metro » Ann Arbor Centennial Beth Israel celebrates 100-year tradition of welcoming and engaging Jewish community. Josh Bender | Special to the Jewish News Ann Arbor I n the century since Beth Israel Congregation came into being much has changed, but its commitment to providing a welcoming and engaged faith community remains. Starting in November 1916, a few Ann Arbor families met at Osias Zwerdling’s house to celebrate the Jewish holidays. Zwerdling then became the first synagogue president and continued in that role for the next 40 years. For many years, Beth Israel remained the only Jewish congrega- tion in the Ann Arbor area. The congre- gation used various houses as its place of worship and, from 1928-1978, they eventually shared a building with the Hillel Foundation that served students at the University of Michigan. Beth Israel was the first Conservative congregation in Southeast Michigan to choose to be an egalitarian congregation and the first Conservative congregation in the country to vote for a woman president. In the late 1970s and ’80s, Beth Israel formed the Soviet Jewry Absorption Committee, which worked vigorously to successfully settle new emigrants from the USSR. This committee eventually developed into what is now Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County. Today, Beth Israel stands out as a con- gregation that for many years has fully welcomed LGBT individuals and families into congregational life. The congregation never had a cantor, preferring to keep services mostly led by congregants, said Robert Dobrusin, the congregation’s senior rabbi. “Not everyone who stands up to lead services has the voice of a cantor, but what they have is a connection to the congrega- tion,” he said. The participatory nature keeps congre- gants dialed in to Shabbat services, said Bob Blumenthal, vice president of religious affairs. “We’re all doing this together even though the rabbis are the experts,” he said. “All of this is part of creating a place where congregants want to be; part of which is appealing to younger families,” said Jacob Kander, the congregation’s pro- gramming director. “We strike a good balance between rec- ognizing where young families are in their lives, but also that they are a part of the congregation, not a separate entity within 24 May 26 • 2016 Rabbi Robert Dobrusin lights the chanukiah last Chanukah. A religious school classroom in 1953 it,” said Kim Blumenthal, the congrega- tion’s associate rabbi. Some of this balance is achieved by offering early childhood religious educa- tion programs and toddler-friendly seating and snacks at every Kiddush held after Shabbat services, she said. Dobrusin said Beth Israel felt like home from the start of his tenure. Everything felt comfortable, he says, starting with the sanctuary from which he has led services for the past 20 years. “I love the fact that the bimah reaches out toward the middle of the sanctuary so I can feel people on all sides of me,” he said. “The simplicity of it and the softness of the wood, the overall calmness of it and its lack of ostentatiousness.” However, the synagogue’s scope extends far beyond the sanctuary. Some of the biggest programming changes under his tenure have been aimed at keeping high school-age congregants engaged, Kander said. Perhaps one of the most substantial changes was the addition of a service learning option for the reli- A religious school classroom in 2016 gious school’s madrichim program. Students work with local charity and nonprofit groups, primarily in Detroit and Ann Arbor areas, he said. “We place a value on the time and abilities of our stu- dents so that they aren’t doing busy work. What they do might not be glamorous, but it is very important work.” DEEPENING EXPERIENCE The service learning track was predated by an alternative spring break program devel- oped by Kander and Rabbi Blumenthal. Students spend their week away from school helping out and learning from vari- ous service groups in a new city. “As a Jewish educator, one of the most attractive aspects of the trip was giving kids an immersive experience that was totally outside their element,” Blumenthal said. “Giving them the opportunity to go out and have these experiences but then come together with their friends at the end of the day and reflect on these experi- ences, too.” Since the program’s inception, students have traveled to Philadelphia, New York, Baltimore and Detroit, Kander said. The service learning programming teaches some of the complexities of pov- erty, said Zachary Bernstein, a participant in three alternative spring breaks as well as the service learning madrichim program. While on an alternative spring break in New York, he spent time working at a food pantry. “We got to help people, but also got to talk with them,” he said. “They told us a little bit about their families, how they felt about having to go to a food pantry, some of them were more casual and just talked sports, some of them were really open. “I think it taught me that there really is no one narrative of poverty,” he added. The synagogue seeks to reach out to everyone in the community: young and old, recent emigre or longtime townie. Part of this outreach is making sure all congregants feel they belong by calling every single member and making sure that they have a Passover seder to attend, said Carol Finerman, one of the architects of the seder project. “I think personal contact is very impor- tant in that regard. Even with email and things like that, people always say, ‘It’s so nice of you to call me,’” she said. Finerman and the congregation’s former kitchen coordinator, Jeanne Kitzman, first pitched the idea of pairing those without a seder with others willing to host more guests. Despite all the congregation has accom- plished in its first century, their leadership is keeping an eye to the future. “We hope to build and maintain our membership,” said Karlan Bender, con- gregation president. “Right now, we have not decreased our numbers and that is unusual for a Conservative synagogue these days.” * Celebrate 100 Years On June 5, Beth Israel hosts the congre- gation and the general community at a gala event at the Sheraton Ann Arbor Hotel in Ann Arbor beginning at 6 p.m. There will be a catered kosher dinner, with music and dancing provided by Neil Alexander’s Klezmer Fusion Band. There is a charge for this event. Interested individuals may call Beth Israel at (734) 665-9897 or email office@ bethisrael-aa.org.