When Chabad Rabbi Yehuda Ferris and his wife, Miriam, first came to Berkeley 24 years ago, they would prepare Shabbat dinners in their apartment on Waring Street. Miriam would cook so much, her overstuffed guests would often slide off their chairs and onto the floors.
Today, Chabad of Berkeley is a bustling center of Judaism in the East Bay, and the rabbi a revered figure. So much so, his friends and admirers are throwing him a 50th birthday party April 2 to honor his years of service to the community.
Among his proudest achievements: the new kosher food service available to U.C. Berkeley students and the Chabad-run summer camp Gan Israel.
But ask his wife, and she will say the hallmark of the rabbi’s service is his hands-on approach. “He will drop anything to help a fellow Jew or any human being for that matter,” she says.
With 10 kids ranging in age from under 2 to 24, family has played a huge role in Ferris’ life. But he has also managed to spread Yiddishkeit and Jewish devotion in the East Bay’s bastion of diversity.
“I love being non-traditional traditional,” he laughs. “I always say, if you don’t like religion, come to Chabad.”
The dinner for Chabad of Berkeley honoring Rabbi Yehuda Ferris will take place 5:30 p.m. Sunday, April 2 at the ASUC Building, Pauley Ballroom, U.C. Berkeley campus, 2465 Bancroft Way. Tickets: $125. Information: (510) 540-5824.