If he felt out of place, Eli Raber thought, there must be others like him.

But how to connect?

Raber, 25, started thinking about that two years ago, shortly after he moved to San Francisco. He had looked forward to getting involved in the Jewish community but couldn't find exactly what he wanted. Neither could his friend Rachel Levine, 25, with whom he studied abroad in Israel, and who also lived in San Francisco.

"I wanted something that people could feel they belonged to," he said.

Each time they attended an event intended for their demographic — usually a social or bar night — they grew frustrated because the evening "lacked the activities that allowed you to actually meet and engage with people," Raber said.

He decided to start something on his own, but he didn't have a budget or a synagogue. So he got online.

The popular social networking site MySpace.com served as both megaphone and publicity. So, in the year since its inception, nearly 500 young Jewish adults have signed up to be "friends" with Raber's brainchild, Bay Area Tribe.

Several dozen regularly attend the group's monthly programs, which have ranged from a kickball game to an Israeli-themed potluck to volunteering at a park or food bank.

The response on MySpace "proved to us that it wasn't just us feeling our needs were not being met," Raber said.

Bay Area Tribe reflects the young adult shift toward a do-it-yourself Jewish community and away from Jewish institutions And though Mission Minyan and Moishe House reach out to a similar demogrphic group, unlike the Minyan, the Tribe is not religious, and unlike Moishe House, the Tribe didn't get started with funding from a major foundation. Birthright Israel began to support the organization once it took off.

Levine said many Tribe events hinge on Jewish ideals of avodah (community service) and tikkun olam (repairing the world), and mix in social events that make conversation easy, like a nature hike or drum circle.

"We want to make it clear to members that they don't have to be religious to take part," Levine said. "It can be intimidating to go to an established group because it may be unfamiliar to you."

It's so grassroots that a link on their Web site says, "Plan an Event." Levine and Raber want to maintain the democratic vibe of the Tribe by allowing anyone with a good idea to make their mark on the group.

The Tribe recently partnered with Birthright Israel to increase their credibility and outreach efforts. (There are 3,000 Birthright alumni in the Bay Area, all of whom fall into the 18 to 35 demographic the Tribe is trying to reach).

Raber said an exclusively Bay Area Tribe Birthright trip is in the works for this summer.

Shelya Aucar, 26, heard about Bay Area Tribe via email last year. The Evite indicated a new Jewish group would be volunteering at the food bank — something she loves — and so she decided to go by herself. She was nervous; she just hoped she'd be welcome.

"I thought, well, this is different from the usual events the Jewish community has," she said. "So I went, and I loved it."

She now helps with new-member outreach, something she offered to do because of her hands-on nature, she said.

"It's like a small, growing family," she said.

The group has one official event each month and several informal activities they might co-sponsor with another organization, or simply announce to their MySpace members to help out other organizations.

All of the Tribe's events are either free or inexpensive, so that everyone who wants to participate is able to. All events also contain an interactive component that fosters conversation and aids social anxiety.

"When people show up alone," Raber said, "I know this is working."




Where to find the Tribe

What: Bay Area Tribe, grassroots Jewish group

Who: Bay Area Jews, ages 18-35

Where: Various locations in the Bay Area

When: Once a month

More info: www.bayareatribe.com or www.myspace.com/bayareatribe

Next event: Operation Care and Comfort, 12 p.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 21. Will assemble care packages for U.S. troops abroad. Meet at 12 p.m. to board shuttle bus in the parking lot of Safeway at Church and Market streets, S.F., or 1 p.m. at 1504 Minnesota Ave., San Jose.