Pico Shul is Launching Neshama in 2025

New Retreats and Trips in 2025 to Inspire Renewal Through Connection, Healing, and Community

For over two decades, we dedicated ourselves to creating spaces where young Jewish adults could explore their identity, build community, and find meaning. We ran thirty transformative retreats in California under names like Camp Neshama and Jewlicious. These experiences blended joy and depth, offering yoga, art, music, prayer, meditation, and unforgettable moments of connection. At JConnect, we ran hundreds of programs to create meaningful relationships and Jewish connections. Alongside these retreats and programs, our synagogue, Pico Shul, became a vibrant hub of Jewish life, reimagining what a spiritual community could look like in the 21st century. During this time, our Shabbat Tents served thousands of Shabbat meals and transformed festivals and festival goers with radical hospitality and spiritual connections across the country.

Over the last few years, we recognized that many people we encountered were also experiencing unhealthy stress and relationship challenges, coping with emotional, spiritual, and physical pain, and recovering from trauma, abuse, and dependence issues — and there were limited opportunities/spaces where they could heal their souls, mend their lives, and renew their spirits within a Jewish framework. While a few hours at Pico Shul or a Shabbat Tent helped people adjust, it was limited.

Then, in February of 2024, we were asked to help create a week-long healing retreat for one-hundred and twenty Nova music festival survivors from Israel, at Camp Ramah in Ojai. The retreat saved lives and inspired rejuvenation through connection, healing, and community. But our vision didn’t stop there. We realized that the work we were doing—helping people connect to Torah wisdom, renew their spirits, and uncover purpose—could grow beyond the boundaries of any single location or demographic. We envisioned something bigger: a Jewish alternative to places like Esalen and the Spirit Rock Meditation Center, where seekers from all walks of life could experience healing, unity, and spiritual growth.

And so, Neshama was born.

Neshama represents the culmination of everything we’ve learned and achieved over the past 20 years. While we don’t yet have a permanent retreat center, our dream is to build a space that becomes a sanctuary for those seeking renewal. In the meantime, we’re hosting our retreats and trips in beautiful and inspiring locations that reflect our vision of connection and possibility.

At its heart, Neshama is about community, connection, and transformation. It’s about bringing Torah wisdom to life in ways that resonate deeply with the modern soul. It’s about offering people the chance to pause, reflect, and return to their lives with a renewed sense of purpose and vitality.Your support will help us take this vision to the next level. Together, we can create a place to nurture spiritual growth, soul alignment, and authentic connections — where every individual can find their spark.

Join us in bringing Neshama to life.

Rabbi Yonah and Rachel Bookstein

Expanding Pico Shul graphic

Neshama Launch Campaign

Expanding Pico Shul's Reach in 2025 and Beyond