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