A project of Zioness, the Zahav Fellowship is an intimate cohort experience for Black Jewish Zionists to build community and help mitigate the compounding impacts of antisemitism, racism, and all forms of hate, while celebrating Jewish self-determination and democracy in the Jewish people’s ancestral homeland, the Land of Israel. We’re working to create a powerful space for current and emerging thought leaders who hold intersecting Black and Jewish identities––as a growing number of proud Jewish Americans do––and whose Zionism is inextricable.
Fellows will engage with:
- A growing network of Black Jewish Zionists
- Dynamic speakers and panel discussions
- Empowered, participant-informed programming and structure
- A space to share and learn from each other’s lived experiences for mutual empowerment
- Regular updates about advocacy/organizing/other community engagement work happening across our Zioness ecosystem to encourage further engagement
- The complexity of the intersection of our identities, our politics and the communities we inhabit
The project will:
- Increase knowledge and understanding of Zionism, Jewish identity, Jewish diversity, and of combating antisemitism, racism, and other forms of hate.
- Center Black Jewish Voices to ensure authentic and diverse narratives on Zionism are represented in Jewish life and broader society
- Increase comfort and literacy to engage in courageous conversations at the intersection of identity, race, gender, Zionism and democracy
Click here to view Cohort 1 and see Cohort 2 Bios below.
Ilana Ybgi
Ilana Ybgi is a wife, a mother and a bonus mother. She lives in Crown Heights with her growing family and is an active member of the Chabad-Lubavitch community. She is a member of the Crown Heights Women’s Circle and a past facilitator of Repair the World’s Crown Heights Leadership Cohort. She strives to be a better neighbor everyday. Ybgi is a life coach and a doula. She views these two roles as inherent to her service to the community. She is very passionate about birth justice and improving birthing conditions for all.
In addition she sits on the UJA Brooklyn Advisory Council and on JFNA’s MOED Leadership Board. Ybgi holds an MFA from the Actors Studio Drama School and is a former member of Co-op Theatre East’s Ensemble. The deconstruction of social constructs is a common theme explored in her devised theatre work and she is forever curious about the use of her art as a cathartic mode of healing. Most recently she completed a Philanthropy Fellowship at the Jews of Color Initiative. She is excited about the future of the Jewish community and making a global positive impact.
Eliana Ross
Growing up as a black Jewish woman, Eliana Ross, consistently found herself experiencing more antisemitism than racism in her daily life. These personal experiences coupled with her career ambitions led her to studying Political Science and Government at James Madison University where she graduated with her Bachelor’s degree and Paralegal Certification this spring all while working full time, a milestone in her journey to explore the connection between her identity, global politics, and the holy land of Israel. A particularly formative study abroad experience in Israel and Palestine during the summer of 2022 launched her passion for creating Zionist education content, arming her with the knowledge and confidence to share her voice across social media. When she isn’t assisting a criminal defense attorney at her paralegal position for The Nielsen Group, Eliana can be found on a walk with her two Dobermans, trying new healthy recipes, or spending time with her friends and family!
T’helah Ben-Dan
T’helah Ben-Dan is the founder of The Kefar, which promotes and provides Hebrew language education through virtual classes, digital content creation, and curriculum design services. She also serves as the Deputy Director of TALMA, an Israeli nonprofit that works to strengthen English language proficiency in under-resourced communities throughout the country. In this role, she directs a summer teaching fellowship, manages international recruitment, and fulfills additional communications, operations, and development responsibilities. T’helah is thankful that both TALMA and The Kefar enable her to do meaningful work that combines her passions for education, language learning, and Israel.
T’helah has several years of teaching and coaching experience in both the US and Israel, and holds an MA in Teaching Hebrew as a Second Language, an MS in Early Childhood Services, and a BA in African & African-American Studies. Raised in Brooklyn, NY, T’helah currently lives in Charlotte, NC, where she serves on her local Federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council and in the Charlotte Black/Jewish Alliance.
Gabriella Shalva Leah Weintraub
Gabriella Shalva Leah Weintraub (she/her) is an artist, mother, and biracial Chabad Baalas Teshuvah (woman who returns to religious observance). From the years 2011-2014 She attended Florida Atlantic University studying studio art; drawing & painting with a focus in Art Therapy. When voyaging to Israel on Birthright during her freshman year of college her journey with Judaism sparked. Upon returning she then went on to meet the Chabad on campus shluchim and the rest was history.
With ambitions to grow in Torah learning and observance she continued to study for two years at the esteemed seminary for women Machon Chana now know as Machon L’Yahadus in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Some of her passions are, but not limited to, Judaica watercolor painting, abstract acrylics painting, cooking/ baking, holistic healing modalities, learning Chassidus, sharing Torah and connecting with others. The summer of 2019 she went to Israel and that is where she lived for four and a half years. After making Aliyah, she studied at Medreshet B’erot Bat Ayin a school for women’s living and learning on the land. During her time in Israel she often participated in art festivals featuring local artist selling both originals and prints of her artwork. Gabriella has returned to her native state of Florida and is currently working as a preschool teacher with her three year old daughter.
Ilana Bruce
Ilana Bruce (she/her/hers) commonly known by the moniker, “Tikvah,” is a Germany born, Colorado raised, current Arizonan, Black Ashkenazi Jewish, proudly Zionist accomplished songwriter, active community member and activist, and change maker. Tikvah composes, collaborates, records, original music stretching across a multitude of genres that honors all of her backgrounds. Growing up, she was influenced by Jewish SWANA music through her Israeli mother, who taught her how to belly dance before she could talk. EDM and indie music piqued her interest as she made the climb out of childhood and made strides outside of colorful Colorado. R&B, jazz, soul, and Hip Hop were also major influences through her Black American heritage. Tikvah found herself beginning college at Berklee College of Music in Boston, then a short stint at community college back in her hometown, and finally earning her BMUS in Music Therapy from Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts. Tikvah spent several years fulfilling her call to music therapy working with a multitude of populations and settings including physical health, mental health, disabled individuals in medical settings, nursing homes, home therapy, and therapy clinics. Currently she continues her work with disability direct care and songwriting. Her song “Nasty Woman,” shook up the internet combining the sounds of her youth along with inclusive feminist Jewish values. She has led, volunteered, and participated in organizing efforts aimed at addressing social and environmental issues that affect the greater Arizona community including climate change, homelessness, immigration rights, disability services, gender and race /ethnic equity, class equity, LGBTQ+ rights, and indigenous philanthropy often partnering with Arizona Jews for Justice. She completed a social justice cohort with AJJ in 2021. Tikvah has been a longtime critic of the Western American understanding of Judaism, antisemitism, the Holocaust, and Israel.
After October 7th, she has grown even more outspoken on her identity as a Black Jewish American with Israeli family, as a granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, as well as bringing all the hostages home, on feminism, cultivating Jewish-Israeli-Zionist literacy amongst non-Jewish populations, and ensuring the support of self-determination for the Jewish people in Eretz Yisrael. Tikvah has hosted call-a-thons to hold public officials accountable and benefit concerts to raise funds for many of these vital issues. Tikvah believes deeply in Tzedakah and gives 10% of her profits to charity every year. On her free time, she enjoys hiking the Southwest desert when you can’t cook a latke on the asphalt, road trips while listening to the sound tracks of Beyonce, spending time with her partner Eddie, and spending time with one pit bull who thinks he’s a cat, and one cat with the chutzpah of a pit bull.
Jan Perry
Jan Perry is the Executive Director of a nonprofit organization at the forefront of Los Angeles’ response to the homeless crisis. She concurrently serves as Executive Director of a nonprofit organization that promotes infrastructure development, where she recently led formation of critical union alliances essential in developing a $300M Southern California port infrastructure initiative to leverage renewable energy sources.
From 2001-2013, Perry served as a Los Angeles City Councilperson in District 9. She shepherded the development of nearly 6,000 units of affordable and supportive housing. Ms. Perry’s leadership over 12 years brought in $15B in private investment, $25M in new tax revenue for the City of Los Angeles, and 90,000 full-time jobs. Jan was General Manager of the Los Angeles Economic & Workforce Development Department (LAEWDD), leading an agency of 180 employees from 2013-2019. Ms. Perry was recently appointed to the board advisors of the UCLA School of Public Health.
Peter Webb
Peter Webb is a business professional with over two decades of leadership experience in real estate, finance, technology, marketing, strategy, public affairs and philanthropy. Peter was born in the Midwest and spent most of his youth in the Southwest. As an adult Peter pursued his passion for public service and civic engagement. He served as a city appointee to Manhattan Community Board Five.
Additionally, Peter was involved with various nonprofit organizations including UJA Federation of New York and YM & YWHA of Washington Heights & Inwood. Mr. Webb lives with his spouse in Port Saint Lucie, Florida. He looks forward to strengthening bipartisan relationships within Florida Jewish communities and beyond.
Antoinette Deitcher
Antoinette Deitcher is a Jamaican and Nigerian Jewish wife and mom from Brooklyn, NY. She’s lived in Albany, NY since 2014 and is on the board at two organizations in her local Jewish community. Antoinette is very much a Virgo and enjoys crafting, reading and napping. She has been published in Health and Salon.
Tongai David Makoni
Tongai David Makoni is an international development practitioner focusing on education financing in emerging economies. He recently graduated from UC Berkeley, where he was a member of the student board at Berkeley Hillel, working to engage Jewish graduate students. David has lived and worked in Washington, DC, his favorite city. He has been a member of the Washington Hebrew Congregation, where he served on the Shul’s Internal Audit Committee, and was also an inaugural member of the SEA Change Roundtable, where he had the opportunity to collaborate with congregants and other community members to address long-term inequities through working together with interfaith and community organizing groups on social justice issues.
Shonda Walkovitz
Shonda Walkovitz serves as Or Ami’s Mosaic Initiative: Jews of Color Community Coordinator, where she brings together passion for community engagement and deep connection to her Jewish heritage. As a Jew of color (JOC), Shonda embraces the richness of our diverse community and is dedicated to fostering a sense of belonging, understanding, and unity throughout our community. This passion led her to co-found Challah and Soul and to become the JOC Community coordinator with the organizationWomen’s international Zionist Organization (WIZO).Shonda’s journey has been shaped by a colorful tapestry of experiences and cultural influences. She has spent 30 years deeply involved in Jewish education in synagogues around greater Los Angeles. Working as a preschool teacher at Temple B’nai Hayim and Temple Judea, she cultivated a passion for Jewish education.
Shonda is excited about her new position, which seeks to position Congregation Or Ami as a model of embracing the diversity of the Jewish community. It builds upon a passion for creating spaces for all Jewish Communities and support for the State of Israel, our homeland.
Raymond Roker
Raymond Leon Roker (He/Him) is a pioneering media executive and creative leader with an impactful tenure in music culture, intersectional storytelling, documentary, and cinematic content. As an executive leader, he built content brands for Toyota, Red Bull, Coachella, AEG, and Amazon Music. He produced several feature-length documentaries, including Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert and For Love & Country, a first-of-its-kind film exploring Black artists in country music. Early in his career, Raymond co-founded URB, a groundbreaking publication that became a cornerstone of electronic, hip-hop, and underground music culture.
Raymond’s journey has been shaped by his Bahamian-American and Ashkenazi Jewish backgrounds, fueling his passion for creating spaces where marginalized voices and stories are celebrated. He serves on the board of Reboot, contributing to reimagining Jewish ritual and belonging through innovative projects and community initiatives. Raymond is working on a new initiative with Dream Machine Innovation Lab, a nonprofit founded by Van Jones.
Denise Lettau
Ms. Lettau joined National Care Advisors in October 2020 and left in January 2023. She is currently on sabbatical and indulging in her interests in writing/speaking, traveling and volunteering for causes that typically dominate her spare time. Denise graduated with a B.A. in Political Science from Pacific Lutheran University and subsequently received a juris doctorate from Seattle University. After graduation, Ms. Lettau worked as a Research Assistant at the Institute of International Law in Kiel, Germany and later after the fall of the Berlin Wall, she worked as a Senior Lecturer at Humboldt University in Berlin. She is fluent in German.
Upon her return to the United States, Ms. Lettau practiced law before entering the banking industry. Her banking career has been entirely focused on servicing the disabled and/or elderly. She worked for an eight- year stint at SunTrust Bank as a trust advisor in the Special Needs Trust department followed by nearly five years at Wells Fargo as a Senior Advisory Specialist in the area of Life Management Services which catered to the needs and concerns of older clientele. Later, Ms. Lettau served as Vice President of Advancement at Secured Futures, a not-for-profit pooled trust company which provided for the management of funds for disabled clients without significant wealth. Most of Ms. Lettau’s spare time is devoted as a lay leader with the Jewish Federation of Broward County. She recently completed a 7-year term as a board member of the Federation. She served in a number of significant roles, including as co-chair of the Strategic Impact Teams (oversight of allocations committees and chair of the Jewish Women’s Foundation. Denise also recently completed her term as the chair for the Jewish Community Relations Council.
She is a co-founder of the Alcee Hastings Black-Jewish Alliance within the Broward Federation. The alliance is a coalition committed to maintaining the historic alliance between the African-American and Jewish communities. As a member of both communities, Denise feels uniquely suited to serve as a liaison and is passionate about this work.Beyond the Jewish community, she serves on the Area of Aging for Broward County to continue to provide her expertise on the concerns/issue of the elderly and disabled populations. On a personal note, Denise is an avid reader, traveler and Formula 1 fan. She is married and the mother of one son, Maximilian.
Chava Verrett
Chava is a Black and Asian Jewish woman living in California. Although Chava did not grow up Jewish, Chava has always felt a deep spiritual connection to the Jewish people. After converting, Chava has used her platform to stand against antisemitism within her Jewish community. Traveling to Auschwitz in Poland and then to Jerusalem in Israel, Chava witnessed both the pain and resilience inherent in Judaism. As a Black advocate for Jewish voices, Chava strives to break stereotypes and show what it means to be both Black and Jewish.
Kenny Hamilton
Kenny Hamilton is a prime example of what it means to be the new multi-hyphenated executive. Navy Veteran, Serial Entrepreneur, Music Industry Executive, Board Advisor, Influencer, and Investor, Hamilton is swiftly making multi-million dollar strides across various industries. Known as being the man in every space with a towering physique and a smile that lights up a room, Kenny Hamilton is hands down a name all can agree upon when it comes to being a monumental asset in business.Having begun his journey in 2004, Hamilton, a hustler at heart, simultaneously began working as a street team promotion intern for Jermaine Dupri’s highly renowned label, So So Def, and dominating the Atlanta radio scene as an on-air radio personality. Hamilton swiftly turned a passion into his purpose through entertainment and the music circuit. Through his hard work, contagious personality, and diligent demeanor, he found himself faced with the opportunity of a lifetime having crossed paths with Scooter Braun who brought him on to his team and elevated him to the position of tour manager for now one of the world’s most sought after popstars, Justin Bieber in 2009. There Hamilton honed his craft with one of the top artists of the time and began coming into his own with hands-on experience with Bieber’s marketing, projects, events, and other managerial initiatives gaining a rapport with key industry playmakers along the way.
Hamilton has been making moves and breaking down barriers as an entertainment manager, entrepreneur, influencer, and investor for nearly two decades. A veteran in his field, the Stone Mountain, Georgia native created his management firm, CSH Management Group, Inc., which grew in popularity jumpstarting with outstanding acts in the R&B space. After much success in management, Kenny Hamilton decided to launch his own independent label, From Tha Mound Music Group, paying homage to his hometown of Stone Mountain. Highly sought-after mover and shaker with heavy ties and genuinely built relationships, Hamilton is far from slowing down as he continues to build a lasting legacy. Fast forward to the present day, outside of his success with CSH Management Group, Inc., Hamilton has his hands on a wide array of business ventures including producer credits from former MTV’s Punk’d, an investment/co- ownership in New York restaurant hot spot; The Cabin NYC, Sunny Vodka and serves on multiple boards of tech companies as a trusted advisor. While profit is always a plus, he is also highly involved in philanthropic initiatives such as Imagine LA, which is a non-profit organization assisting homeless families with sustaining permanent housing. Having gained such notoriety in the game, Kenny Hamilton remains a humble soul, and a solid constant for him is his undying passion and dedication to music, brands, people, and entertainment.
Victoria Raggs
Victoria Raggs (she/her) is the co-founding Executive Director of the Atlanta Jews of Color Council. She holds a Masters in Jewish Professional Studies from the Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership in Chicago, and a Bachelors in Communications from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Victoria is a results driven project manager, engagement strategist, and disability rights advocate. With over 15 years of experience, Victoria has worked as a Jewish communal professional and lay leader to implement effective liberatory practices.
She is or has actively served as a member of various Jewish boards and committees such as the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta’s Governance Committee, the Board of Jewish Family and Career Services Atlanta (JF&CS), American Jewish Committee’s Board of Councilors, Co-chair of the Atlanta Black and Jewish Coalition, and Co-chair of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. In 2022, she was honored as one of Atlanta’s 10 Inspiring Black Women Making History by Best Self Atlanta Magazine. That same year she was also a JWI Jewish Communal Women’s Leadership Project fellow. Victoria and her family attend Congregation B’nai Torah synagogue.
Issa Saunders
Issa was born and primarily raised in Nassau, Bahamas to a Bahamian father and a Jamaican mother. She spent much of early childhood visiting with her mother’s family in Jamaica, establishing from birth an appreciation for cultural nuance and the beauty and challenges of difference. Throughout her education and career Issa has worked on bridging gaps across lacunas of culture, race, religion, among other vectors of distinction. Issa holds a BA from Yale University, MBA from the Wharton School, and MA in International Studies from the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. Issa is the co-founder and CEO of Komi, a kids nutrition startup. Judaism is central to Issa’s life and her approach to meaning making and ethical leadership.