An Asian-Jewish Family’s Journey and Why We Built The Golda Project

Nearly three decades ago, traveling with my husband cross-country back to Los Angeles from New York, we were reading the Sunday New York Times when we by chance came across a story about an Orthodox Jewish family adopting a daughter from China. Instantly, we knew this was how we would begin our family. Over a decade and three daughters later, we have become one of the most well-known Asian-Jewish families in Los Angeles. For more than 27 years, I have worked to weave a shared heritage into our lives while living a deeply Jewish existence. Our daughters attended Jewish day school; I’ve taken on leadership roles in Jewish life and encouraged my daughters to do the same.

It was not simple. We faced challenges around conversion and acceptance—on both Orthodox and Reform sides, and in Israel. We insisted that our daughters receive an Orthodox conversion recognized in the United States and in Israel. That was easier said than done, and acceptance within the broader Jewish world still isn’t guaranteed. Yet through those years, our community grew. While adoptions from China have all but ended, more people are seeking to become Jewish—for marriage and for many other reasons. I’ve been blessed to be part of a local and national sisterhood of remarkable Jewish women of Asian heritage.

At some point I heard about The Lunar Collective, which emerged to give Asian Jews a home. I hoped it might be the space my family was looking for. But a Jewish home should be one where we can show up as proud Jews—including as proud Zionists. Too often at Lunar, that was not the case.

Amy Albertson, a leading Asian Jewish voice and dear friend of both my family and The Golda Project, told me of her own disappointing experience: “I was originally excited when I heard about The Lunar Collective, and I went to several of their events. It was refreshing to be in a setting where most of the people present could relate to my experience on some level. But even before October 7th, I could feel a mostly unspoken tension when it came to Israel. And once October 7th happened, that unspoken tension became many vocal anti-Israel group members. After they declined to partner on a Lunar New Year Shabbat dinner to bring attention to a Chinese Israeli hostage (now released Noa Argamani), I was beyond upset. I suppose everyone has red lines, and for me, the last thing I want to have to be in a Jewish space is uncomfortable to show up as a proud Zionist. I decided that Lunar, even if it was a group for Asian Jews, was not for me.” —Amy Albertson

With Amy, my eldest daughter Danielle, and a committed board of Asian Jewish leaders, we built something new: The Golda Project’s Simcha Luck Club—a Zionist home for Asian Jews and for anyone who wants to build bridges between Asian and Jewish communities. We chose joy on purpose. We chose to belong with backbone. We chose a Jewish space where love for Israel is not a litmus test of purity, but a basic expression of peoplehood and shared destiny.

This Sukkot, on the second anniversary of October 7th, The Golda Project is hosting Chef Cecily Feng Bleich for an Asian Jewish Sukkot dinner that brings our unique flavors and stories to the same table. On December 5, we will welcome Rabbi Angela Buchdahl—the leading voice of the Asian Jewish community in the United States and the first East Asian American ordained cantor and rabbi. These gatherings aren’t just events; they are a declaration that Jewish spaces can be unapologetically inclusive and unapologetically Zionist. Tickets and details of our work are at www.thegoldaproject.org.

The Golda Project exists to empower women and to welcome Jews and supporters under a wide umbrella of acceptance—while standing with the State of Israel. If an organization positions itself as a voice for Asian Jews and accepts funds from Jewish institutions, it should meet a basic standard: support for our homeland on fundamental principles. That is not a political demand; it is a communal one.

Being Asian and Jewish is a natural fit. Our cultures prize family, education, and food-centered traditions. Both the Chinese and Jewish calendars are lunisolar. The more we gather, the more we discover how much we share. The Asian Jewish story is not a niche—it is a growing, vital thread in the fabric of the Jewish people.

We invite you to be part of The Golda Project. Join us in building a community at home and supporting those in Israel who need us. I am grateful for the friendship and leadership of Amy Albertson and for every Asian Jewish woman who has linked arms with us. Our joy is our compass. Our peoplehood is our promise. And our home—spiritual and national—is one we refuse to abandon and work to ensure her rich future.

Gina Raphael

Co-Founder

The Golda Project

www.thegoldaproject.org 

About The Golda Project:

The Golda Project, founded in late 2024, is a dynamic community of Zionist women dedicated to fostering connection and unity while addressing immediate needs in Israel and the Jewish community at home. We empower our members to create impactful change through collaborative projects, advocacy for Israel, and support for vital initiatives, including partnerships with non-profits to provide resources for women, children, and trauma therapy for those affected by the events of October 7, 2023.