Meet the Mentor: Yaki Margulies

Amazing mentors are the lifeblood of Hebrew Helpers. Frankly, they are the heart and soul of everything we do. Hebrew Helpers mentors learn with students by not only preparing them for their individual service, but also giving them, what we hope are, Jewish life skills. Mentors often officiate services and guide families in creating a service that feels truly personal and best encapsulates the process. Perhaps you are only familiar with the mentor with whom you have worked most closely. We would like you to at least have an introduction to all who make Hebrew Helpers the fantastic experience it is! It is our pleasure to present…
Yaki Margulies, in our ongoing series Meet The Mentor.

When I sat down to talk with Yaki, one of Hebrew Helpers wonderful mentors, it was easy to see how much he loves what he does; the warmth seems to emanate from him as he discusses his work.

Q: Are you originally from LA?

A: No, he smiles broadly as he points to his Seahawks T-shirt. I grew up in Seattle, which is probably the most beautiful place on earth. I moved here five and a half years ago to act and write.

Q: So, are you currently acting?

A: I’m probably doing more writing than acting these days, but I am still interested in both. I host an improv show every third Friday of the month on the Inner Sanctum Stage at the Upright Citizens Brigade. And, I just had another short story published; that makes 7 now! I have a blog as well, so I keep pretty busy outside of mentoring students.

Q: How did you get connected with Hebrew Helpers or even know you wanted to be a mentor?

A: I loved the process of becoming a Bar Mitzvah myself. At my synagogue in Seattle, Beth Shalom, we had this great program where a large portion of the services were congregant-led, so I was able to participate and lead services beyond my Bar Mitzvah. Then, I joined this program where you train for a year to tutor kids. By 15 years old, I was already tutoring students in preparing for their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. When I moved to LA, I had been tutoring Bar/Bat Mitzvah students for about 5 years.

Q: In moving to LA, it seems like a natural progression that you continued mentoring students, but how did you connect with Hebrew Helpers?

A: Our family friend is Rabbi Light from Seattle, (he now lives in Irvine and is the head of a Jewish Day School) and his brother is married to Rabbi Brous at Ikar. The Lights grew up with Todd Shotz (Hebrew Helpers founder) in Philadelphia. And when I was moving down here to LA, a match was made!

Q: How many Hebrew Helpers students do you see each week?

A: Again, the smile comes quickly across his face, as he says sheepishly, “14. I started with 2.”

Q: Wow! 14 students each week – what do you think keeps you going?

A: I think it’s all about making it fun for my students, and then it ends up being fun for me too. I love bringing the Torah to them by means of storytelling, but also encouraging questioning. I love how in Judaism it is a part of our culture to question.

Q: What do you think is the best part of being a mentor?

A: I really enjoy working with kids, but it’s definitely building both the connection with these kids and their families. Then, after having created such a special connection, I get to officiate this milestone in their lives. It’s incredibly fulfilling.

Q: Hebrew Helpers has been known to have some unique or unusual settings for Bar/Bat Mitzvah services. Is there one that stands out in your mind?

A: Definitely the Bar Mitzvah with the Mutchnik family; we went to St. Thomas and the Bar Mitzvah service itself was held in the oldest synagogue in the western hemisphere. It’s actually a synagogue in the round, which is so cool, with sand as the floor. It was also amazing to see how many of their family and friends came to St. Thomas to be there as Andrew became a Bar Mitzvah.

Q: St. Thomas is such a beautiful place and that synagogue sounds really unusual. Have you assisted with any other destination Bar/Bat Mitzvahs?

A: I went to Israel with the Roberts family last fall. There is nothing like a Bar/Bat Mitzvah service in Israel. I love all of the history and significance behind it — the architecture and connection to ancient times. You really get the sense that you are participating in something so much greater. I think the Bar/Bat Mitzvah feels it and so does the family.

Q: Do you currently have any students that you are mentoring whose service will be held in Israel?

A: There’s the smile again, Yes, he says enthusiastically, I have 6 students this month — 5 boys and 1 girl who will travel to Israel for the big day. I have an extra special connection to Israel. I lived there for two years when I was in kindergarten. My father, a community college instructor, took a sabbatical year and during that time our family lived in Israel. Then, when I was in 7th grade, my mother got accepted at Hebrew University in a program for American Jewish Educators. So off to Israel, we went again.

It is now my turn to smile. It is not surprising that Yaki comes from two parents who are educators, and his mom is in Jewish education. It seems that the age-old expression the apple does not fall far from the tree is certainly applicable here.