Bay Area
Repair the World Bay Area mobilizes Jewish young adults to serve, addressing pressing needs in our city through volunteering and Jewish learning, primarily focusing on food justice and housing justice. Our programs include weekly Souper Saucers and Chicken Soupers partnerships, local gardening days, and supporting food distribution and kit packing efforts with mutual aid partners across the Bay Area.
Volunteers from Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco sort donations at Jewish Family and Children’s Services’ food pantry.
A Service Corps Member cares for plants at Urban Adamah’s West Berkeley urban farm.
Volunteers paint tiny houses at Youth Spirit Artworks’ Empowerment Village for unhoused youth.
A volunteer chops donated potatoes at Foodz Mutual Aid in Oakland.
Upcoming Opportunities
Ongoing
Wednesday Night Souper Saucers: Soup and Applesauce-Making
Bay Area
Register HereJun 17
The Lunch Club with JCCSF: June Lunch Bag Making
Bay Area
Jun 22
Pride Family Festival with JCCSF
Bay Area
Jul 15
The Lunch Club with JCCSF: July Lunch Bag Making
Bay Area
Service & Learning Opportunities
Make a difference in the Bay Area by joining us to serve through a Jewish lens, and supporting organizations making a difference in our community.
Serve With UsStrengthen your service by engaging in pressing issues through dynamic conversation guides grounded in Jewish values of repairing the world, tikkun olam, and justice, tzedek.
Deepen Your LearningExpand your commitment to service in the Bay Area as a part-time service corps member. Learn alongside peers addressing systemic injustices, and directly serve to meet vital community needs.
Learn More
Our Team
Sarah Cort
she/her
Regional Director
Sarah Cort
she/her
Regional Director
Sarah (she/her) is thrilled to join the team as the Midwest Regional Program Director. Prior to Repair The World, her passion for experiential education and relationship building led to a career as an overnight camp professional. She was the Summer Camps Director at McGaw YMCA Camp Echo for seven years. One highlight of Sarah’s tenure at Camp Echo is her work with families and staff to facilitate and implement the first all-gender cabins. While she spent her summers at camp, she led Taglit-Birthright Israel trips most winters, and was in the first cohort of Birthright Fellows. Prior to her role at Camp Echo, Sarah served as the Director of Education at KAM Isaiah Israel in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, where she ran the Religious and Nursery School programs. To better meet the needs of that community, she created Shoresh, a Shabbat-based experiential program, where children would attend Religious School on Friday afternoons, ending with family Shabbat services. Sarah has a degree in Early Childhood Education from Indiana University and volunteered for a year in Israel as an OTZMA Fellow, part of the Masa Israel Journey. Sarah is also on the board for Camp For All Kids, which facilitates racial diversity at overnight summer camps in the Midwest. Sarah is a St. Louis native and proud Cardinal’s baseball fan. She has been living in Chicago since 2012.
Lauren Halperin
she/her
City Director, Bay Area
Lauren Halperin
she/her
City Director, Bay Area
Lauren has a strong background in community organizing through her time with the Sunrise Movement, Urban Adamah, Moishe House, and Repair the World. She’s passionate about creating programs that help people connect deeply with their neighbors, their spirituality, and themselves. Her experience with Jewish education, urban farming, and mutual aid has shaped her commitment to making a real impact through collaborative service opportunities.
Celena Ritchey
she/her
Senior Program Associate, Bay Area
Celena Ritchey
she/her
Senior Program Associate, Bay Area
Celena Ritchey is a midwesterner at heart and excited to continue her west coast adventures while joining Repair the World in the Bay Area. In 2018 she earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Policy from The Ohio State University (Go Bucks). Her experiences at Ohio State prompted her to do a summer of service with AmeriCorps VISTA following graduation, which then inspired her to serve with Repair the World in their Detroit community as a Fellow in 2018-19. Since completing the Fellowship program, she has worked in the non-profit field in both Program Management and Volunteer Coordination roles. Celena is presently a board member for Women’s Environmental Network (WEN), and enjoys volunteering in local community gardens. If you ever need to find Celena, she recommends you check the thrift stores down Haight Ashbury or hop over to her SF house Instagram page to see where she’s walking.
Simcha Schwartz
he/him
Regional Development Director
Simcha Schwartz
he/him
Regional Development Director
Simcha (he/him) is the Regional Director for Repair the World. He is a passionate Jewish leader with over 20 years of experience in education, community building and executive non profit leadership. He co-founded and directed the Jewish Farm School, directed programs for Hazon Inc, American Jewish World Service, Teva Learning Center, and Eden Village Camp. Simcha is an ordained Chaplain by The Chaplaincy Institute, worked as a Chaplain and Director & Founder of Camp Heart for Vitas Healthcare. He was the Director of Development for Wilderness Torah and most recently, before joining Repair the World, was the Interim Executive Director for Struggle to Save Ethiopian Jewry. Simcha, originally from Chicago, lives 50 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge with his wife and son.
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Live out your Jewish values and serve with our partners tackling pressing needs in one of our communities while supporting social change through in-person and virtual opportunities.
