Jewish Pride Takes Center Stage at Fair : Cultures: Variety of ethnic groups join in the sprawling festival Sunday at Pierce College.

It had been a while since Sanford Lieberman donned tefillin, wrapping a strap around his arm and placing a small box on his forehead.

But, given the chance to undertake the prayer ritual Sunday at the Valley Jewish Festival, he did it with joy. After all, it was a mitzvah . A good deed.

“This is not a part of my everyday life,” said Lieberman, 43, of Van Nuys. “But I’m proud to be Jewish.”

Jewish pride was the theme that pervaded the sprawling fair, which drew an estimated 40,000 people to Pierce College to sample zesty kosher food, sift through exotic crafts displays and enjoy a wide range of musical offerings.

The fair, put on by the San Fernando Valley Alliance of the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles, was billed as one of the largest outdoor Jewish festivals in the nation.

“This is a great opportunity for all of our Jewish community,” said Irwin Field, president of the Jewish Federation Council, a leading charity and service agency. “We can feel good together.”

On hand were a host of dignitaries, including Mayor Richard Riordan, county Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) and Councilwoman Laura Chick.

“We’ve got a very diverse community,” Chick said as she shimmied her shoulders to music blasting over big speakers.

“All groups are represented here: Asian Americans, the NAACP and, within our community, we have Persians,” Chick said. “And we are all celebrating.”

Indeed, the festival brought together a full range of entertainment, service organizations and vendors.

The Jewish Symphony Orchestra took to the stage. So did a group of West African dancers and a youth group singing and dancing, “Solid Gold” style, to Top 40 hits. After a medley of gospel songs, the Pacoima Mass Choir sang the Israeli national anthem--and did it in Hebrew.

Aside from the ubiquitous snow cones and cotton candy, caterers provided foods from baklava to chicken satay.

Wiping the mustard off her mouth from the kosher hot dog she had just polished off, Miriam Burgess, 73, sat under a tree enjoying the cuisine and company.

“The culture is familiar,” Burgess said. “The food is familiar.”

Darrin Carr, 32, drove down from Valencia for the fair. Munching on a falafel, he said, “I came down for a day out with the people, but the food has been the best part.”

Carr added that he was also on the lookout for a potential wife. “My mom would be very happy about that,” he said.

Besides the food, festival-goers were greeted by all manner of service organizations, clubs and businesses.

Rita Lipshutz of Woodland Hills helped tend a booth set up by the Valley chapter of the Pomegranate Guild of Judaic Needlework--a group dedicated to sewing and weaving quilts, pillows and table linens featuring Jewish symbols.

“We’ll teach anybody, anywhere,” Lipshutz said.

The Jewish Marriage Enhancement group was looking for married couples eager to join one of their weekend retreats, where husbands and wives are taught ways to improve communication.

“Men are taught to be macho, that we can’t cry, that we gotta tough it out,” said Norm Mondz, a recruiter, explaining that such behavior can lead to problems in marriage. “We teach them it’s OK to cry,” he said.

For the children, there were games and arts and crafts galore. A Studio City woman, Julie Wynn, led a workshop at which children made painted candlestick holders out of mini-bagels. The holders, Wynn explained, are for the candle lighting that ushers in the Jewish Sabbath beginning at sundown each Friday.