Single? Over 40? Board of Rabbis launches new group for you

If you’re old enough to have a record collection with actual records, bought a ticket to “Star Wars” the first time around or were bar mitzvahed in an eggshell-blue suit — that was actually in style — this could be the news article that changes your life.

Oh, you also have to be single. And want to do something about that.

In the upcoming weeks, the newly formed Jewish Singles Over 40 group plans on getting to work on getting new relationships to work.

The group’s director, Barbra Drizin, states up front that she’s a big fan of other Bay Area Jewish singles groups, such as the Jewish Hiking Club. But while some people may not choose to hike, growing older is mandatory.

“With people in this age group, usually their children are older and ready to go. And they’re looking for community,” said Drizin, whose group was established by the Board of Rabbis of Northern California with a $40,000 yearly grant from the Jewish Community Endowment Fund.

“They’re looking for more than dating.”

Before the end of the month, Drizin hopes to get the group’s Web page, www.sfjewishsinglesover40.org, up and running. While it’s just a place-saver page now, she hopes it will soon be transformed into a database of single and searching Jews and a virtual community.

While that’s a lofty goal, simply getting Jews together for a night on the town is far more tangible — and on Sunday, April 30, it’ll be a reality. The singles’ group’s kickoff event will be a comedy set from Mo Mandel and mixer at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. And, since group travel polled highly in the group’s research, Drizin has already set up a Los Angeles-to-Baja California cruise from Sept. 15 to 18.

At this point, many of you are probably wondering, what is the Board of Rabbis doing getting into the dating game? The answer is that many rabbis can do a better job at this than just one.

“A lot of the rabbis at various synagogues have their own singles groups, and they fizzle out very quickly because people are meeting the same people over and over again,” said Vivian Salama, the Board of Rabbis’ executive assistant. Salama, along with Rabbi H. David Teitelbaum, the board’s former executive director, hatched the idea for the singles group and wrote out the grant proposal.

“There’s a great need for people over 40, and no one seemed to be addressing it,” she said. “Everyone seems to be addressing younger people and singles groups.” 

Drizin, like former late-night advertising quasi-celebrity Sy Sperling of the Hair Club For Men, is “not just the president, but also a client,” being a Jewish single over 40 herself.

“We need a place to go when we don’t have things to do on our own,” she says of the group.

“We’re looking to provide people with a meaningful and inviting opportunity.”

Anyone interested in the events can contact Drizin at (415) 200-9887 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).