The Shul Of Bal Harbour
History
The Shul was founded by Rabbi Sholom Lipskar, who was sent in 1969 as an emissary of the Chabad-Lubavitch Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneersohn, to Miami Beach.
After finding no active Jewish community in the Surfside area, Lipskar initially met in hotel rooms before moving to a storefront.
In the early 1980s, Surfside was not welcoming to Jews with real-estate agents refusing to deal with Jewish clients. In 1982 the local Bal Harbor Club dropped its policy banning Jewish and Black people after a discrimination lawsuit.
The Shul moved to its current site in 1987.
Building
The synagogue building was opened in 1994, in time for Rosh Hashanah, and cost $9 million, and is 3,200 m (34,000 sq ft) in area. The building is colonnaded and the design resembles ancient Jerusalem sandstone.
In 2016, The Shul announced a 3,700 m (40,000 sq ft) expansion at the cost of $20 million to be finished in two years. The expansion included an all-glass wall 12 m (40 ft) high social hall with glass ceilings accommodating crowds of up to 700 people.
Membership and services
The congregation membership has 700 families representing 3,000 people. Programming includes adult education, programs for Latin American Jewry, early childhood, and five daily minyans.
The Shul is also the headquarters for the Aleph Institute, an organization assisting Jewish prisoners and military personnel, also founded by Lipskar.
After the Surfside condominium collapse, The Shul raised over $500,000 for families of the victims and distributed aid to displaced community members.
See also
- History of the Jews in South Florida
- History of the Jews in the United States
- List of synagogues in the United States
References
- ^ "America's 25 Most Vibrant Congregations". Newsweek. April 3, 2009. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ "NAME: Rabbi Sholom Lipskar". The Miami Herald (pay-per-view). The McClatchy Company. March 7, 1985. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
- ^ Veciana-Suarez, Ana; Teproff, Carli (September 23, 2014). "Rabbis follow in family traditions during High Holy Days". Miami Herald. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ Berkowitz, Evan (July 8, 2016). "Shul of Bal Harbour to double its size in $20 million building expansion". Miami Herald. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ Schwartz, Karen (April 2, 2017). "Bursting at the Seams, The Shul of Bal Harbour Gets a $20 Million Addition". Chabad.org. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ "FLORIDA CLUB DROPS BARRIERS IN FACE OF DISCRIMINATION SUIT". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 12, 1982. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ "Miami Beach Journal; Kosher Pizza: Sign of a Jewish Revival". The New York Times. November 25, 1994. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ Smilk, Carin M.; Robenstein, Mindy (February 23, 2015). "Dramatic Chabad Growth in South Florida Latest Sign of 75-Year 'American Jewish Revolution'". Chabad.org. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ Taylor, Derrick Bryson (June 25, 2021). "How to help survivors of the Surfside condo collapse". The New York Times. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ "Jewish community prays for miracles after condo collapse". Miami Herald. June 26, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
- ^ "'Now is not the time to ask why': Surfside's Jewish community ushers in somber Shabbat". Miami Herald. June 25, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
