Facing a crowd of well-wishers in Cambodia’s capital city of Phnom Penh were the royal family, guests from around the world, and a rabbi. They were there to celebrate the belated bat mitzvah of Elior Koroghli of Las Vegas. Her father, Ray (Rahamim), is a Persian Jew, and her mother Susie (Sarah Bracha) is the Washington, DC-born granddaughter of His Majesty King Monivong, who ruled Cambodia until his death in 1941. Elior’s bat mitzvah was the first-ever Jewish milestone celebrated by the Cambodian royal family.

The celebration in Cambodia this year was the brainchild of Susie Koroghli, who wanted her children, who live a full Jewish life in Las Vegas, to also know of their royal and cultural roots.

Susie Koroghli’s journey to Judaism is an unlikely one. Her father, Thay Sok, served as a Cambodian diplomat to the United States; Susie, known as Sathsowi Thay, grew up in a Buddhist home. Ray left Iran to study in America, and met Susie, who began a journey of self-discovery that resulted in her conversion to Judaism.

The family often hosts as many as 30 guests for a Shabbat meal, and many more for Jewish holidays.