Yiddish “Sounds Like Home,” with Michele Lieberman and Guest Interviewer Jack Lieberman

In this episode, Sarah Bunin Benor hands over hosting duties to a guest host, Jack Lieberman, who interviews his mother, Michele, about her ancestral language, Yiddish. From family memories to funny Yiddish anecdotes, their chat is a heartfelt tribute to preserving cultural language, food, and music as living links to a vibrant past.

Jack was a student in Sarah’s class “Jewish Language in the 21st Century” at the University of Southern California in fall 2024. Sarah found the experience of interviewing people about their heritage words so interesting and enriching that she decided to share that experience with her students. For one of their assignments, each student interviewed someone who has an ancestral connection to a language about the heritage words that have been passed down through the generations to them.

​Michele Lieberman holds a BA in Special Education from the University of Arizona and an MA in Early Childhood/Elementary Education from NYU. ​A retired educator, Michele is an active volunteer with a strong dedication to public service, particularly within the Jewish community. Celebrating 25 years of marriage, Michele and her husband are exceptionally proud parents of two amazing children. Michele enjoys traveling and reading, and is presently studying Hebrew. A dedicated Zionist, Michele is committed to fighting antisemitism and advocating for our hostages. She is thrilled to be traveling with a women’s group to Israel later this year.

Jack Lieberman is a 19-year-old Jewish freshman at USC. Since his time at USC, he has gotten much closer to his Judaism and has tried to connect to it through music, as he plays the saxophone. He loves nature, music, being active, and anything having to do with being Jewish.

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