Youth and Family Experiences
Join VBS for Fun-Filled and Meaningful High Holiday Programming for our Youngest Congregants 🍎 🍯
Thoughtful and engaging programming alternatives are available for Children, Youth and Teens across three age groupings:
High Holiday Childcare
(Ages 2-5) at the VBS ECC
Camp Tekiyah (Grades K-6)
with Rabbi Noam Raucher
Holy ViBeS (Grades 7-12)
with Camryn Kruger
Beach & Blessings Family Service and Tashlich
Tuesday, September 27 at 10:00am
(Rosh Hashanah Day 2)
OFF-SITE LOCATION:
415 Pacific Coast Highway, Santa Monica (adjacent to Annenberg Community Beach House) between lifeguard towers 2 and 4
Join Rabbi Scott Westle, Rabbi Noam Raucher and sing with our VBSoul Band for a casual and meaningful outdoor Rosh Hashanah experience. We will come together for a brief service, shofar blowing and Tashlich – bring your own crumbs, shofars and picnic lunch.
All are welcome; registration is not required.
Click here to help plan your visit to this location
Tot Shofar & B'Yachad Family Services
Tot Shofar and B'Yachad Family Services welcome our littlest congregants (school-aged children). These lively service options include storytelling and song singing. This year, Family Services will be led by special guest Rabbi Scott Westle.
Day 1 Rosh Hashanah Services (Monday, September 26):
- 9:00-9:45am: Tot Shofar Family Service
- 10:30-11:30am: B'Yachad Family Service (Early)
- 12:00-1:00pm: B'Yachad Family Service (Late)
Day 2 Rosh Hashanah Service (Tuesday, September 27):
- 10:00am: "Beach & Blessings" Family Service and Tashlich (off-site)
Please scroll up to read details - 5:00pm: Tashlich at Lake Balboa (off-site)
Click here for details
Yom Kippur Services (Wednesday, October 5):
- 9:00-9:45am: Tot Shofar Family Service
- 10:30-11:30am: B'Yachad Family Service (Early)
- 12:00-1:00pm: B'Yachad Family Service (Late)
- All are welcome to join together for Mincha, Neilah and the Final Sounding of the Shofar (blast will be at approximately 7:10pm)
Click here for service times and options
Meet Our Musicians!
Daphna Gutman
Daphna Venyige Gutman is a Los Angeles native who currently serves as Valley Beth Shalom’s Music Coordinator for ECC and Young Families. She has been singing, performing, and playing music since childhood.
She was the Director of the Parent-Child program at Temple Beth Sholom in Miami Beach during 2011 -2014, and for almost a decade Daphna was a Music Together teacher and director in Miami, leading large classes of parents and children in music, rhythm, and movement. During this time Daphna came to learn how music-making can transform the relationship between child and caregiver in rich and meaningful ways, as well as how music has the power to instill a love of the Hebrew language, Judaica, and Yiddishkeit in children (and parents) of all ages.
Before moving to Miami, Daphna was employed for over a decade at ABC News in Jerusalem where she had the privilege of working with Diane Sawyer, Ted Koppel, and the late Peter Jennings, to name a few. She moonlit for Time Warner Hong Kong as the lead role of “Nicky” in their award winning program, English Time, a musical, multi-media language course to teach Asian students to speak, read, and write in English. She'd moved from LA to Israel after high school, first working the fields of Kibbutz Tzorah for four years while serving in the IDF as a "lone soldier."
Daphna has a BA in Middle Eastern Studies from UC Berkeley. She is married to Matt Gutman and together they have two children, Libby and Ben, two dogs, and a cat.
Yoni Arbel 
Yoni Arbel is a multi-instrumentalist composer from Los Angeles, California. He plays guitar, bass, saxophone, flute, and raps in a variety of musical styles and groups. Since graduating from the University of Southern California in 2015, Yoni has written and recorded several albums of original songs with his band, performed with musicians throughout the area, and has taught music in schools and privately. He also performs frequently at events in the LA Jewish community. Recently, Yoni was awarded the Bruce Geller Memorial Word Grant from AJU for his work.
Daniel Feldman
Originally from Mexico City, Daniel Feldman is a multi-instrumental percussionist. He specializes in playing percussion instruments from around the globe. With his unique and versatile sound he is able to blend into different musical environments.
He moved to Boston in 2012 to study at The Berklee College of Music were he studied Performance in Hand Percussion. Throughout his career Daniel has recorded and performed with many renowned artist including Alejandro Sanz, Guinga, Ledisi, Noel Shajaris, David Broza, Damian Dragici, Hüsnü Şenlendirici, Shankar Mahadevan, Antoine Dafour, Reza Rohani, Carlos Rivera, Ian Ethan Case, and is currently touring on percussion in Arturo Sandoval’s band.
He plays locally in Los Angeles in various venues such as the “Winston House” and Disney, and also works as a recording artist and teacher.
Par Par 
Par Par (Hebrew for butterfly) has been a professional recording touring musician and songwriter, songleader, and Jewish Educator in Los Angeles for over fifteen years. New to the VBS family, she hopes to support children in discovering, developing, and expressing their Jewish identities and music appreciation through the sentiment of song.
Originally raised in the Los Angeles area, she is a graduate of UCLA in Ethnomusicology (Jazz, Vocal). Par Par has worked with Wilshire Blvd Temple, Kehillat Ma’arav, Temple Aliyah and many more since her first memorable moments of being deeply inspired by Judaism, Jewish music, and Jewish life as a bright-eyed camper at Gindling Hilltop Jewish Sleep Away Summer Camp in Malibu. It was initially at summer camp as a camper where she first developed a deep connection to Judaism, later having the opportunity as a returning staff member to harness skills as a songleader and educator in Jewish music, life, culture, ethics, values, morals, spirituality, and way of life through music, theatre, art, creative writing and crafty Limud programs. It is Par Par's passion to connect with youth of all ages offering a platform of possibilities with Torah as a tool to become their best possible selves while discovering, developing, and defining what Jewish identity means to them. She hopes to add ruach and chutzpah to VBS through the music team.
Virtual Services
Stream Any Time
Watch last year's High Holiday Tot Shofar and B'Yachad Family Services on your computer, TV or mobile device at VBS TV!
Celebrate 
the New Year with the Levity Puppets!
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Rosh Hashanah Tot Shofar Service
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Yom Kippur Tot Shofar Service
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Yom Kippur B'Yachad Family Service
Wed, June 7 2023 18 Sivan 5783
