Source: Religion News Service
Two dozen guests watched, almost all young adults—some Jewish, some not. The Friday night mood was relaxed, the dress way informal: shorts welcome; shoes optional.
Gill Benedek, 24, a resident of the house, and thus one of the hosts for the evening, led those who knew the Hebrew prayer in a slightly rusty version of the kiddush, another Sabbath welcoming ritual. About half the group chanted with him; the rest watched quietly.
Most, but not all, were young newcomers to New Orleans. They were twenty-somethings like Benedek. Like him, many had gotten a taste of the city on early, post-Katrina relief trips and decided to come back after college and invest a few years of serious help. They were planners, nonprofit workers, law students and teachers.
And where they gathered this recent Friday night was a place called Moishe House, a rambling rented house in this city’s Broadmoor neighborhood with an inviting porch overlooking the street, a pool table in the den and a resident dog named Josie.
Over the past year Benedek and two roommates, Jon Graboyes and Jeff Prussack—joined for the summer by Esther Sadoff—have gradually sought to make Moishe House a social and professional nexus for young Jewish adults who have moved to New Orleans to help the city’s recovery. In doing so, they’ve created a low-key, no-pressure zone where visitors can explore their Jewishness at their own pace.