L-R: Benjamin Sakhai, Jonathan Churi, Dillon Shipper of Schmooze Club at their SXSW Event at Wanderlust in Austin. Credit: Allison Teegardin 

By Allison Teegardin 

On Friday, March 9, the Austin Jewish community was invited to attend a free unofficial SXSW Shabbat event held at Wanderlust Wine Co. The event was hosted by Schmooze Club, a local Jewish community organization founded by Benjamin Sakhai, Dillon Shipper and Jonathan Churi.   

Sakhai, Shipper and Churi each independently had a vision of building a vibrant and unique Jewish community for young adults—long before they became friends in late 2023. They had all attended events geared toward young Jewish professionals previously and wanted to create a community that was authentic, fun, and purpose-driven where deep connections could be fostered. “Members have found investors, co-founders, and significant others through the community,” Sakhai said. “During Jewish holidays, people who once had no one to celebrate with now find themselves surrounded by friends.” 

Their first private event attracted nearly 100 people, and each subsequent event has seen strong and growing attendance, with the SXSW Shabbat event drawing the largest crowd to date.  

The event was from 4-7:00 p.m. and intentionally planned to allow attendees the opportunity to attend both this event and the SXSW Open Shabbat which has been hosted by Tech Tribe and Chabad of Austin for many years. While there was plenty of schmoozing, the event also included a group pre-Shabbat l’chaim and sharing of challah baked by Hakol Challah. Michele Leiser of Stitch and Stone was also there selling Judaica jewlery.  

Caroline Corson found out about Schmooze through one of the founders, Shipper who asked her in the early planning stages if this was something she thought people would enjoy. “I said “absolutely!” I wanted to attend to connect with other Jewish people around my age in Austin. Austin is a small city but has a pretty good sized Jewish community. You think you’ve met every Jewish person in Austin already but then you go to an event like Schmooze and realize there are so many more people to meet and connect with,” Corson said. “My favorite part of the event was the giant Challah! It was really special to be able to say the prayer over the Challah with a group of that many people!” 

L-R Mickey Wolf, Caroline Corson, Corey Fruithandler attend Schmooze Club SXSW Event at Wanderlust in Austin. Credit: Allison Teegardin

Attendee Corey Fruithandler said he attends Schmooze events to find and unwind with like-minded Jews in the Austin community. “I learned about Schmooze through the group’s social media and through mutual friends of the group’s organizer. My favorite part of the event was experiencing a cool new space, meeting new people and reconnecting with friends from previous events.” 

While most attendees were local, some like Micky Wolf were in town visiting. Wolf who was in town for SXSW Edu said he attended Scmooze the event to connect with Jewish people and to see what his friend Shipper’s Jewish community building project was all about. “My favorite part of the event was running into friends I hadn’t seen for a while,” Wolf said.  

As promised, the experience was more than an event – it proved to be a meaningful way for people to connect and enjoy living Jewishly together.