The forecast had initially called for cold and fog, but for “Israel in the Gardens” in San Francisco on Sunday, June 5, the weather was positively Negev — hot, sunny, bright and Jewish.
Jews of all shapes, sizes, ages and languages filled the lawns and walkways of Yerba Buena Gardens to enjoy a day of music, merriment and booth-browsing. According to the San Francisco Police Department, about 12,000 people attended the event — the Bay Area’s way of saying happy 57th birthday to Israel.
Early in the day, before the lawn filled to Woodstock proportions, there was a mild country fair vibe to the event.
Mimi Greisman, an early childhood educator at Congregation Sherith Israel in San Francisco, serenaded a group of toddlers with a hearty “Shalom” song. Dan Glasser, Hadassah’s outreach director for associate membership, was on the prowl seeking men willing to join the renowned women’s organization. “There’s been a lot of takers,” he said.
Over at the Camp Tawonga booth, staffer Riley Share was giving away hundreds of T-shirts. Her goal, she said, was to “clothe all of ‘Israel in the Gardens.'”
On the upper level of the site, a Jerusalem marketplace was up and running with vendors selling everything from Hebrew-language children’s books to handmade mezuzot. Though the shuk’s granite slab wasn’t as decorative as Jerusalem stone, the ever-growing crowd seemed enamored of the wares.
Back on the grass, Henry Schreibman, head of Brandeis Hillel Day School, was selling imported Israeli flowers to raise funds for the Jewish state. “They’re for people who love each other or think they love each other,” he said.
By midday, the crowds had swelled. As happens every year, a flock of white doves was released, the birds dipping and wheeling over the throng. Russian-born Israeli opera singer Yevgeni Shapovalov moved the crowd with his rendition of “Hatikva” (though he raised more than a few eyebrows later when he sang Schubert’s “Ave Maria” as well).
The much-anticipated Israeli fashion show was a clear crowd favorite, as scores of local teens and Jewish community leaders alike modeled clothes by Israeli designers. Several of the neophyte models threw the audience a sheepish “nu?” look as they worked the runway.
From the shade of his Jewish Community Relations Council booth, Rabbi Doug Kahn looked out on the crowds. “I don’t remember seeing so many people,” he said. “It’s a great show of Jewish solidarity, with representation from every segment of the community.”
As the sun climbed in the sky, so did the festive mood. One person had stuck a little Israeli flag in the collar of a pet poodle. Clowns on stilts enthralled the children. Chabad volunteers wrapped tefillin on as many Jewish men as they could.
Across the street, a small pro-Palestinian protest set up shop, waving anti-Israel signs and shouting slogans barely audible in the gardens. Dan Kliman of San Francisco Voice for Israel stood opposite the protesters to help make sure people stayed calm. “Our goal is to keep them across the street so people will have easy entry,” he said. “We prevented them from hassling people on the way in.”
When popular Israeli rock band Mashina took the stage, it was tippy-toe room-only at the gardens. The band played a high-energy set that got the overflow crowd up and hopping. When lead singer Yuval Banai asked the crowd in Hebrew, “B’seder?” (meaning “y’all doin’ all right?”), he got back a roar of “Ken!” (“Yeah!”).
By late afternoon, most of the food vendors had run out of goodies. One was down to selling hot dog buns for a buck apiece.
But there was no shortage of enthusiasm for the event — including the swinging after party held at the Sound Factory..
Said Inna Trayger, a teen member of the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization in Walnut Creek, “It’s so nice to feel a sense of Jewish community.”
Amit Ben-Yehoshua, an Israeli living in Visalia, said he was “surprised by how many people came here wanting to celebrate Israel’s independence. It was also nice to hear so much Hebrew.”
Ariana Estoque, running the Congregation Emanu-El booth, was equally pleased. “The whole Jewish community needs to come together to support Israel,” she said.