Michelle (she/her) was born and raised in the great state of New Jersey. After graduating from Claremont McKenna College with a degree in philosophy and public affairs, she moved to San Francisco in 2019 by way of Washington DC and Seattle. At work, Michelle manages customer onboardings for a tech company. In her free time, she can mostly be found on one of her many bikes or attempting an elaborate baking project. 

Michelle realized upon moving to San Francisco that while she had close-knit friendships, she didn’t have the Jewish community she desired. Attending Late Shabbats and participating in Emanu-El’s Do Good, Feel Good tikkun olam series, Michelle found the connection she was looking for. Her goal in YALC is to continue to build her Jewish  community here and help create similar opportunities for others.

Vince (he/him) grew up in a small town in West Sonoma County. He was an Environmental Studies major at UC Santa Cruz (go Banana Slugs!). After several years of pursuing personal passions in the solar and fitness industries, he settled down in San Francisco and joined the tech sales world.

He was raised in a secular household but, like so many other young Jews, his Birthright trip ignited a passion for Judaism, Israel, and Jewish culture that would mark the beginning of his Jewish journey. Several years later, he attended his first Late Shabbat at Temple Emanu-El and fell in love with this community so much that he hasn’t missed a single one in over a year! His goal with YALC is to give back to the Bay Area Jewish community that has been such a positive impact on his life and provide others the same opportunity it gave him to explore and strengthen his Jewish identity.

When he’s not engaging in the Emanu-El community, you can find Vince working out, playing sports, traveling, spending time outdoors, and enjoying time with friends and family. 

Julia (she/her) is a professional fun-raiser.  At Repair the World, a Jewish service movement, she connects young adults to Judaism through service and learning as the West Development Director.  Julia is passionate about young adults having a seat at the table, and is a board member of Jewish Silicon Valley and the Silicon Valley JCRC. 

While a founding resident of Moishe House Silicon Valley, Julia hosted 200+ in-person and 200+ virtual events.  After a year recovering, Julia’s excited to get back to programming with the YALC team.  Julia spends her free time in a white-water raft or kayak, exploring the California wild.  You can find Julia talking about her Jersey roots and performing improvisational comedy every other Friday at Endgames in the Mission!  Julia is originally from New Jersey and grew up in Saratoga, Ca.  She received her BA in Political Science and Psychology from Rutgers University. 

Brandon Kaufman (he/him) was born in Irvine, CA and moved to San Francisco in the Fall of 2021. Brandon graduated in 2021 from the University of Southern California where he received a B.A. in Public Relations with a minor in Communication Design. 

Brandon has been an active member in the Jewish community wherever he lives, most recently being one of the USC Hillel 2019-2020 co-presidents. Being in the Jewish community to Brandon is about connecting like-minded people with similar values together in a fun space. He especially loves to host events and connect people to new friends as well as make his own new friends!

Outside of the Jewish community, Brandon is listening to an audiobook or watching TV and he loves to explore the various pizza places that SF has to offer as well as attempting to get better at golf. Brandon currently works at Deloitte Digital as an Associate Account Executive.

Chairperson

Claire (she/her) spent most of her life in Southern California, growing up in LA and attending college and graduate school in San Diego. After graduating, Claire moved to the Bay in July 2018 and hasn’t looked back! 

Claire was brought to Late Shabbat by a close friend in January 2019, and instantly knew that she had found the Jewish home in the Bay Area she had been seeking. She is thrilled to serve as YALC’s Chairperson and have the opportunity to continue to build an engaging, inviting, and sustainable community for her fellow Bay Areas 20s and 30s. 

Outside of YALC, Claire works as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker at two SFUSD high schools, lifts weights, and tries to laugh as much as humanly possible. 

Natalie (she/her) was born and raised in Northern California. Originally from Sacramento, Natalie moved to the great state of Michigan for college, where she graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Political Science, and a minor in Judaic Studies. At school, Natalie was involved with Michigan Hillel, where she worked as the Major Events Officer as well as her sorority, Delta Phi Epsilon.

For work, Natalie works in Crisis Communications, where she works helping others overcome challenges and issues. In her free time, Natalie can be found reading a new book, watching Netflix with her roommates, or baking in her tiny San Francisco kitchen.

While Cara (she/her) was raised in New Jersey. she always had a sense for adventure and knew she wanted to travel the world.  With her passion for international service, after graduating from Hobart and William Smith colleges in 2011, she made plans to travel abroad. In addition to being a Peace Corps and AmeriCorps alum, she has lived and worked in seven countries where she facilitated and oversaw community development and outreach. On returning to the United States she moved to Portland, Oregon where she received a masters in International Development and Service from Concordia University. Having fallen in love with the West coast, upon graduation she moved to the Bay area in 2016. Throughout her time abroad she always was able to find a Jewish community to welcome her in, so when she moved to San Francisco she knew she wanted to help facilitate and strengthen the community here. As soon as she attended her first Late Shabbat at Congregation Emanu-El she was inspired by the friendliness and compassion of everyone she met and knew she had found something she wanted to be a part of. She is so excited to be on YALC and looks forward to meeting you out in the community!