14 | AUGUST 8 • 2024
J
N
A
fter 45 years of serving
Temple Israel, former
executive director
David Tisdale is gearing up
to retire. To celebrate his self-
less dedication to growing the
congregation and its offerings,
Temple Israel is hosting “
A
Celebration of David Tisdale”
event on Friday, Aug. 23,
with a special Shabbat dinner,
Kabbalat Shabbat service and
celebratory oneg.
Since first joining the tem-
ple as a newlywed volunteer
45 years ago, Tisdale, now 77,
was drawn to its family-first
approach. His wife, Yolanda,
was teaching pre-kindergarten
at the temple, which allowed
David Tisdale to grow his
involvement.
“Temple Israel was a family
place,
” Tisdale recalls. “This was
a place for us to grow with our
children; this wasn’t a place just
for adults. Nobody did it better
than Temple Israel.
”
His early days at Temple
Israel included serving as school
board chairman, followed by
head of the building committee.
Before long, Tisdale had worked
his way up to the role of vice
president, followed by executive
director and director of strategic
development
Tisdale’s family, like others
who joined Temple Israel to
plant roots for generations to
come, followed suit. His chil-
dren were bat mitzvahed at
Temple Israel and graduated
from its religious school.
Later, both were married at
Temple Israel, and his daughter,
Rabbi Jennifer Kaluzny, has
been part of the temple’s clergy
for many years. “Everything has
evolved around Temple,
” Tisdale
says, as he affectionately calls
the synagogue by its nickname.
SURVIVING AND THRIVING
During Tisdale’s four-plus
decades of service, much has
changed at Temple Israel.
The clergy was expanded to
better serve its families, while
accessibility and inclusivity were
always top of mind for pro-
gramming, education and ser-
vices. Of course, there were also
many building renovations to
transform it into today’s modern
synagogue.
COVID-19 was a major
hurdle Temple Israel endured
during Tisdale’s tenure, but
by quickly pivoting to online
services and programming, it
managed to continue serving
its congregation in a safe and
healthy way.
“We’ve lived through different
kinds of economies for all these
years,
” Tisdale says. “We man-
aged to live through them, to
survive and thrive even in some
of the most difficult moments.
”
Yet one element has stayed
the same over all these years
— Temple Israel’s family-first
approach. Tisdale credits the
expansion of the clergy as a
major influence on the growth
and continuation of family-
friendly programming.
“Nobody serves a congrega-
tion better than our clergy,
” he
explains. “They are there for
everyone 24/7.
”
Tisdale feels grateful that
throughout his entire tenure,
he was always included in pro-
gramming development and
key decision-making. “
As an
executive director, I handled
the running of the place on a
day-to-day basis,
” he says. “Still,
I was allowed to be involved in
the programming of the insti-
Celebrating a
Temple Israel
Stalwart
Temple Israel’s David Tisdale to
retire after 45 years of service.
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
OUR COMMUNITY
The Tisdale family: Seated left to right, Asher Kaluzny, David Tisdale,
Risa Kirschner. Back row left to right: Rabbi Jennifer Kaluzny, Bayla
Kaluzny, Yolanda Tisdale, Ryan Kaluzny, Brian Kirschner and Alli
VanDerAue.
PHOTOS: RON LIEBERMAN PHOTOGRAPHY.
David
Tisdale