Are you Jewish, single and 21 and older? Have we got an event for you!
David Yarus
Heart 2 Heart AZ is working in partnership with local and national organizations and communities to bring together Jewish singles (21+), representing all observance levels from across the country, for a weekend full of love, connection and discovery, in honor of Tu B’Av.
Tu B’Av, the 15th Day of Av on the Hebrew calendar, is an ancient holiday that has been modernized as the Jewish day of love similar to Valentine’s Day in the United States. It originally served as a matchmaking day for unmarried women and was celebrated by women dressing in white and dancing.
Tu B’Av Heart 2 Heart 2019: A Celebration of Love, Connection and Discovery, will be held Aug. 15 through 18 at the Hilton Scottsdale Resort & Villas at 6333 N. Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale, Arizona. All observance levels are welcome, and kashrut will be observed.
Rabbi Sam Intrator
The weekend will consist of social events and learning sessions with various topic discussions led by renowned local and national speakers, including David Yarus, founder of JSwipe; Michele Czopp owner of The Mitzvah Matchmaker; Rachel Freidus a marriage and family therapist and Rabbi Pinchas Allouche, Rabbi Bonnie Koppell and Rabbi Sam Intrator.
The goals for the weekend are for “singles to meet and connect in deeper ways to each other and to create relationships that G-d willing, will lead to matches,” said Rabbi Intrator, the Rabbi at Kavanah Life at Ocean Pavilion in Miami Beach who also began the Kavanah Life Singles program in August 2017. “The challenges I see now are greater than they were 20 years ago, let’s talk solutions.”
Michele Czopp
David Yarus will kick off the event Thursday night with a presentation entitled, “Jewish Dating in an Online World: From JDate to JSwipe.” Rabbi Intrator will give a Tu B’Av introduction.
Yarus is scheduled to have a second talk Friday morning called, “The Future of Dating: Online vs. Offline and the Challenges Facing the Jewish Community.”
The morning session will end with a lecture by Michele Czopp entitled “Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Make Me a Match.”
Bill Cartiff, tour leader with Best-Day Adventures/Ayelet Tours, will begin the discussions Friday afternoon with, “Why Bad Dates Happen to Good Jewish Singles.”
Rachel Freidus, a Licensed Associate Marriage and Family Therapist, with Therapy with Heart, will give a talk on, “He Said/She Said: Communication in Relationships.”
Rabbi Pinchas Allouche
Finishing up discussions on Friday afternoon, Rabbi Pinchas G. Allouche, founding Rabbi of Congregation Beth Tefillah in Scottsdale will speak on “Finding Love at Any Age.”
That evening, there will be yoga with Mariel Wilk, traditional and egalitarian Shabbat services and Shabbat dinner with pre-determined seating.
On Saturday morning, there will be both a traditional and an egalitarian service, as well as a yoga session with Wilk.
Rabbi Intrator will lead and facilitate a panel discussion on Saturday afternoon called, “Challenges and Solutions to Being Jewish and Single Today,” of singles making presentations followed by an open mic of questions and comments from the audience. The Rabbi says, “This kind of a program is an excellent icebreaker, and it also allows singles to get to know each other in a more profound way.”
Saturday night will conclude with a Havdalah service and cocktail hour, as well as two social events determined by age. The conference will conclude on Sunday morning. The schedule is subject to change.
The cost for the entire weekend, including meals, sessions and socials (hotel not included), is $150. The room rate is $89 per night for single and double occupancy, not including the daily resort fee and taxes. The early bird discount ends on July 15. Purchase of single day passes and tickets to individual events is also available.
For more information, or to register, visit heart2heartaz.com or email info@heart2heartaz.com.
