That's really the whole idea. Not a platform, not a mission statement — just the habit of noticing who should know each other and then actually doing something about it. A dinner. An introduction. A standing date on the calendar that people can count on.
Being Jewish is a big part of why this matters to me. Tradition, in my experience, is mostly a set of instructions for showing up: eat together, mark the week, learn something, take care of the people around you. I'd rather live that quietly and consistently than talk about it.
Austin is where all of this happens. It's a city people keep arriving in, which means there's always someone new who hasn't found their people yet. That's a solvable problem, and solving it is genuinely one of my favourite things to do.
Tradition is mostly a set of instructions for showing up.
The strands
Jewish community
Shabbat dinners, holidays, learning, and the ordinary rhythm of Jewish life in a city that keeps growing. I'm interested in the version of this that's welcoming — where someone who hasn't been to a Shabbat table in fifteen years feels comfortable pulling up a chair.
Most of it is ordinary: dinners, holidays, showing up.
Austin
Austin rewards people who participate. New arrivals every week, an unusual amount of goodwill, and enough scale that you can actually build something without needing permission. Most of my community life is local by design.
Local by design. I would rather be useful in one city than visible in five.
Philanthropy and giving back
I'd rather back a small number of organizations consistently than spread attention thin across many. Money matters, but time, introductions and turning up when it's inconvenient usually matter more.
No numbers listed here. Giving that needs an audience is not really giving.
Leadership through action
I'm suspicious of titles and fond of people who do the unglamorous parts: booking the room, chasing the RSVPs, remembering who came alone and introducing them to someone. That's the kind of leadership I try to practise.
No titles claimed. The invite list is the job.
Third Thursday
One example within the community work — not a separate venture.
A standing monthly gathering for Jewish young adults in Austin. Same week every month, so nobody has to wonder when the next one is.
Third Thursday isn't a nightlife brand and it isn't a business. It exists because belonging shouldn't depend on already knowing somebody. If you're new to Austin, or you've been here for years and drifted from Jewish life, there's a date on the calendar and you're welcome at it.
It's joyful on purpose. Good music, good rooms, people in their twenties and thirties who want to meet each other. Meaningful and fun aren't opposites — the whole reason people keep coming back is that it doesn't feel like an obligation.
The format is deliberately simple: consistent timing, an easy invite, and enough hosting that no one stands alone for long. Everything else — the friendships, the couples, the business partnerships, the people who go on to host their own things — happens on its own.
Gatherings
Same night every month. Send a note and you will get the next date.
Long table, mixed guest list, no requirement to know the words. Friends bring friends, which is how most of the good introductions have happened.
Ongoing
Marking the calendar together — especially for people who are far from family or new to the city.
Ongoing
Small sessions built around a text, a question or a guest worth listening to. Curiosity first, credentials second.
Ongoing
Collaborations with organizations already doing good work in Austin, rather than starting something new for the sake of it.
Open
Stories from the room
Short first-person stories to be written. Names only with permission.
Two people met at a table because I sat them next to each other and did nothing else. They are now building something together. I take no credit and full satisfaction.
Someone came to their first Shabbat dinner in fifteen years, told me at the door they would probably leave early, and stayed until the candles had burned down.
One night in a rented room where the music was loud, the food ran out early, and nobody left. Most of the best things in my life started because someone said yes to a night like that.
Ways to get involved
The easiest way in is to show up once. Send a note and I'll point you at the next gathering that fits.
Get in touchIf you know somebody new to Austin, or someone who's been meaning to reconnect, bring them. That's most of how this grows.
Organizations and venues doing good work in Austin — I'm always open to a conversation about doing something together.
Get in touchIf you want to back the organizations doing the real work in Austin, send a note and I will point you at the ones I trust.