SEPTEMBER 7 • 2023 | 55
poems and songs.
Ninety years is significant,
says Menczer, who herself is 85,
adding that it’s important to have
historical records of synagogues,
especially as affiliation among
the younger generation wanes.
“I hope people have a sense of
pleasure and being part of this
story and part of this shul,” she
says. “I also hope it’ll bring the
congregation closer together,
that people will talk to one
another about their stories. I
hope they’ll take pride in it.”
Frank Ellias of Farmington
Hills is a former president of
the congregation and was on
the committee that established
the independent B’nai Israel
when Shaarey Zedek closed its
building on Walnut Lake Road
over a decade ago. He’s remained
active with B’nai Israel ever
since.
“We had a motto we started
out with, ‘B’nai Israel, where
everybody knows your Hebrew
name,’” he says. “That was the
kehilla (congregation). That was
the close community we had and
we still have today.”
With the exception of
their rabbi emeritus, Rabbi
Parker, who is assisting the
congregation while they seek a
new rabbi, everyone else there
is a volunteer, he says. “The
great thing about Rabbi Parker
is he’s a brilliant educator. He
became a rabbi later in life. He
was a career teacher in a number
of different places; he’s just
absolutely wonderful.”
The congregation’s members
regularly show up on Shabbat,
Ellias says. “Unless someone’s
out of town, we regularly expect
that our entire group is going
to be there,” he says. “When
someone dies, we have meals;
we arrange for shivah — it’s an
extremely close and loyal group
of individuals that have been
together for quite a while.”
The synagogue is also active
continued on page 56
At West Bloomfield’s B’nai Israel
Synagogue, members are the heart
and soul of the congregation —
particularly around the High Holidays.
It’s an opportunity not possible
at all congregations. For longtime
members Fred and Mindy Shuback,
who moved to Silver Spring,
Maryland, in 2019, the tight-knit
community is enough to inspire them
to return home to Metro Detroit for
the High Holiday season.
The Shubacks joined in 1996 during
the synagogue’s first years in West
Bloomfield. They’ve been active
members ever since.
Fred Shuback, 70, whose father was
a Chicago-area Conservative rabbi,
has regularly led services at B’nai
Israel for many years, including on
the High Holidays. He blends a mix of
new and traditional melodies, creating
services that nod to both past and
present.
Mindy Shuback, 68, was also a
frequent prayer leader and Torah
reader prior to their move. She was
also responsible for putting together a
beloved Kiddush lunch every Saturday
that’s long been a favorite amongst
the B’nai Israel community.
While the Shubacks dialed into B’nai
Israel’s virtual services during the
heart of the COVID-19 pandemic, when
almost all services were held online,
they’ll be returning onsite for their
second year in a row to spend the
High Holidays at their synagogue.
Fred Shuback will be serving as
master of prayer for Kol Nidre and
several other days, but they’re just
one of several members who have
moved out-of-state yet make it a point
to return to B’nai Israel for the High
Holidays.
So, what drives these members to
remain involved, despite the distance?
For the Shubacks, the answer is
simple: community and responsibility.
“Services were both a religious
and a social experience for us,” Fred
Shuback explains.
MAINTAINING TRADITION
“I still have an emotional connection
to the synagogue,” he says. “We
expended a lot of effort in being with
the synagogue and keeping it going
through the time it broke off to be
independent.”
In Silver Spring, Fred Shuback
realized he could not have the type of
lay-leadership role at a synagogue as
he does in Metro Detroit.
“Fred has taken voice lessons,”
his wife explains of his unwavering
commitment to song and prayer. “He’s
also carrying on a tradition that his
father has taught him.”
Fred Shuback adds about leading
the High Holidays, “I’m very glad to be
able to do it.”
For Deborah Anstandig, a fourth-
year rabbinical student at Hebrew
College in Massachusetts who will
be serving as B’nai Israel’s main
spiritual leader for the High Holidays,
it’s no surprise that members like the
Shubacks maintain their local ties,
despite living in another state.
“I was really blown away by what
B’nai Israel has been able to do to
create meaningful engagement with
the synagogue,” Anstandig says. “Not
only on Shabbat or when people have
a yahrtzeit, but in sustaining a daily
community.”
She calls the B’nai Israel congre-
gation “warm” and “caring of one
another.”
Home for the Holidays
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Fred and
Mindy
Shuback