Following the Southern California Fires, Mr. Herstein’s 9th-grade Jewish Law class designed and 3D-printed mezuzot at the Guerin for Jewish families that lost their homes. The project lasted over two weeks, and the students constructed the mezuzot themselves  in different styles and for different age groups. 

Mr. Herstein created this project because he wanted to help families after the fire and felt that mezuzot connected with their homes the most. He thinks that mezuzot best relates to a protected, welcoming home and are something that every Jewish home should have.

“I thought about people[‘s] losing homes, and what is the item of Judaica that’s most connected to a home? It’s a mezuzah that goes on the front door,” Herstein said. 

Herstein was also inspired by a Milken faculty design workshop he had participated in during the winter. Staff had the opportunity to create custom gifts using design software and the school’s laser cutter. Herstein crafted a cutting board, thoughtfully personalized for a colleague. That process of intentional design stayed with him.

“I enjoyed the design process of thinking of a specific person I would make that for,” Herstein said. “So with that experience in the back of my mind and this desire to provide something of Jewish content to people who lost their homes, I put the two together.”

To bring the mezuzah project to life, Herstein collaborated with Mr. Hinko, Bruce, and the Garen team to explore the best tools and methods for the students. After reviewing various techniques, including laser cutting and working with wood, they chose 3D printing. They found mezuzah design templates online and used those as a foundation.

Each student learned to use digital tools like Tinkercad and PrusaSlicer to personalize a mezuzah with unique touches, such as symbols, textures, and designs that reflected the imagined recipient’s personality or age. Although they did not know exactly who would receive their mezuzah, students were asked to envision someone who had just lost their home in a fire and design from that place of empathy.

Herstein sees that act of imagining as central to the project’s deeper value.

“In addition to the meaning of creating something of value to give to someone who lost their homes, I am also really excited by the creativity,” he said. “The way that the students are thinking of who is going to get this, what can I put on it that is going to speak to them, to bring them comfort, to make them feel connected, that process of empathy is really an important one.”

For many students, the project went beyond technical skills. It became an opportunity to reflect on loss, healing, and community. By merging Jewish learning with the mitzvah, the mezuzah project gave students a way to learn various Jewish values while offering kindness to strangers in need.

“I think it meant something to them,” Herstein said. “Not just what they were making but why they were making it.”

As the mezuzot are delivered to families affected by the fires, they serve as both a spiritual symbol and a message of solidarity. For the students, this activity was a reminder that their learning can make a difference, one small act of care at a time.