Our Mission • Our History • Our Past Leadership

Our Beginnings

One Sunday in early autumn 1948, at a time when very few Jews lived in Rye, seven-year-old Betty Wolder asked her parents if she could go to church with her friend Susan, who was Christian. Her parents explained that because they were Jewish and did not belong to Susan's church, she could not attend. Betty kept asking questions, and her parents wanted to give her better answers.

​

The Wolders contacted the few Jewish people they knew in Rye about forming a Jewish religious school, and a sponsoring group of families met in October. With the help of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now the Union for Reform Judaism), they organized a meeting on December 1, 1948, to discuss plans for a Sunday school and a "Liberal Jewish Congregation." Invitations were mailed to a broader group, and a news release was placed in the local paper. The meeting was held at Rye's recreation center at 51 Milton Road, now The Rye Arts Center. About 60 people came, many of whom knew one another but had never known they shared a religion.

​

The response was extraordinarily positive, and things moved quickly from there. The group resolved that the school would open just 12 days later. Its first home was the Beechwood School, in a mansion at what is now the corner of Forest Avenue and Hook Road, with 10 students. Organizing committees were formed, including one for a synagogue, and in January 1949, after considering nine names, the members chose "Community Synagogue."

​

The first religious services were held on Friday evening, February 4, 1949, also at Beechwood. The occasion became an interfaith celebration as well: the Rye Methodist and Presbyterian churches donated a pulpit and a brass candelabra for Shabbat candle lighting, and other local churches expressed their support. In March, at a congregational meeting, Maurice Hahn was elected the first president.

​

A Home on Forest Avenue

In June 1950, with the help of Jack and Helen Carner and others, the congregation purchased a magnificent mansion at 200 Forest Avenue. Built in 1903, Villa Aurora was the centerpiece of the seven-acre Barron estate, and its grand rooms came to house both the synagogue and the school.

That same year, Rabbi Samuel H. Gordon, an experienced and widely traveled liberal rabbi, became the congregation's first spiritual leader, and Community Synagogue grew and flourished. Many who attended services in the old mansion remembered the deep warmth of worshipping in its magnificent living room.

​

Soon Community Synagogue had nearly 200 member families, more than the mansion could hold. In 1961, a new structure was built beside it to house the sanctuary, a social hall, and several religious school classrooms, and the mansion became largely a school building. A proud congregation gathered in its new sanctuary for the very first time for the High Holidays that fall.

​

By then, the synagogue had a full-time rabbi and cantor, a religious school director, a custodial family who lived on the top floor of the mansion, a secretary, and a bookkeeper. Even so, the congregation relied heavily on volunteers, and many treasured friendships were formed through committee work.

Worship looked very different then. The prayer book in use had language that sounds stilted today, and little Hebrew was spoken in services. Women were mostly involved through Sisterhood and as committee members. Although most women in the congregation were stay-at-home mothers, the very few who served on the Board were working women, juggling work, home, family, and synagogue duties. Over time, women, working and not, have come to fill volunteer and leadership positions in great numbers, including several who have served as synagogue president.

​

The Rothman Years

After Rabbi Gordon retired in June 1966, Rabbi Robert A. Rothman became the congregation's spiritual leader and its driving force for 31 years. Under his expert guidance and leadership, the synagogue flourished, and its nursery school and library received several awards. A social action committee was formed, and Community Synagogue took a leading role in interfaith activities with other houses of worship in Rye.

​

Alongside the traditional bar mitzvah, which marks a Jewish boy's arrival at the age of religious responsibility, bat mitzvah for Jewish girls became more common. A Saturday morning service was added, featuring study of the Torah (the Five Books of Moses) as a dialogue between the rabbi and the congregation.

​

The first of many congregational trips to Israel took place in 1970, and youth trips followed beginning in 1972. In 1974, the sanctuary was expanded and classrooms were added, and in 1985, the sanctuary underwent a major beautification. As the congregation continued to grow, some High Holiday services were held twice, while others moved to the Rye Town Hilton.

​

A Time of Transition

On June 30, 1997, Rabbi Rothman retired and became Rabbi Emeritus, and Rabbi Rachel S. Mikva became Community Synagogue's third spiritual leader. She helped the congregation navigate two major changes: welcoming a new rabbi after 31 years, and embracing more Hebrew in worship, reflecting broader changes in the Reform movement. In 2002, Rabbi Mikva decided to return to academia.

​

A New Chapter

Rabbi Daniel Gropper became the fourth spiritual leader of the congregation in July 2003. He quickly energized the congregation to become a Shabbat-centered community and led the launch of a number of initiatives, including a team devoted to the needs of the ill and homebound (Hesed), a program for senior adults (SAJE), expanded family-based education opportunities (J-Life), a "Green Team," and a revitalized teen program (CSRTeens).

​

In 2003, the Barron mansion, the congregation's first home on Forest Avenue, was demolished, and a new educational building opened in the fall of 2004. In 2006, to ensure a strong pipeline of synagogue leaders, Rabbi Gropper, working in partnership with a team of lay leaders, introduced a robust leadership development program, Atid (The Future). In 2015, the Union for Reform Judaism recognized Atid in its leadership development resources as one of the most comprehensive programs of its kind among all Reform congregations.

​

In 2007, our High Holiday services moved to the Performing Arts Center at SUNY Purchase. The congregation also adopted a new prayer book, Mishkan T'filah, with more contemporary readings, more gender-neutral language, and more Hebrew. Several years later, its companion High Holiday machzor, Mishkan HaNefesh, followed.

​

A Growing Clergy Team

Over the years, as the synagogue has continued to grow, so too has its dedicated and dynamic clergy team. Cantor Melanie Cooperman and Rabbi Leora Frankel joined Rabbi Gropper in 2011 and 2012, respectively, and were welcomed with open arms.

​

After nine years of creating innovative learning and prayer experiences, Rabbi Frankel left Community Synagogue. Since then, we have been blessed by a number of talented rabbinic interns from Hebrew Union College, who have taught and inspired us even as we have helped shape them as rabbis.

​

Our Mission and Vision

Working in sacred partnership with Rabbi Gropper, our visioning team presented the Board of Trustees with a new mission and vision that were adopted in 2016. These statements guide our decision-making and serve as a lens through which all synagogue programming is viewed.

Our mission is "to be a caring Jewish community that adds meaning and purpose to your life."

Our vision is "to be a center for spiritual transformation; to foster the creation of sacred relationships; and to give people the tools and resources to be God's partner in healing the world."

This vision is grounded in our commitment to the Jewish values of Worship, Lifelong Learning, Community, Loving Kindness, Repairing the World, and Love of Israel.

​

A Renewed Home

In 2019, after an extensive engagement and fundraising process, we reopened our renovated sanctuary, social halls, and communal gathering spaces. Guided by the belief that a synagogue should be flexible, adaptable, and transparent, the renovation transformed a building that had been constructed and expanded piece by piece over the decades into a unified whole.

A new central lobby joins what were once two separate entrances, creating a natural place to linger and greet one another while also making our building more secure. Warmed by pale maple, the lobby is graced by stained glass from the 1985 beautification of our former sanctuary, preserved as a bridge of continuity between our past and our present.

​

The sanctuary was reoriented and reimagined around the theme of light. New windows now fill a once-dark interior with daylight, and a tall wall of glass looks out onto the trees, bringing the natural world into our prayer. Overhead, a faceted ceiling catches and reflects the light, while at the front, maple screens scattered with shard-like openings frame a sculpted wooden ark.

Flexible seating allows the space to hold a full congregation or an intimate circle of worshippers, and a gently sloping ramp brings the bimah within reach of all. Throughout, the renovation makes it easier for us to gather, allows people of all ages and abilities to reach every part of our building, and ensures that everyone who enters truly feels welcome.

​

Bringing the High Holidays Home

For many years, our High Holiday services had been held away from home, most recently at the Performing Arts Center at SUNY Purchase. In 2021, as we emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, we made the decision to bring the High Holidays home, celebrating our holiest days once again in our own sanctuary at 200 Forest Avenue.

​

Our Community Today

From 60 individuals and 10 students in 1948, the congregation has grown to nearly 500 families and more than 300 students from Rye, Rye Brook, Harrison, Mamaroneck, and communities between Greenwich and White Plains. In addition to its clergy, Community Synagogue of Rye is served by a strong professional staff led by Executive Director Glynis Conyer, Center for Jewish Learning Director Amy Rosenbaum, Early Childhood Center Director Dale Oberlander, and Director of Youth Engagement Chloe Bzdyk.

​

Community Synagogue of Rye offers an ambitious education program for children and adults, numerous opportunities for social action, beautiful worship services, and meaningful life-cycle celebrations. Our enthusiastic and active committees help make our synagogue a dynamic and caring community.

​

What began with one child's question in 1948 has become a community where people of every age keep asking, learning, and seeking answers together.