Meet the B’naiture Mentors!
Zelig Golden
Zelig is honored to direct B’naiture in collaboration with an all-star crew of mentors. A community Maggid, youth mentor, vision quest guide, and environmental educator, Zelig is thrilled to offer B’naiture, which honors the teen rite of passage for the Jewish community. Prior to founding Wilderness Torah, Zelig taught middle school environmental science and photography and loves working with this age group. Go here for his full bio.
Rachel Harris
Rachel is an East Bay native and was inspired by Camp Tawonga and Midrasha communities to help youth learn about themselves and the world in the context of nature. She has taught kids and adults in the outdoors for over 10 years in gardens, camps, and the wilderness and is a certified Wilderness First Responder. Rachel is an avid birder, baker, basket-weaver, and loves spending time by rivers and lakes. She is the garden educator at John Muir Elementary School where she also leads the girls outdoors and camping club, empowering upper elementary girls to have fun while getting close to nature on their school campus. Rachel was instrumental in launching and implementing the 2-year pilot program of B’naiture.
Rachel Ruch
Rachel is dedicated to community and revitalizing modern culture by awakening our earth-based roots. Holding a strong vision of honoring and protecting not only the natural world, but our children and elders, she has trained in wilderness survival and awareness, traditional mentoring techniques, community building, rites of passage, women’s wisdom, and the ceremonial arts for the last ten years. She has worked with the Regenerative Design Institute, Rites of Passage, and Women’s Red Tent. After running her own nature awareness programs in Sonoma County for three years, Rachel spent in-depth wilderness solo time in Northern Idaho, coming back to the area in 2010 to be in service to her community. She is currently deeply imbedded in the process of interweaving her Hebrew lineages with her love and knowledge of the land to create meaningful rites of passage for youth and young women.
Baruch Brian Schwadron
Baruch is a passionate educator and healer. At age 19 he founded All Humanity, an international community building and service-learning organization working with youth and disadvantaged communities. After building a career in international education, he moved to more local methods. Raised in small town Missouri, outdoor and wilderness education was a natural next step. He has worked in Jewish environmental education for years through projects such as the Teva Learning Center, the Topsy-Turvy Climate Change Bus Tour, and Kroka Expeditions – a 600 mile journey across Vermont by ski and canoe with 12 high school students. Baruch is the Head Chef of PassionFoods, a vibrant catering and food education company in California’s East Bay. He holds extensive training in herbal medicine and loves sharing that knowledge to build strong empowered youth.
Sarai Shapiro
Wilderness Torah’s festivals coordinator, Sarai is dedicated to creating culture that connects people, the earth, and spirit. Her passion in fostering earth connection in children of all ages has led her to learn and work in the world of both Jewish, and non-Jewish Nature-based education for over 6 years. Sarai has co-created nature-based girls programs with Wild Earth and the Vermont Wilderness School, created a Girl’s Rosh Chodesh Group, and directed the Coming-of-Age B’nai Mitzvah and Behira Teen Programs at the Aleph Kallah since 2007. Her passions include spending time outdoors, playing music, making art, and dancing. She is passionate about creating ways for girls to feel comfortable in nature, in their bodies, and in their journeys towards womanhood. Go here for her full bio.
Casey Baruch Yurow
Casey Baruch Yurow is currently the director of education and community outreach at Urban Adamah in Berkeley. Casey has worked as a mentor in the blossoming field of Jewish environmental education for the last six years with a variety of amazing organizations including the Teva Learning Center, the Jewish Farm School, Eden Village Camp, the Kayam Farm, and the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel. He is deeply grateful to have had so many jobs that are fun, fulfilling, and helping to create positive change in the world. Two of his many goals for the coming year are to find more opportunities to wander in the forest while living in the city, and to learn how to sail.
