Rabbi Sofia is the rabbi of Base LA.

Sofia was born in Ecuador to two South African parents, but spent most of her life in South Africa. She spent her formative years as a camper and counselor at  Netzer South Africa, the Reform Zionist Youth Movement (equivalent to NFTY), where she first discovered her love for Jewish Education. A lifelong learner, she has also been an avid Limmudnik at conferences across the world.  Sofia graduated from the University of Cape Town in 2015 with an Honors Degree in Applied Drama and received her MA and Rabbinic ordination from HUC-JIR, Los Angeles, in 2022. She is also a DONA-trained Birth Doula.

​She has had the privilege of serving many diverse communities in her rabbinic work, including young adults at Temple Israel in Cape Town, 4th and 6th graders at East End Temple, people in recovery at Beit T’shuvah, NICU babies and their families at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Southwest Jews at Temple Beth El in Las Cruces, NM, and curious high schoolers at Milken Community School. She is thrilled to be co-creating a community with LA’s 20s and 30s alongside her lifelong chavruta, Rabbi Brett Kopin. 

Sofia is passionate about the intersection of Judaism and birth and hopes to incorporate birth work into her rabbinate. In her spare time you can find her belly-laughing with Brett, eating ice-cream, coloring mandalas, creating new rituals, and watching trashy RomComs. You can reach Rabbi Sofia at sofia.zway@moishehouse.org.