Russian Olive Mezuzah Case

This one of a kind mezuzah case comes from the branch of a Russian olive tree growing along the Rio Grande river in Albuquerque, NM, US, where Hershel loves to walk. He came upon a downed tree and pruned a few branches and turned the into mezuzah cases!

Hershel was raised by a Sefardi mother whose native language was Ladino, or Judeo-Espanyol; and an Ashkenazi dad whose first language was Yiddish.
The Ashkenazi, or eastern European Jewish culture was prominent in his upbringing and the Sefardi, or Iberian Jewish culture was somewhat hidden. Today, his workshop is located on the campus of the synagogue Nahalat Shalom, which means both “Inheritance of Peace” and “River of Peace”, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He built the sanctuary entryway portico and doors there, and the torah ark and torah reading table, the talitot rack and the baseboard molding.