30 | NOVEMBER 17 • 2022 

T

raverse City’s Congregation Beth 
Shalom has served the Grand 
Traverse region for well over 100 
years. The Reform synagogue has a rich 
history.
Like many long-standing Jewish com-
munities in northern Michigan, the sec-
ond half of the 19th century saw many 
Jewish settlers attracted to the Grand 
Traverse area for its prosperous lumber 
business and agriculture opportunities. 
Julius Levinson, Julius Steinberg and 
Solomon Yalomstein were the original 
Jewish settlers in Traverse City and the 
first trustees and officers of an organized 
“Hebrew congregation.”
Members of the congregation are 
believed to have originally met in private 
homes. Their population expanded to 10 
males who could be assembled to create a 
minyan, and a synagogue was then estab-
lished — Temple Beth El. 
Ground was broken on a synagogue 
building and a cornerstone was laid in 
1885. It was completed and formally dedi-
cated in 1886. 
In 1939, the congregation responded 
to the request of the Joint Distribution 
Committee to resettle survivors of Nazi 
suppression in small towns, and the syna-
gogue was active in raising funds to aid in 
rescue and resettlement efforts.
During this period, younger Jewish 
families settled here and became active 
leaders in synagogue life. A program of 
visiting rabbinic students began in 1952. A 

larger membership with increased activi-
ties led to a renovation by 1960. 
In August 1997, a group of communi-
ty leaders came together to start a new 
congregation in the Grand Traverse area, 
Congregation Ahavat Shalom. In 2015, 
Ahavat Shalom and Congregation Beth El 
merged and became Congregation Beth 
Shalom.
Congregation Beth El, still the name 
of the building itself, is listed on the State 
Register of Historic Sites due to its distinc-
tion as the oldest synagogue building in 

continuous use in Michigan.
“It’s a small congregation, but it’s very 
close-knit,” said Terry Tarnow, a previous 
president and member of the congregation 
for 50 years. 
Beth Shalom’s rabbi, Arnie Sleutelberg, 
started with the congregation as a student 
rabbi in the summer of 1982.
After more summer and part-time stays 
serving the congregation in the following 
years, Rabbi Arnie left to take a full-time 
position with Troy’s Congregation Shir 
Tikvah, where he spent 28 years. 

Traverse City’s
Congregation
Beth Shalom 

Beth Shalom has the oldest synagogue
building in continuous use in Michigan.

DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER

OUR COMMUNITY
SYNAGOGUE SPOTLIGHT

The bimah at 
Congregation 
Beth Shalom

The synagogue 
building is the 
oldest in Michigan 
in continuous use.

