Alisa Meireis and Sadie Waldberg, members of Congregation Beth Shalom, shared their histories with Congregation Beth Shalom members at a Café Ohev program held on Oct. 20.
The discussion topic was “We Are Not All Ashkenazi.” Both women are African American and had different stories about their upbringings and traditions.
Meireis shared stories from her paternal side, where traditions like lighting candles on Friday night and not working on Saturday were passed on. Later, as a young adult, she came to understand the connection to the Jewish people and did a DNA search, which confirmed her assumptions about her Jewish roots.
Waldberg grew up in a Black synagogue in Queens, New York, which followed Orthodox/Conservative traditions. The synagogue was the center of her family life and nurtured her strong identity as a Jew. She also did a DNA search and found connections to parts of Africa where Israelites had migrated.
The Café Ohev program began with breakfast in the newly constructed sukkah dedicated to Congregation Ohev Sholom and was followed by the talk in the Ohev Memorabilia Room.
This discussion was an event of Café Ohev, a breakfast and speaker program that originated at Congregation Ohev Sholom and has been part of Congregation Beth Shalom’s programming since the two congregations consolidated in 2021. Community members who know of a local speaker on a topic of broad interest that they would like to hear present at a Café Ohev program can contact Chair Audrey Asher through the Beth Shalom office.
