabet Foundation and the SAMIS Foundation, SBH was able to offer a select cohort of high school students grades 9-11 the opportunity to attend the Sephardic Educational Center’s summer Israel Hamsa trip--free of charge. Led by Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, the SEC offers the only uniquely Sephardic trip for high school students.

SBH recognized that such an amazing opportunity comes with a sense of responsibility to educate our teens about the importance of giving back to our synagogue community and our local Seattle community. Before and after their trip to Israel, HAMSA teens volunteered at synagogue events, ran a supply drive with Jewish Family Services, and engaged in meaningful discussions about Israel’s past, present, and future.

Here’s what our teens had to say about their first trip to Israel with the SEC!

Anna Benoliel

Shabbat at the SEC was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was so meaningful to spend all three Shabbatot in the old city. This picture is of the Old City of Jerusalem. I took this picture right before our first Shabbat at the SEC. Every Friday afternoon we would go to the same spot overlooking the Old City to sing songs and take pictures. After Shabbat we would also say havdalah and sing together. Although I had been to Israel before this trip, I hadn’t had the opportunity to spend a lot of time in the Old City, and that was one of the things that made this trip so special and unique. Thank you to the SEC, SAMIS foundation and the Altabet Foundation for making this trip possible!

Regie Mezistrano

We had just landed at the airport and were exhausted from our long journey. This was my first time in Israel, and I was ready to see the sights. We piled onto the bus and headed to the Sephardic Educational Center. Rabbi Bouskila and Peni announced that we were making a quick stop on the way.

A few minutes before we got to the location, we were blindfolded. We all walked out of the bus cautiously with our arms stretched out to ensure we didn’t bump into anything. We were a group of 16 strangers blindfolded by our counselors.

Despite being excited about seeing a beautiful country, I was also a little nervous. Oddly enough, I felt at ease when we were all blindfolded. I felt like we were all experiencing Israel for the first time together.

The counselors announced we should take off our blindfolds. From the darkness of the blindfold, we were exposed to the beautiful scenery overlooking the Kotel. I am grateful to SEC, SAMIS and the Altabet Foundation for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime this past summer!

Victor Maimon

“The Hamsa trip was one of the best summer experiences of my life. I had been to Israel before, but this trip taught me a deeper appreciation of the land and its history. At Har Hertzel, we learned about the soldiers who died fighting for the Jewish homeland. Rabbi Bouskila shared stories of particular people and emphasized that each name on a memorial represents a life. To honor and appreciate what they gave, we must look beyond the name to know who the person was and value their life. This impacted me deeply. It made me appreciate that we each have our role in supporting the Jewish homeland and our local Jewish communities. The trip reminded me of the importance of my role as a youth leader in preserving our Sephardic customs and tefilot in my community. My trip is a reminder that I must do my part every day in preserving and continuing my Jewish and Sephardic values and my support for the land of Israel.”

SECSEATTLE ALUMNI again, the comradery of connecting with more young Jews Jeff Amon

I started learning about the SEC in the mid-eighties which was fortunate because I was planning my first trip to Israel in 1988. I had heard how warm the people at SEC were from friends in Seattle, and thanks to them and the timing of my trip, I was able to spend a little over two weeks with the SEC and also with Rabbi Kassin at the Shehebar Yeshiva, also on the campus of SEC. I came away with a stronger connection to my Sephardic roots and to Judaism as a whole.

In 1992 I heard about a special trip that was being planned by the SEC led by Dr. Jose Nessim, a”h. This was the 500th year since the expulsion of the Jews from Spain and also 500 years since the Turkish Ottoman Empire opened up their doors to those Jews escaping the Inquisition. The name of this trip was Sepharad ’92, and I was able to join a large group of young adults to Turkey and Israel for an interesting and fun trip. I also got to enjoy, once

from the United States and, especially, with the Sephardic Educational Center.

I was married the following year in 1993 at the SEC campus in Israel and since then my family always tries to visit the SEC whenever we travel to Israel.

My initial involvement with the SEC helped me to feel much more connected to the Jewish world and especially Israel. I didn’t know many Jews my age outside my Seattle community so it was great learning I’m part of something bigger. This experience helped me to learn more about myself and to eventually take on leadership roles back home and in my Kehila. I’ll always remember my good times at the SEC and am happy that my children have also been able to be part of the SEC as well; my son was actually a counselor on the Hamsa trip in 2017!

May the SEC have many more years of continued success in strengthening more and more Jews to their Judaism and the Sephardic roots.

Dana Behar

has two daughters, ages 21 and 19 he lives in Seattle and serves on the board of the Samis Foundation, which supports Jewish education and camping experiences in the state of Washington, as well as a variety of causes in Israel. His wife, Rena, is the President of the Seattle Sephardic Network, which engages in inspiring and informative programs celebrating the Sephardic culture in Seattle and beyond, and is on the board of Congregation Ezra Bessaroth.

He remains close friends with Neil Sheff whom he met in the summer of 1982 at while on the SEC Israel experience. “For the first time in my life, I met other Sephardic people from communities all over the world (e.g. Iraqi Jews from England, Persian Jews from LA, Syrian Jews from Mexico, etc.) and saw that we were part of a larger community. I also gained a love, respect, and undying commitment to the land of Israel. Lastly, I got to learn with Sephardic rabbis of Syrian, Spanish, and Moroccan backgrounds and was able to broaden my understanding of our faith and heritage. Now, nearly 40 years later, I consider myself so fortunate to have had that experience. It was without question life-changing.”

Sam Mezistrano

I was on the SEC trip in the summer of 1982. I met other Sephardic jews from around the world and was greatly impacted by the friendships and connections made during that summer. My trip with the SEC was my first trip to Israel and was foundational in developing my love for Israel. The experience heightened my appreciation for my Sephardic and Jewish heritage. I am so pleased that my daughters Regie and Rebecca were able to have the same experience last summer with SEC Hamsa and our family has continued its connection with the SEC.

Anna Jacoby

My name is Anna Jacoby and I’m going into my Junior year at the Northwest Yeshiva High School in Seattle. My favorite part about the Hamsa trip was being able to stay in the heart of old city and walk to down to the Kotel on Friday nights. I hope once the pandemic clears up I can go back to Israel and visit the Sephardic House in the old city. Since my SEC trip, I’ve had a bigger appreciation for Israel. On the SEC trip, we learned a lot about people who sacrificed their lives for the state of Israel. Being on the trip inspired me to do the same. In the future, I hope to be a part of the Jewish people’s story and serve the state of Israel so way.

SEC YOUNG ADULT PROGRAMS & CONVENTIONS

1980–2020

First SEC Youth San Francisco High School Shabbaton with Rabbis Hayyim Kossorla and Moshe Benzaquen

SEC YOUNG ADULT PROGRAMS & CONVENTIONS

1980–2020

FROM THE ARCHIVES

THE BIRTH OF A MOVEMENT

BY NEIL J. SHEFF (from the 1997 NY Convention Tribute Journal) In 1980, I was fortunate to be among the first participants at the SEC inaugural Summer program in Israel. With only 70 young adults from the U.S., Mexico, Turkey and Canada, I knew this program would one day become something great. I returned to lead that program for seven more years, meeting thousands of other Sephardim from around the world. The common thread among them all was a desire to learn more about their religion and customs and to ensure a bright future for their communities.

By 1983, there was already a group of “SEC Alumni” in Los Angeles who still had the passion from their Israel experience but were now far away from the place that had given them that spark. Since nearly every other Ashkenazic synagogue and community had its own youth program, I thought it was time to do something for our own Sephardic youth. The SEC thus began its development here in Los Angeles and, after five years of activities for high school and college aged young adults, we had already done what none thought possible: to bring Sephardic youth of different backgrounds together to learn about themselves and their religion. The concept for a grand reunion of “SEC Alumni” and their friends was born at a pool party for returning Israel participants. We would call it “Sepharad ‘88”.

The first SEC convention was held in Los Angeles in 1988 and with it established the SEC Youth and Young Adult Movement. It was time to provide a network of programs across the country and around the world that would bring the leaders of tomorrow together and instill them with Jewish identity, understanding of their traditions and a pride in their Sephardic heritage.

With subsequent conventions came new chapters: Sepharad ‘90 in New York; Sepharad ‘91 in Montreal; Sepharad ‘92 in Mexico City, Sepharad ‘93 in Miami; Sepharad ‘94 in Toronto; Sepharad ‘95 in Washington, DC; coming full circle with a return to Los Angeles for Sepharad ‘96 and now, Sepharad ‘97 in New York City.

Along the way, there have been very special individuals who, as past presidents of these chapters, have given so much of their efforts to develop something so unique.

They are: Yosi Avrahamy, Shira Ofek and Natalie Moreno of Los Angeles; Victor Pesso, Vivian Mahlab and Alina Hacco of New York; Genevieve Busbib of Montreal; Jeff Belne of Toronto; Sandy Barsky, Ted Friedman and Sonya Gabay of Washington, DC; Violet Bahar, Elizabeth Mitrani and Simcha Firestone of Miami.

These young adults, along with many other volunteers, are the spirit of the SEC and we are so thankful to all of them for the great work they do.

The SEC has truly exceeded anyone’s expectations. We have created a reputation for ourselves which has earned us praise from the political and religious leaders of Israel to the lay leaders of the Jewish world. But we must demand more - more of ourselves and more of our communities. If we are to once again create a “Golden Age” for our People -- all the Jewish People -- then we must do all in our power to make the Sephardic Educational Center a movement which is capable of reaching every corner of the world.

SEC LET’S PARTY 1980–2020

1984FIRST SEC GALA

SEC LET’S PARTY 1980–2020

SEC ANNUAL SELIHOT CONCERTS

Classes for the Masses ran weekly in LA for over 10 years

Educators’ Program

Haim Azses (z’l) with President Yitzhak Navon (z’l)

SEC EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

Haim Azses (z”l) was the Director of the SEC Makor Program which was a Leadership Program run at the SEC in the early 2000’s.

Haim tragically died in a car accident in 2007. His niece Edna now carries on his legacy as our Museum researcher.

A one of a kind event that brings Arabic musicians and top Sephardic “hazzanim” (cantors) together each year during the High Holidays in Los Angeles.

The audience is treated to the timeless holiday tunes that highlight the Sephardic liturgy accompanied by the mesmerizing sounds of the oud, darbuka, qanun and Arabic violin. This has been a signature SEC event for over 10 years, unmatched anywhere.

LOS ANGELES SEPHARDIC

F I L M F E S T I VA L S 1997-2020

Emmanuelle Chriqui 2010 Cinema Sepharad Award Recipient & Actor/Comedian Gad Elmaleh

Enrico Macias 2016 Cinema Sepharad Award

Yehoram Gaon 2014 Cinema Sepharad Award

Elie Attie, Emmy-winning writer receives 2008 Cinema Sepharad Award from Academy Award winner Aaron Sorkin

Shaun Toub (Crash, Iron Man, Teheran...)

1999 Cinema Sepharad Award

Lainie Kazan 2001 Cinema Sepharad Award

Filmmaker Michael Benaroya (2nd from left) & Emmanuelle Chriqui, 2010 Cinema Sepharad Recipients along with MC award winning actor, Alfred Molina (2nd from right)

Daniela Ruah, star of NCIS-LA, Recipient of Cinema Sepharad Award; Joe and Sue Cohen, Sephardic Legacy Award- 2012

Hank Azaria, actor, Cinema Sepharad Award

Student Film Awardees

Leanne Halfon, Film Producer, 1998 Cinema Sepharad Award

Film Festival Committee

First Film Festival 1997

SEC SHAVUOT PALM SPRINGS

GRACE (HABER) & MARC TIMSIT

HOW I MET MARC...TWICE!

BY GRACE TIMSIT

300+

AND COUNTING

THESE ARE SOME OF THE OVER 300 COUPLES WHO MET THROUGH THE SEC AROUND THE WORLD.

I met many people over the years through SEC – on a trip to Israel in 1995, I met great friends from all over the world. We had delegations from every city where SEC had chapters. The ’95 Israel trip boasted the largest SEC Israel Young Adult trip (Prebirthright). We were 120 strong and were split into 3 groups. Within our group I ended up being roommates with Sonia Cohen. We had a great time. We laughed until our sides hurt. Sonia and I kept in touch my mail and phone. Our group decided that we wanted to meet up before convention which was months away – and as usual SEC Montreal was having there Fall Shabbaton so many of us from NY went as well as others from Montreal.

Marc attended the Shabbaton with his friends. It turned out that Sonia and Marc are relatives – she said, “Grace you need to meet my cousin Marc” – so she introduced us. We spoke for a bit and stayed friendly but nothing happened.

The following year I had to cancel my trip to the SEC Montreal Shabbaton but told my friends I would come visit soon (I had one year to use my plane ticket!). Many months later I heard from Sonia telling me that she was about to get engaged and she would love to have me at her wedding. Timing was perfect – I had a year to use my ticket before losing it – so I rebooked my flight for Labor Day weekend to attend the wedding. I stayed with another SEC friend, Lise Edery. At the wedding many of the Israel crew was there so again it was almost like a Shabbaton. At the wedding Lise said to me – “I want you to meet a good friend of my brother’s.” I thought to myself, “what the heck it’s not going to kill me”. Lise introduced me to Marc and I realized he was Sonia’s cousin that I met 2 years before! We sat and talked and as they say the rest is history….

Coming from an insulated community – I didn’t think there were other Sephardic Jews outside the NY Syrian enclave. When I went to my 1st SEC Convention in Montreal ’91 and met really good friends, they expressed the same thoughts. We were all like-minded with traditional backgrounds from all over North America.

When I tell my daughters stories of our conventions and trips, they look at me like “you can’t be serious, how did you get all these people together from all around the world?”

I would say “SEC did”!! A few years ago I was able to take them to Israel and to the SEC to see where it all started. They were in awe of the place and the surroundings and being in the heart of what was once the Sephardic hub of the Old City. Then they understood what brought us together. We were the lucky generation to be a part of something so huge and uniting.

SEC COUPLES

RACHEL(EMQUIES) & NEIL SHEFF HOW I MET NEIL

BY RACHEL SHEFF

DIANA (GALANTE) & EDWARD SABIN HOW I MET DIANA

(TAKEN FROM A 2016 INTERVIEW)

SEC: When stands out as your most memorable SEC experience?

Edward Sabin: It may not have been my first, but it was certainly the most momentous one. A

young and exuberant Neil Sheff persuaded a busload of boisterous teens to bundle up and head to the snow for a day of fun and frolic. Little did I know that I, 15 years old at the time, would meet and talk to a girl named Diana Galante, and that she would capture my fancy and start the process of winning my heart. Ten years later we married, a few years after that we were blessed with Aaron and Sarah, our two beautiful children… and we have the SEC to thank.

SEC: Looking back, what was it like to be at the SEC Israel campus in those early years of the organization?

Edward: I spent two consecutive summers with the SEC at the Jerusalem campus (1981, 1982).

Those were critical weeks that left an indelible mark on me. I remember sneaking out in the middle of the night to walk to the Kotel to meditate and pray silently. And I’m sure I didn’t appreciate then how special it was to be located so close to the emotional and spiritual center of our great tradition. Thank God for the foresight and tenacity of Dr. Nessim (z”l) to pursue and obtain such a special location, and many thanks to the current leadership who have undertaken a beautiful upgrade of the SEC location in the old city.

SEC: What inspires you today about the message of the SEC and its programs?

Edward: More than ever, it is critical that traditional Jewry rediscover its moderate voice. That

is, a perspective that honors and carries forward the liturgy, practices and philosophies that our forefathers fought to protect and pass on to us, but that also demands respect for others – of our faith and otherwise – who choose a different path. Through my many experiences over the years with the SEC, I have come to learn that this appreciation of diversity is a hallmark of Sephardic Judaism; one can hold one’s worldview with the deepest of convictions, but accept and even celebrate the fact that others don’t share it. It only takes a brief look at the political landscape today to recognize this perspective is all too rare, with far too many urging the erection of walls between peoples, religions and nationalities. The SEC reminds us that our rich Sephardic intellectual history rejects this approach, and serves as a model for liberal, tolerant discussion on disagreements over even the most complicated and sensitive matters that separate us.

Around 1990, my brother Moise’s friend Yvette Silvera (now Schweitzer), who is “Doc’s” niece, kept telling me about a group that gets together often and it’s a lot of fun. “You should go!”, she told me, but I kept putting it off. I had heard young adults get up at my synagogue on Yom Kippur to make announcements about the SEC events and it finally clicked this was the same group Yvette was telling me about.

One day I decided to take her up on it; she told me there was a Moroccan themed party at somebody’s house so I begged my cousin to come with me because I didn’t want to be alone and that way I could leave early. I was not really interested in “Jewish youth groups”. The first person I met when I walked in was Neil Sheff; then I met the Perez sisters (Laurence, Sophie and Valerie) and it was the most fun I had had in months. Everyone there was Sephardic, spoke French or Spanish, we laughed all night and I’ll never forget the belly dancer with a snake! (I later learned the house where this party took place was the Bertet family; Joel Bertet would later marry Sophie Perez who I had just met!)

After years of involvement with the SEC, I have made the most incredible lifelong friends and of course I met my husband through the SEC. Our children grew up with the children of our other SEC friends from across the country and each of them- Sam, Max and Rebekah- have had the opportunity of a lifetime to spend summers on the SEC Hamsa trips in Israel and have themselves made lifelong friendships. To this day, I have a chat group of friends called “THE G-D SQUAD” and they are friends I’ve had for over 30 years, and we all met through the SEC. Of course, the most impactful personality on all our lives has been Dr. Nessim and his wife Freda. From trips to conventions and Israel together, to weekly shabbat visits to our house, to when he appeared out of nowhere when I was in the delivery room in 1994 to help deliver Sammy at Cedars-Sinai hospital and of course the many celebrations along the way. We have been blessed to follow in their footsteps.

ESTHER (KASSIN) & YOSI AVRAHAMY HOW I MET ESTHER

BY YOSI AVRAHAMY As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Sephardic Educational Center, I look back at all the wonderful experiences that I had with this wonderful organization.

One of them I would like to share is how I met my wife, Esther Kassin, via our mutual involvement in the SEC. In 1994 I was living in Los Angeles and was an active member of the SEC. I had served as the President of the Young Adult program and was very involved in its many activities. In January of 1994 we organized a leadership conference that brought together the different young leaders from the various SEC chapters: New York, Miami, Montreal, Washington D.C., Toronto, and Los Angeles.

Esther was very active in the Miami chapter and had helped organize the amazing 1993 annual SEC Miami Convention.

During the leadership conference, I met Esther and we started a long distance relationship. For the next few months the two of us would meet at different SEC events. We first met at the SEC Toronto Convention on Memorial Day in 1994. Then we both joined the SEC Young Leadership Israel trip in the summer of 1994. After flying back and forth from Miami to Los Angeles for the next few months, we met again in the 1995 SEC Convention that took place in Washington, D.C. On the last night of the convention during the gala event, I had asked Esther to marry me, and she said yes. As the crowds started departing for the buses, Neil Sheff announced that we got engaged, and everyone started celebrating our engagement. It felt like an instantaneous wedding with people dancing around us and putting us up on chairs.

A beautiful night that we will never forget. 24 years and 4 kids later, we continue to have the SEC in our heart and continue to be active, whether it’s through sending our kids to the wonderful SEC Hamsa Israel programs, participating in the SEC Shavuot retreats, or attending the many SEC events throughout the year. Thank you SEC for all you have done for us and here’s to many more years.

[Editor’s note: Yosi is currently serving on the SEC Board of Directors. and Esther is a tireless volunteer organizing SEC Shavuot programs and fundraisers.]

MIRIAM (BEHAR) & DAVID M. KASSIN HOW I MET DAVID

BY MIRIAM KASSIN We owe a huge “Hakarat HaTov” (gratitude) to the SEC. Going back 31 years ago this year, my husband David and I met at the yearly Memorial Day Shabbaton hosted in Brooklyn, New York. I was from L.A. and David was from Brooklyn. We were the first “SEC Convention Couple”. Owing immense gratitude to our founder, Dr. Jose Nessim, we are proud to have made his vision a reality. Here’s to another 120 years of more couples and families, Amen!

Thanks for the memories made and for those to come!

LAURENCE (PEREZ) & ERIC WANNON HOW I MET LAURENCE

BY ERIC WANNON Laurence and I met at an SEC Succah Party event in 1988 and from there the rest is history.

Interesting part of the story is how we both got to the SEC in the first place. Laurence moved to LA from Morocco in 1984. Neil saw her and her sisters at synagogue and asked them to come to an SEC event. Laurence quickly became very active in the SEC. My story starts in 1985, when my mother went to our synagogue in Maryland for a “hiloula” party and they drew a name out of a bowl for a free trip to the SEC in Jerusalem.

I was the lucky one and off I went for the most incredible trip. And guess what - Neil was my counselor! I then decided to come to LA for Law School and I reached back out to Neil, who invited me to the Succah party where he introduced me to Laurence! Neil assured me she hosted the best Moroccan Shabbat lunches!

We are forever grateful to the SEC. We are also very lucky to already have three of our kids participate in SEC Israel trips led by the great Rabbi Bouskila. Each of them had life changing experiences.

Thank you is far from sufficient to express our tremendous gratitude to the SEC. We miss you and love you Dr. Nessim (z”l) and you are always in our thoughts.

SEC MIAMI

HOW WONDERFULLY TIME FLIES

BY ELIZABETH MITRANI, SEC ALUMNA PAST PRESIDENT, SEC-MIAMI AND CURRENT SEC BOARD MEMBER I have been reliving my incredible SEC past today! I was invited to submit photos for this Hamerkaz 40th anniversary issue and I realized that my SEC photo library started almost that long ago. As I reviewed the hundreds upon hundreds of photos, it warmed my heart to realize how they have recorded a lifetime of friendships and how each of those friendship have developed. The first pile of SEC photos were taken at our annual Conventions... Los Angeles, Montreal, Miami, New York and Toronto (I missed Mexico!) where I made and maintained so many friendships. The next set was in two huge albums that recorded my unforgettable 6 weeks at the SEC in Jerusalem and the first time I set eyes on the Kotel. Others were of parties, speaker series, holiday celebrations, all hosted by local chapters dedicated to Jewish continuity. Then, as the years passed, the photos changed… the next set recorded SEC weddings, followed by births, then bar and bat mitzvahs. I’ve long since stopped printing photos but with the advent of social media, I now get to see the photos of my SEC friends’ children beginning the cycle again on their own Hamsa trips. Happy 40th Anniversary to the Sephardic Educational Center. What an incredible lifelong gift you have been to all of us!

VIVIAN (MAHLAB) & NIK KRON HOW I MET NIK

BY VIVIAN KRON

So Nik had gone on a BBYO tour the U.S. when he was a teenager in Ireland. On the tour was a girl from Miami.

She happened to be friends with Liz Mitrani from Miami.

Liz and I went on our SEC trip together when Neil was our brave leader. Liz moved to New York not long before Nik did and his friend Anita from Miami (also Liz‘s friend ) suggested that he get in touch with Liz who also recently moved to NY. I was president of SEC - New York then and we had weekly events. Liz brought Nik to an event and the rest is history!

Our son, Noah, attended the SEC Hamsa trip a few years ago and I have been on the SEC Board for the past 3 years.

Our SEC friendships are still the best and after all these years, SEC has provided the best memories of our lives.

[Editor’s note: Vivian is from Great Neck, New York and her husband Nik is from Dublin, Ireland. Vivian is from an Iraqi Sephardic community and got involved with the SEC for the first time in 1991. She attended several Israel programs; the first one took place in 1986.]

ALUMNI

APPRECIATION

BY MONA COHEN

My three kids and I took our first ever family trip to Israel last January. I can’t thank SEC enough for arranging Shabbat dinner at the SEC! Truly one of the highlights of our trip! While there we even bumped into SEC friends from Washington, DC, also there to show their kids the campus and enjoy a special shabbat.

On our way there , each one of my kids told me that going on the SEC Hamsa trip was for them the most incredible way to experience Israel for the first time, and how thankful they were to have gone on the trip with Rabbi Bouskila and Peni. I told them I know exactly how they felt because I too still feel blessed to have gone to my first Israel trip with the SEC almost 35 years ago (with Neil as my awesome madrich!). It truly was and still is an incredibly positive, far-reaching, and impactful experience. My kids even said they really hope the SEC continues to do the Hamsa trip when they have their own kids—that’s got to be the ultimate testimonial!

ALUMNI APPRECIATION

Standing in front of the SEC brought back many images of my first summer there, of the fun, laughter, seeing, and learning— and great lifelong friends. Given that I haven’t been to the SEC since then, I couldn’t believe how different and gorgeous it looks. Wow! I basically only recognized the courtyard, where we used to do our prayers and Havdala services.

I hope the SEC continues to grow, with the Hamsa Israel trips and the programs in different communities all over the world. It’s a real blessing and we are so lucky that Dr. Nessim pursued his dream, which has benefited and impacted so many people.

Thank you for all that you tirelessly do for the SEC with so much love in your heart.

BY DANIEL BENUN, LAURENCE BENUN AND ELI DWECK

Our first trip to Israel was in the summer of 1981 when we were bar Mitzva’d together, 3 cousins of the same age. Our parents having great foresight, planned it so that we would have our touring and Bar Mitzvah celebration over a 2 week period with the 3 Bar Mitzvah boys remaining in Israel for 3 weeks afterwards. We were signed up for the SEC summer program and had the time of our lives meeting new friends and touring every corner of the land. It was that summer trip that inscribed in stone our love of Israel forever.

Thank you SEC for those amazing memories which are still vivid in our minds and will last a lifetime.

Wishing the SEC many continued years of success, from Brooklyn, NY, Daniel Benun, Lawrence Benun and Eli Dweck

(Editor’s note: these 3 boys went on to become leaders in their community, with Eli serving as president of Mikdash Eliyahu synagogue in Brooklyn, NY)

SEATTLE SEC PARTNERS WITH SEPHARDIC ADVENTURE CAMP RABBI KENNY POLLACK, SAC DIRECTOR

Sephardic Adventure Camp (SAC) was founded with the main purpose of continuing the proud tradition of Sephardic culture and values for children born in the United States. In the early generations of immigrants from both Turkey and Greece, the leaders of the Seattle Sephardic community were looking for ways to keep the American kids excited about their Sephardic traditions. Over the course of many years, family retreats became longer and longer and Sephardic Camp was born. Seattle Pioneering Rabbis Solomon Maimon (A”H) of Sephardic Bikur Holim Congregation and William Greenberg (A”H) of Congregation Ezra Bessaroth, each ran their own camps for a time to make Sephardic living relevant and exciting. Before long the synagogues merged their camp programs into what is now Sephardic Adventure Camp.

For most of its years, SAC was attended by the local Seattle Sephardic community kids, but in the last 15 years, campers from Alaska, Vancouver BC, Portland and Los Angeles started to attend and many stayed on to eventually become staff members. The growth from the Los Angeles area, in particular, has been significant and was introduced by Rachel and Neil Sheff to their community when their sons attended in the early 2000’s and then followed by Esther Avrahamy who became a SAC Board Trustee. She and her husband Yosi, longtime SEC leaders, have sent all four of their kids to SAC over the past few years and their two oldest have recently served as Head Staff members.

“It’s like nothing else my kids experience during the rest of the year” explains Esther. “They talk about it all year long, and have made lifelong friendships.”

In the past several years SAC has attracted campers beyond the west coast from places like Texas, New York, Maryland, and Florida. SAC Marketing Director, Beth Jacoby, describes the experience when the kids first arrive to Camp. “It’s all so much work and detail…an entire year in the planning process, but when you see the kids get off the bus elated and running to see their friends, you immediately realize the impact”.

SAC is thrilled to continue building a strategic partnership with SEC. I find it to be the perfect alliance; both organizations are motivated by opportunities to connect our youth to their Sephardic heritage through experiential learning.

One such opportunity is the incredible SEC Hamsa Israel trip that Seattle based SAC campers have been participating in for a few years now. When asked what her favorite part about her Summer 2019 Hamsa Israel experience, Anna Jacoby, a junior at Northwest Yeshiva High School, simply replied, “Everything!”. SAC views the Hamsa experience as the next step in their campers’ understanding of Sephardic history and culture, plus a lot of fun and great memories. The natural

outcome and vision of the partnership would have entering 10th or 11th graders join the SEC Hamsa trip and return to SAC the following summer as CIT’s or Junior Staff members. Program specifics are in the works.

This year, SAC is moving into a beautiful new location in Cle Elum, Washington.

Its proximity to Seattle (just 75 minutes from the Seatac airport) makes the commute to camp a lot easier than in previous years. The Camp is located on 110 acres and has a heated pool on site with beautiful sports fields, basketball courts and amazing hiking trails. SAC continues to make Sephardic tradition and culture relevant and alive.

Find out more about SAC at www.sephardicadventurecamp.org or reach out by email to office@sephardicadventurecamp.org

MY AMAZING JOURNEY WITH DR. NESSIM AND THE SEC

BAR MITZVA PROGRAMS FOR UNDERPRIVILEGED YOUTH

BY MOSHE NISSIM, ESQ.

COUNSELOR TO THE SEC, FORMER MINISTER OF JUSTICE, FINANCE, INDUSTRY & TRADE, AND DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

SEC HELPING OTHERS 1980–2020

HOLIDAY FOOD PANTRY

(TRANSLATED FROM HEBREW BY NEIL SHEFF)

I met Dr. Joe Nissim for the first time in Los Angeles, while I was serving as Minister of Finance in the Government of Israel (1986-88). I came to the U.S. for meetings with Secretary of State George Shultz, James Baker and Senator Daniel Inouye (D) of Hawaii, may he rest in peace, then chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Foreign Operations, who helped us achieve our goal of re-financing Israel’s $10 billion debt with the U.S. due to defense purchases.

These defense loans were taken out when interest rates were at 12 to 14 percent and thankfully these meetings bore wonderful results.

Though Secretary of State Shultz (who recently passed away) was not amenable to our requests, Israel was lucky to have friends in the Senate like Mr. Inouye who passed the Refinancing Law for the State of Israel. We raised $5.5 billion in the U.S. capital market at an interest rate of 8.5% ($4.5 billion was at low interest rates). We returned this amount to the U.S. government, and kept $1.5 billion! And in addition, Secretary Schultz delivered a letter to me granting the State of Israel $950 million worth of advanced military equipment.

On that trip I also came to Los Angeles on behalf of State of Israel Bonds. One of the meetings I had took place in the home of Dr. Joe & Freda Nessim. I was impressed by his personability. I knew he was a renowned medical doctor with patients from around the world, but I was taken by his communal involvement. I found

him to be a leader and a visionary not only who loves the State of Israel but who cared and wanted to help secure the future of the Jewish People, preserve their heritage and prevent assimilation.

A period of several years passed and then Dr. Nessim visited me in the Knesset in Jerusalem, when I was very close to retiring from political life. He told me about the Sephardic Educational Center that he had started, about the historic buildings that he leased in order to house the programs that he had begun, and especially the thousands of young adults the Center had brought to Israel to strengthen their ties to Israel and Judaism.

When I retired from the Knesset, Dr. Nessim came to me again, this time as a lawyer. I saw concern on his face. He described to me a harsh reality that this great undertaking of his could collapse because the landlord of the Center- the Israeli government- wanted to evict the SEC from the buildings on certain legal grounds and had even filed an eviction lawsuit with the court to achieve their goal. Perhaps he thought that since I had been a government minister for 15 years and a member of Knesset for 37 years, I might know the ministers in power and could perhaps help to prevent this calamity. I told Dr. Nessim that I never engaged in the Israeli game of “protekzia” (calling in favors) but I did deal with pure and straightforward law and would see what I could do.

I studied the matter in depth, went through all the documents, all the relevant laws and regulations, examined the issues inside out, and eventually made strong legal arguments that surprised the government’s legal team in that not only did I reject the eviction claim filed by them in court, but I was able to compel the government to sell the three historic buildings to the Sephardic Educational Center without even submitting them to auction and at a very reasonable price with the approval of the court! Therefore, as a result of this great achievement that I see as a miracle (perhaps thanks to the fact that both my name and the

Dr Nessim (z”l) and then-Finance Minister, Moshe Nissim

SEC Jerusalem Board

name of the Doctor is “Nissim”, literally miracles) the campus now belongs to the SEC, sole owner of these three historic and beautiful buildings in the center of the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem right near the Western Wall, with a portion serving as a Guest House for visitors and participants who come to stay or join in the Center’s activities. No doubt, the value of these buildings has risen enormously.

Nessim’s contribution to Jewish heritage was indeed very great.

At a meeting I had with the leaders of the World Jewish Federation in Los Angeles years ago, I told them they weren’t doing enough for Jewish education. I pointed out that Dr. Joe Nessim, who was present at the meeting, is only one man but did and does for Jewish education, with more devotion, than the entire Federation does.

I would like to emphasize that I acted with all my strength and ability and was able to reach this enormous achievement, while as a lawyer, but not in order to collect legal fees. Although I received a modest retainer, much, much less than what would be typical for such a legal achievement, I did so because I was very impressed by the initiative, vision and leadership of Dr. Nessim who invested his entire being, including much of his personal financial backing, to save young Sephardim from assimilation, and assimilation is the greatest danger to the future of the Jewish People. He did this with sacrifice, with love, with concern, and invested his time in developing and nurturing the Sephardic Educational Center around the world and in Israel with great success.

Thousands of young people came to the Center and fell in love with Israel. They received a taste of our Jewish traditions, of the Land of Israel, and were often saved from assimilation. There could be no greater achievement in the Jewish world than this.

How unfortunate that during his important work and leadership, Dr. Nessim passed away, although at a ripe old age, and we miss him; indeed the Center misses him.

Dr. Nessim’s initiative, dedication and creativeness for Sephardic Jewish education and his great contribution to the preservation of Judaism could fill a book, and the three buildings he acquired and are today the campus of the Sephardic Educational Center are a living monument to his memory and his work. May his name forever be remembered.

Because of my admiration for Dr. Nessim and his vision, I became a friend of Dr. Nessim’s and a friend of the Sephardic Educational Center that he founded. Dr.

I call on all our generous brothers throughout the world to contribute generously to the Sephardic Educational Center, so that this important Center founded by Dr. Joe Nessim continues to exist and evolve for the sake of our Jewish People’s continuity and perpetuation.

[Editor’s note: Moshe Nissim continues to serve as the counsel for the SEC in Jerusalem, even while continuing his service to the State of Israel. In 2018, he was appointed by Prime Minister Netanyahu to create a commission to study the hot-button issue of conversion in the Jewish State and propose a new law to the Knesset. His findings were widely reported in the Israeli press and lauded by the SEC]

SEC RABBINICAL PROGRAMS

2020 METIVTA ON ZOOM

SEC METIVTA

RABBI NAFTALI HALEVA

ISTANBUL, TURKEY

Rabbi Abraham Shalem (z”l)

“We discovered that for 400 years Sephardic Rabbis were presented with major challenges of modernity yet with their ingenuity and love of the Jewish People were able to always come up with positive solutions.”

RABBI ILAN ACOCA

NEW JERSEY

“From the moment I got to the Center, I felt a sense of camaraderie between all the participants. Metivta proved to me that there are other Rabbis who are as passionate and proud of their Sephardic Judaism as I am.”

RABBI MOSHE BENZAQUEN

BEVERLY HILLS, CA

“I came out of those ten intensive days with a new perspective and very proud of my heritage”

RABBI ABRAHAM TOBAL

MEXICO CITY

“El solo hecho de convivir con Rabinos de distintas partes del mundo e intercambiar con ellos puntos de vista, vivencias y enfoques… “Dayenu” (“Just to have interchanged ideas and viewpoints with Rabbis from around the world…Dayenu, it would have sufficed)

Shaarei Uziel 2019-2020

Arevot Women’s Program

Chief Rabbi David Lau presents certificates to Rabbinical Program Graduates

Former Chief Rabbi Bakshi-Doron (z”l) at Rabbinical Program Graduation

Former Knesset Minister Rabbi Haim Amsellem discussing his work on conversion

“FOR FROM ZION SHALL GO FORTH THE LAW AND THE WORD OF THE LORD FROM JERUSALEM”

BY RABBI DR. MURRAY MIZRACHI, METIVTA PARTICIPANT, SEC BOARD MEMBER Jerusalem, the holy city is the epicenter of our holy Torah from which its values spreads to the entire world. For 40 years the SEC historic campus in Jerusalem’s old city has touched thousands of lives creating meaningful connections to Judaism, Israel and the Jewish people. Rabbis, community leaders, lay people and students from all over the world come to the SEC to learn about Sephardic culture and a unique approach to Judaism centered on ethical monotheism and the traditions of our past.

As the SEC marks this important anniversary, it is an opportunity to reflect on the words of some great Sephardic luminaries of the past who represented authentic Jewish values. Hakham Hayim David Hazan (1790-1869) and Rabbi Dr. Henry (Haim) Pereira Mendes (1877-1937) were both Sephardic Rabbis whom heralded from the same tradition.

Rabbi David Hayim Hazan was born into a noble rabbinic family in Izmir, Turkey. He held high level communal positions yet chose to make Aliayh in his old age, eventually becoming Rishon Lesion- the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. He actively promoted settlement of the land and Jewish agriculture. In an essay on the spiritual meaning of the obligatory half Shekel tribute, the Rabbi comments on why only a half shekel is needed and not the expected whole shekel: The whole man who believes he lacks nothing, whether because of his wisdom or because of his wealth and health, who does not need any other help, is mistaken. Since he is half man, and cannot be complete without his friend. When God commanded to provide tribute to the tabernacle and give each one half a shekel, no one person could give a gull shekel without the assistance of a friend... it is not possible for a man of Israel to be in conflict with his friend but in complete unity. And in my opinion, this was the intention of our Rabbis of blessed memory: to the blessing in this mitzvah: to inform on the message of unity… and be careful to be at peace with his fellow.

For Rabbi Hayim, one must always remain humble and recognize the role of others, no matter how successful. It is only through community and meaningful relationships that we all succeed. The values of Humility, Fraternity (ahavat yisrael) and the love of Eres Yisrael (ahavat eres yisrael) are clearly alive and well in the Rabbi’s residence which is now apart of the SEC Jerusalem campus.

Some years later, Rabbi Dr. Henry (Haim) Pereira Mendes echoed many similar ideas or community and ethics. Rabbi Mendes understood the importance of building community. As the founder of the Orthodox Union, our ability to practice Judaism freely and easily is indebted to the effort and vision of Rabbi Mendes. In His Jewish History Ethically Presented he writes that a Jew must always conduct himself/ herself in a way that “shall be an example in justice, loving- kindness and modesty” to the entire world.

An early Zionist who participated in the first Zionist congress at Basel, Rabbi Mendes helped Herzl build the Holy Land and spread Zionism. He believed in fusing the traditional values of Ahavat Eres Yisrael with modern ideas of Zionism.

“That respect we can have only if we respect ourselves by respecting our religion. Here is a true work for the Zionists: to keep Hebrews true to Jewish life, Jewish law and Jewish Sentiment”. He believed in a strong and confident religious Zionism rooted in authentic Jewish values. “Zionism means the realization of the great and grand ideals of the Bible for mankind’s benefit” and that ultimately “Judaism is Zionism and Zionism is Judaism” for the purpose of being a “light onto nations” and ushering in an era of World Peace.

Like the SEC, both Rabbis quoted above, embodied typical yet extraordinary Sephardic values and fostered a unique relationship to the Land of Israel. While the former Rabbi lived in the Ottoman East, and the latter Rabbi in London and then New York, they nonetheless represented similar timeless values that still inform us today.

Today, while we are geographically diverse, The SEC helps unite us across the world, driven by our common purpose and guided by our traditional Sephardic values. Always engaging our youth and training the next generation of Rabbis, the next four decades are poised to be ones of progress and accomplishment. No doubt the SEC leadership will continue to look to the past for guidance, but with a keen eye towards a bright future.

RABBI MARC D. ANGEL

RABBI EMERITUS OF CONGREGATION SHEARITH ISRAEL, NY FOUNDER, INSTITUTE OF JEWISH IDEAS AND IDEALS

“I well remember first meeting Dr. Jose Nessim when the idea of establishing the Sephardic Educational Center was still a twinkle in his eye. He was a unique human being. He had a dream to revitalize Sephardic life, with a magnificent center in the Old City of Jerusalem. When he spoke of bringing thousands of young people to experience Sephardic Judaism in Jerusalem, people thought he was impractical and unrealistic. Actually, he was visionary! He made his dream into a reality by dint of tireless devotion, remarkable philanthropy, and by bringing together like minded individuals who would help him to implement his plans. It is amazing how much has been accomplished in the past forty years. Hazakim uvrukhim to all who have helped bring the SEC to this 40th anniversary milestone. May the SEC continue to grow and thrive in the years ahead.”

THE SEPHARDIC INITIATIVE

One of the remarkable features of the Jewish People is our incredible diversity. We have an amazing treasure of teachings, customs, folklore, spiritual insights...from Jewish communities spanning thousands of years and flourishing in many lands. As we appreciate the “wholeness” of the Jewish People, we provide ourselves and our new generations with a sense of sharing in the grandness of the Jewish experience.

TEACHER EDUCATION: We sponsor conferences for teachers in Jewish schools, and provide practical information on how inclusiveness in Jewish education can be enhanced. Teachers engage in serious discussion and serious learning. Teachers are given publications to help them in their own study of Sephardic/pan-Sephardic civilization.

For a variety of reasons, Jewish education has largely focused on the history, traditions and personalities of the Ashkenazic communities. Indeed, there is much to learn from the Ashkenazic experience, and all of us are strengthened and enlightened by it. However, Jewish education has largely tended to ignore or under-emphasize the history, traditions and personalities of the Sephardic and pan-Sephardic Jewish communities. In some sense, it is as though the Sephardim dropped out of history after their expulsion from Spain in 1492, and became even more obscure after the Shabbatai Sevi debacle in 1666. The history and culture of Sephardim, Middle Eastern and North African Jews are relatively unknown to large numbers of Jews. And when attempts are made to be inclusive, they generally relate to foods and music...and almost never to intellectual and spiritual contributions.

ONLINE EDUCATION: We have increased our online presence, so as to be able to reach educators—and the public in general—with relevant emails, online resources, zoom classes.

PUBLICATION: We have published a booklet, “Insights from the Sephardic Tradition: An Educational Guide,” and have distributed it at no cost to several hundred educators. We plan on issuing additional publications in the near future.

The “Sephardic Initiative” will certainly be of benefit to children who are themselves of Sephardic backgrounds. By including materials from their traditions, they will feel a stronger sense of self-worth and a greater pride in their own community’s role in the Jewish adventure. But this initiative is vitally important for children of non-Sephardic backgrounds as well. It will The Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals and the Sephardic Educational enhance and deepen their vision of the “wholeness” of the Jewish People. It Center have launched a “Sephardic Initiative,” to promote a greater inclusive- will teach them the value of diversity and inclusivity, and will enable them to ness and “wholeness” in Jewish education. This cooperative venture is led by learn Jewish ideas and ideals that they otherwise would have missed.

Rabbi Marc D. Angel of the IJII and Rabbi Daniel Bouskila of the SEC. For more information, and to contribute to the “SEPHARDIC INITIATIVE” you may contact RABBI MARC ANGEL at MDANGEL@JEWISHIDEAS.ORG or RABBI DANIEL BOUSKILA at RABBOUSK@AOL.COM

YOU SHALL LOVE TRUTH AND PEACE

BY RABBI BENZION MEIR HAI UZIEL (TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL HEBREW

BY RABBI DANIEL BOUSKILA)

TRANSLATOR’S INTRODUCTION This translation by Rabbi Bouskila is a sneak preview to a project of The Sephardic Initiative, a joint educational partnership between the SEC and The Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals (directed by Rabbi Marc Angel). Plans are in the works for a forthcoming republication and expanded edition of Rabbi Angel’s book “Loving Truth & Peace: The Grand Religious Worldview of Rabbi Benzion Uziel”, which will now feature a new section with original English-language translations of a cross-section of Rabbi Uziel’s writings.

Contact us to sponsor this and other publications.

ABOUT RABBI UZIEL Rabbi Benzion Meir Hai Uziel (1880-1953) was a visionary rabbinic leader and the 20th century’s most authentic embodiment of the classic Sephardic rabbinic tradition. He was the Haham Bashi (Ottoman-appointed Chief Rabbi) of Jaffa-Tel Aviv (1911-1939), and the Rishon L’Zion (Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel) of the pre-state Yishuv under the British Mandate (1939-1947) and then of the State of Israel (1948-1953). He authored multiple volumes of groundbreaking Halakhic Responsa (Jewish legal rulings on practical matters), as well as original books of Jewish philosophy, theology and ethics. From his earliest moments as a young rabbinic leader, all the way to his famous “Spiritual Will to the Jewish People” written a few weeks before his death, Rabbi Uziel was a strong advocate for Jewish unity. This essay - “You Shall Love Truth and Peace” - originally appeared in his classic work of Jewish thought Hegyonei Uziel (volume 2, pages 33-34). It is one of his most eloquent statements on unity, and beautifully encapsulates his creative blend of classic rabbinic scholarship with responsible leadership.

In his grand vision describing the redemption of Israel, the prophet Zechariah declares: “Thus said the Lord of Hosts: The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth month, the fast of the seventh month, and the fast of the tenth month shall become occasions of joy and gladness, happy festivals for the House of Judah, but you shall love truth and peace” (Zechariah 8:19) This prophecy, {which predicts that the fast days mourning the destruction of the Temple will become days of joy}, comes to teach us that the redemption of Israel after destruction and exile is contingent upon their loving truth and peace. Much like the two bronze pillars Yachin and Boaz upheld King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem, so, too, do truth and peace uphold the entire universe of Israel. The God of Israel is a God of truth and peace, and one of God’s names is “peace”. This is reflected in the rabbinic teaching: “Great is peace, for the name of the Holy One Blessed Be He is Shalom (peace), as it is written, ‘and He was called The Lord-Shalom’ (Judges 6:24).”

God’s Torah is a book of truth, and a book of peace, as it is written, “Her ways are pleasant ways (truth), and all her paths are peaceful (peace)” (Proverbs 3:17). Peace is one of Judaism’s most beloved principles, for “The entire purpose of the Torah is to bring about peace in the

world” (Talmud Gittin 59b). From greeting one another with our national greeting “Shalom” to comforting Jerusalem in the language of peace, our common language is one of peace.

Indeed, God blesses Israel with daily blessings of peace.

One of the most powerful expressions regarding peaceful ways is learned from the teachings and deeds of our rabbis: “Come and hear: Although Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagreed on several legal issues related to family matters - such as rival wives and sisters, an outdated bill of divorce, a doubtfully married woman, the case of one who divorces his wife and later she lodged together with him at an inn, money and its equivalent in valuables, a peruta or the equivalent value of a peruta (for the purposes of establishing a betrothal) – nonetheless, Beit Shammai did not refrain from marrying women from Beit Hillel nor did Beit Hillel refrain from marrying women from Beit Shammai. This serves to teach us that - despite their differences they practiced love and friendship between them, to fulfill that which is stated: ‘You shall love truth and peace’” (BT Yebamot 14b).

The parallel teaching in the Jerusalem Talmud says: “Although Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagreed on several legal issues related to family matters…nonetheless…they practiced truth and peace between them, as it is written, ‘You shall love truth and peace’” (Jerusalem Talmud Yebamot Chapter 1).

Shammai and Hillel practiced “love and friendship” and “truth and peace”, teaching us that love and truth are one and the same, and any love that is not grounded in truth is false. Falsehood and lying are abominable in the eyes of God, as it is written “Keep away from anything false” (Exodus 23:7) and “Do not lie to one another” (Leviticus 19:11).

The Nation of Israel are commanded to live by these two great pillars of truth and peace, for doing so will eternally distinguish them as blessed and praiseworthy, no matter what the circumstances.

These pillars are especially needed in the State of Israel, for only truth and peace can create an atmosphere of pleasantness and tranquility throughout the land. Each individual in Israel must internalize truth and peace, which in turn will foster a true love for the State of Israel, and a genuine desire for its internal peace. This internal peace will ultimately lead to an external peace, guiding us towards peace initatives with other nations and kingdoms.

The Torah and her commandments, “whose ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace,” must serve as our guidebook for living in peace: “If you follow My laws and faithfully observe My commandments…I will grant peace in the land so that you will sleep without fear” (Leviticus 26: 3-6).

Let us place this message upon our hearts, removing from our midst any hint of evil thoughts, divisiveness or hatred of the Torah and its commandments. Let us clothe ourselves with an elevated devotion love for one another, as commanded by the Torah, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself, I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:18).

YOU SHALL LOVE TRUTH AND PEACE Continued...

By the same measure, let us also love the stranger in our midst, as it is written, “The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of your citizens, you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt, I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:34).

This is not the place to explain the depth, details and importance of loving the stranger, but let us all recognize that all of us were once strangers in the four corners of the earth.

Therefore, in addition to the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself,” we have one more commandment of love that obligates us to accept and welcome all immigrants to our land, irrespective of their ethnic community or country of origin. We must accept them from a place of genuine love, both the love expressed in the verse “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” and the loving commandment of “you shall love him (the stranger) as yourself.”

From this same place of genuine love, let us conduct ourselves in the paths of true peace, respecting each other’s opinions and feelings, as well as respecting the differences amongst the factions in our country. Let us remove all language of hatred, animosity and provocation from our midst, so that we may fulfill amongst ourselves that which our enlightened scholar Maimonides commanded us: “Accept the truth from whatever source it comes”.

Let us remember the enlightened deeds of our rabbis - Shammai and Hillel - who behaved with love and respect towards one another and respected each other’s opinions, fulfilling the verse “You shall love truth and peace.”

From a sincere place of love and devotion, let us come closer to our Holy Torah and all of its laws and commandments. For the Torah is our source of life and the key to our length of days in this sacred land that God has given to our forefathers, and to us, as an inheritance.

This is all for our own good, and for the good of our children - forever and forevermore.

May God, the King of Peace, bless us with peace, and may we merit to see the fulfillment of the great prophetic vision for the End of Days for world peace, as it is written: “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not take up sword against nation, they shall never again know war” (Isaiah 2:4).

I conclude my words by quoting the beautiful words of Maimonides from the end of his “Laws of Kings” (at the very end of his Mishneh Torah): “The Sages and the prophets did not yearn for the Messianic era in order to have dominion over the entire world, to rule over the gentiles, to be exalted by the nations, or to eat, drink, and celebrate.

Rather, they desired to be free to involve themselves in Torah and wisdom without any pressures or disturbances, so that they would merit the world to come, as explained in Hilkhot Teshuvah.

In that era, there will be neither famine or war, envy or competition, for goodness will flow in abundance, and all the delights will be freely available as dust. The occupation of the entire world will be solely to know God. Therefore, the Jews will be great sages and know the hidden matters, grasping the knowledge of their Creator according to the full extent of human potential, as Isaiah 11:9 states: ‘ The world will be filled with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the ocean bed.” (left) Rabbi Uziel walking with Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion ___________ (center) Rabbi Uziel conducting a class in a courtyard of the Present day SEC in the Old City of Jerusalem, 1946 ___________ (right) Rabbi Uziel prays for the first time at the Wailing Wall, after his enthronement, June 27, 1939

THE INCOMPARABLE DR. NESSIM

BY RABBI BENITO GARZON FOUNDING EDUCATIONAL DIRECTOR Nos cuesta mucho hablar de nuestro querido José en pasado pues merece que sólo se hable de él en futuro.

- porque quedará en la rica historia de nuestro pueblo judío y de nuestra familia sefaradí en particular, como un visionario que se anticipó a su tiempo marcando pautas inteligentes para fortalecer la identidad judía, - porque luchó denodadamente por nuestros jóvenes oponiéndose a veces a la desidia y el desánimo de muchos líderes y dirigentes comunitarios, para ampliar el estrecho horizonte de quienes pierden su energía en minucias, - porque dedicó su inmensa inteligencia y su inigualable energía a imbuirnos de sus ideales de equilibrio y sensatez que tanto necesita el mundo de hoy y - porque sobre todo, supo ponerse en todo momento al servicio de HaCadosh Baruj Hu, de Su pueblo y de Su tierra a los que tanto amó.

en acciones que supusieron para miles de vidas jóvenes una auténtica revolución espiritual.

Por todo ello, la memoria y el nombre del Dr. José Nessim, bendita sea la mención de su nombre, perdurarán para siempre en los corazones de los que tuvimos el privilegio de conocerle, el honor de participar modestamente en su inmensa labor educativa y de contar con su afecto y su amistad.

Pocas personas alcanzan a dejar su huella positiva en tantos miles de almas. El Doctor, como solíamos nombrarle, no sólo lo logró sino que su huella indeleble marcará el camino por el que han de transitar las generaciones venideras.

En estos momentos oscuros, agradezcamos por encima de todo a HaShem y juntos cantemos su alabanza por habernos brindado a un lider como nuestro querido Dr. Nessim que fue luz y guía en Jerusalén fue su sueño y allí brillará nuestro camino. siempre su nombre para memoria de las generaciones futuras y para Creo que debemos pensar en el que todos recuerden que hubo una rango privilegiado que ocupa ahora vez un hombre que cual personaje junto al trono de la majestad divina bíblico, transformó sus visiones y a los justos de Israel, el alma fugaces en profundos pensamien- pura de un ser tan querido como tos, los pensamientos en palabras inigualable: Rabbí Yosef Nessim bar claras y las palabras Abraham, zijró li-brajá. Amén.

TRANSLATION:

It is hard for us to speak of our dear Jose in past tense for he deserves only that we discuss him in future tense.

-because he will remain in the rich history of our Jewish People, and especially among our Sephardic family, as a visionary ahead of his time who set intelligent guidelines to strengthen Jewish identity, -because he boldly fought for our young people, sometimes against the indifference and apathy of many community leaders to broaden the narrow horizon of those who waste their energy on minutiae, -because he dedicated his great intelligence and his unequaled energy to imbue us with his ideals of balance and good sense that the world today needs so much and -because above all else, he knew how to place himself at every moment at the service of G-d, of his People and his Land that he loved so much.

Jerusalem was his dream and it is there that his name will always shine for future generations to remember that once there was a man with biblical character who transformed his fleeting visions into deep thoughts, his thoughts into clear words and his words into actions that meant a true spiritual revolution for thousands of young lives. For all that, the memory of the name of Dr. Jose Nessim, of blessed memory, will last forever in the hearts of those of us who had the privilege of knowing him, the honor of participating modestly in his immense educational work and of counting on his affection and friendship. Few people reach the goal of leaving their positive impression on so many thousands of souls. The Doctor, as we called him, not only achieved this, but his indelible mark will mark the path that future generations will follow. In these dark times, we can thank above all to G-d and together sing the praises for having blessed us with a leader like our dear Dr. Nessim who was the light and guide for our path. I believe we must ponder the privileged rank that he now occupies next to the throne of divine majesty and the righteous of Israel, the pure soul of a being as dear as he was incomparable: “Rabbi” Yosef Nessim son of Abraham, may his memory be a blessing. Amen.

AN EXTRAORDINARY MAN

BY RABBI MOSHE SHAMAH, FOUNDING EDUCATIONAL ADVISOR TO DR. NESSIM In 1978 I attended an American Sephardi Federation youth seminar in Los Angeles as an observer. At the very beginning of the first evening the rabbis, counselors and observers had a meeting to discuss the standards of dress and behavior we should insist on for the few days of the seminar, which included trips to DisneyLand, Universal Studios, and other highlights of the area, plus lectures and discussions on Judaic topics. I didn’t comment for the first half-hour or so until it became clear that a religious segment would foist upon a largely-secularized youth standards they would resent. My comments redirected the discussion to a more practical and realistic conclusion.

After the meeting a gentleman I didn’t know - who had sat quietly and attentively through the meeting - approached me for a serious discussion. He was interested in reinvigorating Sephardic communities throughout the world. Judaism had a great deal to offer but the way things were today he felt it would have to be brought out through the Sephardic approach. He was hoping to establish a worldwide Sephardic movement headquartered in Jerusalem to provide inspiration and leadership to Sephardim and to the Jewish People throughout the world. The first step would be a Center in Jerusalem offering summer programs for Sephardic youth, providing touring, socialization, recreation, Judaic education, meeting dignitaries and training in leadership skills to influence their various communities upon their return home. This would be followed with semester educational offerings with college credit at the Jerusalem Center and at some point a rabbinic training program. Based on my comments in the previous meeting - which he considered illustrative of the Sephardic approach - he felt that I could be helpful and invited me to join the project as an active participant.

Wow! This was my first contact with Dr. Jose Nessim, whom I soon discovered was a world-famous, successful obgyn doctor-surgeon, who had long been thinking about the subject he discussed with me. I respected his enthusiasm and optimism but could not share his sense of realism about his plans. There are so many aspects and details to his plans that I thought of it as a dream. As we discussed the matter further in coming days it turned out that the doctor had already researched numerous details of his plans.

He had specific ideas of where in Jerusalem the Center should be located, who were the government ministers that would have to be persuaded to support it, who were the influential Sephardic leaders around the world who must be brought on board. Little by little he convinced me that it could become a reality. In due course he asked me to accompany him and his wife on a fact-finding trip to Israel, which I agreed to.

On that trip the doctor wanted to gain long-term access to the property he had in mind for the Center - a significant-sized area consisting of several buildings and a large courtyard located in one of the most desirous areas in the city for a religious or educational institution - at the top of the road that leads directly to the Western Wall, just a few minutes walk to the Wall (exactly where the Center has been located since its founding 40 years ago.) A government-funded dormitory high school for Israelis was occupying part of the premises at that time, not too difficult to relocate. I couldn’t believe the doctor would succeed in getting it, especially for the long term. We met with the government ministers who were in charge of determining the occupancy of that property. The property was not-for-sale.The doctor was superbly persuasive. He was establishing an organization that through the years will bring tens of thousands of Sephardic youth to Israel for various programs, many of whom will return to the country for college and many will make aliya. Many of their parents and communities will be influenced by them and become supporters of Israel. This would contribute to solving the Sephardic problem in Israel. In previous years the doctor had met and become friendly with a number of influential Israeli politicians and it seems they went to bat for him. Amazingly, the government’s response came while we were still on that trip, positive with several stipulations which had to do with a long-term commitment regarding the program, financial commitment for upkeep, etc.

Also on that trip the doctor wanted to visit a number of leading institutions that had a reputation for successfully working with high school graduates to instill in them a love and commitment for Judaism and/or Israel, We learned a great deal about educational strategies but we were more convinced than ever that we needed a Sephardic Center.

Finally, in early 1980 the doctor called with the great news. The Sephardic Educational Center will be opening its doors in late June for a summer youth program. We must have a full complement of personnel, attract participants, make travel arrangements, develop a full program and itinerary, etc. Somehow it all got done. Divine Providence moved the project along. I rented an apartment in Jerusalem for my family and volunteered to give a daily morning class on important topics in Judaism to the English-speaking participants, while Rabbi Benito Garzon handled the Spanish-speaking. This continued for many years. My wife and I and our children have wonderful memories of those glorious summers with Dr. Jose and Mrs. Freda Nessim and the S.E.C. family.

SEPHARDIC SPICE GIRLS

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MOROCCAN MEGINA

Moroccan megina, Tunisian ma’akoud, Spanish tortilla, Persian ku’kuu, Iraqi aj’a, frittata. Whatever you call it, there’s nothing more delicious than eggs enhanced with sautéed onions, bright green herbs and fresh vegetables.

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SEPHARDIC SPICE SEC FOOD FACEBOOK

SHAKSHUKA

That Shakshuka brought me back to the many times my mother had made Shakshuka whenever she needed to serve us a quick, easy meal. She would warm generous amounts of her homemade matboucha in a large frying pan, then she would carefully place the eggs in the sauce.

Bamya!

PRESERVED LEMONS

An indispensable ingredient in the Moroccan kitchen, preserved lemons add a burst of sunshine to any dish. Not too tart or acidic, they enhance any fish, chicken or lamb dish and add a unique twist to any salad.

PASTELITOS

The secret to delicious pastelitos is that the meat must be soft, moist and flavorful and the potatoes must be smooth and perfectly seasoned. I also discovered that cooling the potatoes in the refrigerator before forming the croquettes ensures that the they don’t open and fall apart during the frying process.

SPINACH BOULEMAS

A savory dough filled with spinach, feta and Parmesan. Popular Sephardic delicacy of ladino speaking Jews.

SEC AROUND THE WORLD

SEC MEXICO RABINO ABRAHAM TOBAL

TRANSLATION:

The Nessim’s hosting delegation from Mexico

RABINO PRINCIPAL SOCIEDAD DE BENEFICENCIA ALIANZA MONTE SINAI – CIUDAD DE MÉXICO CHIEF RABBI- MONTE SINAI COMMUNITY – MÉXICO CITY

Recuerdo, hace como 25 años, en el primer viaje en que acompañé al grupo del Colegio Hebreo Monte Sinai (México), y en ese entonces también nos acompañaban alumnos del Colegio Hamilton (también de México).

Era uno de esos “viajes de generación” para alumnos de tercero de secundaria, en los que se les ofrecía una oportunidad por conocer Israel durante el verano.

Lo que más me impactó de ese viaje fue conocer el CES (Centro Educativo Sefaradí), ubicado en barrio judío de la Ciudad Vieja de Jerusalem. En ese espacio pude presenciar la impresionante labor cultural que sus miembros llevaban a cabo con jóvenes de todo el mundo, liderados en ese entonces por el gran educador, el Rabino Benito Garzon; así como por su entonces presidente y fundador, el Dr. Joe Nessim (z”l).

El Dr. Nessim fue, sin duda, un idealista único en su generación, pues se propuso darle continuidad a nuestros valores ancestrales de la cultura sefaradí, transmitiendo a los jóvenes de la nueva generación la práctica del judaísmo tal como la llevaron nuestros antepasados y los guías espirituales de nuestra tradición, con respeto, tolerancia y equilibrio. Apenas conocí al Dr. Joe Nessim, me identifiqué totalmente con él y con sus ideales. Sin lugar a dudas, fue un gran visionario; logró obtener un edificio en el corazón del barrio judío, a tan sólo unos metros del Kotel, y desde entonces, de forma ininterrumpida, se llevó a cabo en ese recinto todo tipo de labor educativa de primer nivel.

Fui testigo de ello en numerosos viajes. Y hasta el día de hoy, siento mucha nostalgia cuando lo recuerdo.

Además, lo pueden atestiguar los miles de jóvenes de México que han estado en el CES y que lo recuerdan como una experiencia única en sus vidas.

En el presente, sigue siendo un centro de transmisión de valores sefaradíes, y me he enterado que se está terminando de levantar en el lugar, un museo de la cultura sefaradí; todo eso dirigido espiritualmente por el Rabino Daniel Bouskila de Los Ángeles, y presidido por el abogado Neil Sheff, también de Los Ángeles. En el lugar hay un centro de estudios, donde el Rabino Izjac Shuraki (una eminencia en los conocimientos de la Torá, historia y filosofía de los grandes eruditos sefaradíes de todas las épocas) prepara a nuevas generaciones de rabinos para que ellos, a su vez, sigan transmitiendo ese legado de nuestros valores a sus respectivas comunidades. Además, junto con otras grandes personalidades religiosas, imparten un seminario rabínico anualmente en la misma sede, en el cual participo sin habérmelo perdido ni un solo año (incluso este año, a pesar de la pandemia, igual se logró por Zoom), ya que es un aprendizaje fuera de serie, donde se analizan muy profundamente las enseñanzas de los grandes eruditos sefaradíes, el cómo acercaban a la gente a los valores de la Torá con amor y dulzura, el cómo transmitían las reglas de la religión en su justo medio -sin exagerar ni para un lado ni para el otro-, siendo que hoy se perdió mucho esa visión.

En conclusión, felicito de todo corazón a cada uno de los dirigentes del CES, deseándoles que sigan adelante con esa labor tan importante de seguir transmitiendo nuestro legado sefaradí, tan necesario hoy en día; y que Hashem los bendiga con salud éxito y bienestar a ellos y sus familias. Amén.

I remember about 25 years ago the first trip that I accompanied the Monte Sinai Mexico group along with the Hamilton School Mexico group to the SEC. That was one of the trips of a lifetime for high school and college students to learn about Israel during a summer trip.

What impacted me the most on this trip was to experience the SEC, situated in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was there I was able to witness the impressive cultural work that its members carried out with young people from all over the world, led at that time by the great educator, Rabbi Benito Garzon; as well as by its then president and founder, Dr. Joe Nessim (z”l).

Dr. Nessim was, without a doubt, a unique idealist in his generation, as he proposed to give continuity to our ancestral values of the Sephardic culture, transmitting to the young people of the new generation the practice of Judaism as it was carried out by our ancestors and the spiritual guides of our tradition, with respect, tolerance and balance. As soon as I met Dr. Joe Nessim, I totally identified with him and with his ideals. Without a doubt, he was a great visionary; he managed to obtain a building in the heart of the Jewish Quarter, just a few meters from the Kotel, and since then, uninterruptedly, all kinds of first-rate educational work has been carried out there.

I witnessed it on numerous trips. And to this day, I feel very nostalgic when I remember it. In addition, it can be witnessed by the thousands of young people from Mexico who have been to SEC and who remember it as a unique experience in their lives.

At present, it continues to be a Center for the transmission of Sephardic values, and I have learned that a museum of Sephardic culture is being completed there; all spiritually led by Rabbi Daniel Bouskila from Los Angeles, and chaired by attorney Neil Sheff, also from Los Angeles. In the campus, there is a study center, where Rabbi Yitzhak Chouraqui (a scholar in the knowledge of Torah, history and philosophy of the great Sephardic scholars of all times) prepares new generations of rabbis so that they, in turn, continue to pass on that legacy of our values to their respective communities. Additionally, together with other great religious personalities, they give a rabbinical seminar annually in the same venue, in which I participate without having missed a single year (even this year, despite the pandemic, it was still achieved by Zoom), since It is an extraordinary learning, where the teachings of the great Sephardic scholars are analyzed very deeply, how they brought people close to the values of the Torah with love and sweetness, how they transmitted our religious traditions in their rightful environment - without exaggerating either to one side or to the other- since today that vision has almost disappeared.

In conclusion, I wholeheartedly congratulate each of the SEC leaders, wishing them to continue with this important task of continuing to pass on our Sephardic legacy, so necessary today; and may Hashem bless them and their families with health, success and well-being. Amen.

SEC AROUND THE WORLD

SEC ARGENTINA IT BEGAN WITH A PHONE CALL

BY DR. EDWIN SEROUSSI,

DIRECTOR, JEWISH MUSIC RESEARCH CENTRE DEPARTMENT OF MUSICOLOGY THE HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM RECIPIENT OF THE PRESTIGIOUS ISRAEL PRIZE

An unexpected phone call arrived to our home at the UCLA Family Housing compound in West LA sometime in the spring of 1983. On the other side of the line was Dr. Jose Nessim. He introduced himself briefly and asked to meet me in person to talk about a major project related to Sephardic Jewry. I was recommended to him by someone at UCLA who knew of my background (born in Montevideo, Uruguay to a prominent Sephardic family on my father’s side) and interests as an Israeli graduate student at the Department of Music (Sephardic traditions). The place of the meeting, a coffee place close to the corner of Wilshire and Glendon, in Westwood. The time: 7 a.m., definitely not the ideal timing for the father of two toddlers. Out of curiosity, I agreed to the meeting. In those times, there was no Google to search for the background of a person; I trusted my instincts. At precisely 7 a.m. a tall and energetic man (I calculated he was in his early fifties, but he was actually 61) entered the coffee shop in a sweatshirt, sweatpants and sneakers. Later on, I realized that he made it all the way down from Beverly Hills (3.5 miles) jogging!

With his characteristic slow but firm tone of voice, in an English that betrayed some long gone Spanish language background, Dr. Nessim succinctly presented to me his vision. On a first hearing, it sounded to me like a crazy idea. Sephardic Jews were notorious for their inability to put their act together on a global scale- I knew that from my history studies. However, the determination of Dr. Nessim was contagious and irresistible. There was no way out for me after that meeting. He had already decided to put me on a mission: to assist the Sephardic Education Center, founded just a couple of years before, in creating its Latin American branch centered in Buenos Aires. And I abided, willingly of course. On August 1984, upon successfully passing my Ph.D. comprehensive exams at UCLA, my young family and I were on a plane to Argentina. We were going to stay in Buenos Aires for almost a year and a half before the mission was accomplished and we returned to Israel. It was a most memorable journey, but that is a story for another opportunity.

Dr. Nessim with SEC-Argentina Founding President, Dr. Salvador Sarfatti (z”l)

SEC INDIA

SEC ARGENTINA FROM THE ARCHIVES….2001

Yaco Cohen Chaluh, President, Young Adults, SEC-Buenos Aires Este es un mensaje muy especial para mi, hace ya 3 años que me incorpore al CES un lugar donde realmente se siente la valoración y continuidad de nuestros principios como judíos, un momento muy especial porque me siento comprometido y es lo que sentí la primera vez que entre a nuestra sede, fui creciendo mucho, estudiando y perfeccionándome aprendiendo de los fundadores la misión que uno tiene que tener con respecto a la realidad de nuestra situación en la diáspora. En esta nuestra 7ª Convención Latinoamericana fue realmente un orgullo poder organizarla y poder ver a jovenes disfrutar y conocer distintos aspectos de nuestra vida como judíos y con la distinguida participacion de el Rabino Tobal que deslumbro con su sabiduría y cariño hacia nosotros que dejo una estela de luz y brillo con su presencia como tuvimos la posibilidad de tenerlo el año pasado a nuestro querido Rab Garzon con su querida Señora. Tambien la asistencia de dos distinguidos Rabinos el Rab. Sacca y el Rab. Bitton de la comunidad sefardí de Buenos Aires y de la comunidad sefardí de Montevideo Uruguay. Estoy muy contento en representación de mi comisión de jovenes el participar y hacer participar a jovenes a que se integren a nuestra gran familia y que sientan la llama de la esperanza tan grande que nosotros llevamos dentro.

TRANSLATION:

Este es el momento de hacer, tener voluntad para realizar cambios, fortalecer nuestra identidad, sentir que pertenecemos a un pueblo y a una cultura milenaria, que tenemos que estar juntos sentirnos todos los jóvenes participes de estos cambios que en un mundo globalizado nos afectan personalmente y también a nuestra comunidad . Desde mi humilde lugar quiero dar un mensaje de esperanza, de optimismo que los jóvenes podemos y tenemos la capacidad necesaria para poder cambiar desde el CES o de cualquier institución judía a la cual pertenezcas , sabe que te necesitamos, te necesitamos para promover actividades para jóvenes en edad universitaria de todo el país y de Latinoamérica, para que entre todos obtengamos un poco mas de conocimientos donde cada uno de nosotros aporte y se enriquezca en la medida de sus propias expectativas , tiempos y posibilidades, nuestra meta es continuar con un espacio para que cada joven judío tenga un marco de identidad y pertenencia con su pueblo.

Si yo no me preocupo de mi, ¿Quién lo hará?

Si solo me preocupo de mi, ¿Quién soy?

Y si no es ahora, ¿Cuándo?

(Talmud – Tratado de principios)

This is a special message for me, since 3 years ago I joined the SEC, where one really feels the value and continuity of our Jewish values. It is a special feeling to be committed and be able to grow and learn from the founders of the movement about the reality that faces us as Jews in the diaspora.

I was proud to be an organizer of our 7th Annual SEC Latin America Convention and witness young people enjoy learning about different aspects of our heritage, with the participation of the distinguished Rabbi Abraham Tobal, SEC Director in Mexico, who illuminated us with his wisdom and love as did our dear Rabbi Garzon with his dear wife the year before. We also enjoyed the presence of Rabbi Yosi Bitton of Montevideo, Uruguay and Rabbi Sacca of Buenos Aires.

I am very happy of the young leaders we have who feel the flame of hope that we all carry inside us. This is the time to do, to achieve change, strengthen our identity as Jews, and feel the belonging to a People and culture of thousands of years. I would like to humbly offer a prayer of hope and optimism that we young people can and have the capacity to change and grow spiritually through organizations like SEC and we need others to help us promote the activities to college-aged students throughout Latin America so that we can all gain in our Jewish identity.

If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when? (Talmud)

SEC TURKEY

WHAT SEC MEANS TO ME

BY ROBERT CARLSON, STUDENT AT BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY AND YOUNGEST SEC BOARD MEMBER When my forebears, Marco and Rahel Tarica, and their children Shemuel and Esterina (Esther Altabet who was my great grandmother) arrived in this country from Rhodes, they became leaders in the Los Angeles Sephardic community. They even held the minyan in their home where they kept the Sefer Torah and collected 10 cents from members to help the poor and elderly. This was called the “Kashica de la Kehila” (the Tzedaka or Charity Fund). My great-uncle Morris Tarica and his wife Regina of the Amado family from Izmir were also very involved in the Sephardic community. The original Oriental Sephardi Communities in the US were pioneered by men and women who arrived as immigrants to the US from the Ottoman lands of Rhodes, Anatolia, the Balkans, and Syria. They spoke mostly Ladino and Arabic. In more recent decades, American Sephardic communities have diversified to include Moroccan, Iraqi, and Persian communities as well.

Barukh Hashem, our many organizations, including the Sephardic Educational Center, have continued to flourish. Thanks to the vision of Dr. Jose Nessim z”l, young Jews like myself have been able to be educated in the Sephardic fashion, learning the beautiful ways of Torah, Jewish law, and our traditions with a moderate, tolerant, and compassionate approach.

Led by the brilliant Haham Rabbi Daniel Bouskila and our President Neil Sheff, the SEC not only provides education and cultural involvement for all Jews, but preserves the history of the Sephardic community of the Old City of Jerusalem with our Center, which includes a Beit Midrash and hotel in the heart of the Jewish Quarter where a vibrant Sephardic community once existed. The SEC is bringing this heritage and community back, returning to the Judaism of old, which has been lost with the rise of division, denominationalism, and extremism.

With classes, Rabbinical seminars, Selihot concerts, and a truly warm and inviting community, the SEC has become my spiritual home and guide. It has given me a new lens through which to approach Jewish identity, my faith in God, and my connection to Eretz Yisrael. I am happy this year to have joined the SEC board and continue my family’s involvement in the Sephardic community. God willing, our community will only continue to grow and prosper. I am proud to help spread the word for such an inspiring non-profit and wonderful organization which in my opinion is the future of Judaism.

SEC PUBLICATIONS

HAMERKAZ 1998

BY FREDA NESSIM, FROM THE ARCHIVES

ON A BENCH SOMEWHERE IN THE JEWISH QUARTER On my last visit to Israel, I found a bench by a shady tree around the corner from the SEC buildings in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.

I sat there watching the world go by. People from all countries and religions, each with their own special reasons or curiosity about Israel. I have been coming to the SEC programs for the last 18 years. I was a young woman then and have watched the programs grow from small groups to thousands of young people attending our Israel and local SEC programs in different cities and countries. I remember traveling with the groups all over Israel, attending wonderful classes and seminars, and on one occasion sleeping in the Sinai Desert under the stars before Israel gave the land to Egypt. On that trip, one of the young participants said: “These are the same stars our ancestors saw so long ago.” I think of that now, all these years later.

Even though being part of the beginnings of the SEC has been hard, difficult, so much work, with our time and emotions, frustrations, etc., I now feel so very blessed to have met so many incredible young

people from all over the world and have learned so much from inspiring Rabbis and educators. Many of these young adults come here not knowing much about their heritage and they leave with a sense of belonging, having learned about their history and discovered a love for Judaism. Some of these young people are now young men and women who are our future, who will be our leaders and part of our continued heritage. Although Joe founded the SEC, it is by no means his institution, his buildings, his programs. He just knew there had to be one international Sephardic center in the Jewish world.

And why not? We want to spread our Sephardic mentality with our outlook on life and relationship to God. As I have walked through the Old City all these years, I have seen other institutions grow, their buildings renovated with donor names on the buildings shining for everyone to see. I see the SEC buildings which were once home to the Sephardic Chief Rabbis in need of repair to be brought to the prominence we Sephardim deserve. The buildings

have come to life again with so many wonderful young people. The staff has always been welcoming and warm, the programs and Rabbis spiritual and meaningful. But I ask myself why we have to struggle to keep the buildings as beautiful as those around us.

I ask you to help the SEC, help organize it, help run it, put your money into it, be part of it. It is for the Jewish People, for all of us; to honor the memory of our parents and for the benefit of our children and grandchildren. I am grateful to have my faith and love for our People given to me by my parents with our Sephardic tradition. I also want to thank my husband Joe who beside loving and thinking about me, his children and family, has the love for other people’s children and his faith in God and optimism that we Sephardim can and will eventually make it happen.

(Editor’s note: this article was written in 1998 for Hamerkaz and since then Freda’s dream has also come true with the renovation and beautification of our campus which we can all be proud of)

The grandparents shall again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, and the streets of the city shall be crowded with boys and girls playing.

(Zechariah 8:4-5)

BEFORE

SEC CAMPUS THE CROWN JEWEL OF THE OLD CITY

The SEC campus is a beautiful 3-building complex comprised of our Spanish Courtyard Building (housing 15 guest suites, library, synagogue, lounge, beautiful courtyard and the future site of our new Sephardic Heritage Museum); our 4-story central building (with 38 guest rooms, a dining room that seats 300 and 3 conference rooms); and our Rishon Letzion Wing, the historic residence of the Sephardic Chief Rabbi and now converted into family style guest rooms. After a major $1 million+ renovation, the SEC is a jewel in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, just steps from the Western Wall, with the only boutique hotel in the Jewish Quarter. We host weddings, bar/bat mitzva celebrations, family Shabbat gatherings, conferences and of course our SEC signature programs. All the proceeds of our “Sephardic House” hotel go to subsidize our international programs for young adults, teachers, rabbis and leaders. We look forward to welcoming you on your next visit.

AFTER

Here is Dr. Nessim’s original vision (written in the late 1970’s) for what eventually became the SEC. Dr. Nessim dreamed BIG. 40 years later, we are proud to see his vision come alive -- for rabbis, educators and youth. We are thrilled to have opened a serious Sephardic library on our campus, as well as a synagogue for Bar Mitzvahs, weddings and year-round prayer services.

As to the museum, it’s in the works and being built. We have many more achievements ahead.

Thanks, Doc, we commit ourselves to always keeping your dream alive.

SEC THE NEXT GENERATION CHILDREN OF SEC COUPLES & ALUMNI

FROM THE EDITOR NEIL J. SHEFF SEC PRESIDENT

It has been a special privilege to curate this collection highlighting the last 40 years, or should I say the “first” 40 years, of the Sephardic Educational Center.

I have been able to be a part of this history, from the first summer in 1980 when I visited the program in Jerusalem at the urging of Dr. Nessim while starting my year abroad program at Hebrew University, to the many summers I served as counselor/”madrich”, to the founding of the SEC Young Adult Movement throughout the world, meeting life-long friends (and of course my wife Rachel, aka “Sephardic Spice Girl”!) at our Memorial Day Conventions, SEC parties and Classes for the Masses.

The SEC has opened our minds and preserved the unique Sephardic approach to Judaism through some of the most amazing Rabbis and educators in the world, starting with Rabbis Benito Garzon and Moshe Shamah in the early years to the wisdom of Rabbi Daniel Bouskila, our International Director for the past 10 years, and with so many Rabbis and educators who joined the SEC, whether in Israel or the Diaspora, and taught us what it means to be a Sephardic Jew. It is through these 40 years of learning and education that we have educated a generation and brought thousands closer to their heritage, and the centrality of Israel in our lives.

What has been the greatest impact of the SEC these past 40 years? For the hundreds of couples who met, married and started their families through their involvement in the SEC, think of how many thousands of children now comprise the second SEC generation, hearing the stories from their parents and even experiencing the SEC for themselves. Many of them have grown up as friends and attended the Hamsa Trips with Rabbi Bouskila and are now the new champions of our movement. For the young adults that attended our programs and eventually took up leadership positions in their own communities, the SEC has helped to insure a continuity of tradition; for the Rabbis and educators who have attended our programs for Diaspora and Israeli spiritual leaders, we can only imagine how their messages, inspired by the SEC, will spread our philosophy and wisdom to their congregants and students. In so many ways, and in so many places over these past 40 years, SEC has touched countless souls.

I know for myself and my family and so many of our cherished SEC friends everywhere, the impact of our having known and followed the example and inspiration of our founder, Dr. Jose Nessim (z”l), who was like a father to us all, profoundly impacted our lives and gave us the model of such a tireless and generous leader to emulate for the rest of our lives.

Finally, I want to thank the many supporters of the SEC throughout the years who helped bring us to this point. Without your financial contributions, we wouldn’t have made it. You share the blessings of all we have achieved. SEC’s greatest accomplishments are still ahead of us, and we need everyone to join this sacred mission, contributing your time, ideas and resources. As Dr. Nessim would say, “God expects it of us; it is the reason he has entrusted us with all our material blessings”.

PLAN YO UR BAR/BAT MITZVAS, WEDDINGS & SPECIAL EVENTS AT

SEC’S SEPHARDIC HOUSE

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ALL PROCEEDS SUPPORT THE PROGRAMS OF THE SEC Featuring 51 beautiful guest rooms for singles, couples and families with sophisticated dining for parties of up to 300.

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