Chaya Gusfield is an American,

Northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...

attorney, known for being one of the two first openly lesbian rabbis ordained by the Jewish Renewal movement. Gusfield and Rabbi Lori Klein were ordained at the same time in January 2006. Gusfield was a legal services lawyer, and director of a community mediation program prior to joining the rabbinate. She is the Assistant Rabbi and B'nei Mitzvah Coordinator for Beth Chaim Congregation in

Danville, California The Town of DanvillePronounced is located in the San Ramon Valley in Contra Costa County, California, United States. It is one of the List of municipalities in California, incorporated municipalities in California that use "town" in their nam ...

. Prior to this, she served as one of the Spiritual Leaders for the Renewal Synagogue in

Alameda County, California Alameda County ( ) is a List of counties in California, county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and List ...

, and as the program director for Kol Shofar, a Conservative Synagogue in

Tiburon, California Tiburon ( ; , ) is an incorporated town in Marin County, California. It is located on the Tiburon Peninsula, which reaches south into the San Francisco Bay. It shares a ZIP code (94920) with the smaller incorporated city of Belvedere (formerly ...

. Gusfield graduated from the

New College of California New College of California was a college founded in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1971 by former Gonzaga University President John Leary. It ceased operations in early 2008. New College's main campus was housed in several buildings in the Mission ...

with an LL.B. She and her partner live in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

with their daughter Yeshi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gusfield, Chaya American Jewish Renewal rabbis Women rabbis New College of California alumni Living people LGBTQ people from California LGBTQ rabbis Year of birth missing (living people) People from Oakland, California 21st-century American rabbis 21st-century American LGBTQ people

See also

References