Congregation Beth-El, is saying a fond farewell as it closes its doors after 60 years. However, it’s not goodbye forever, as the congregation, which means “House of God,” and is currently located at 99 Jerusalem Ave., Massapequa, will be m
erging with the Bellmore Jewish Center, under the new name of Congregation Beth-Ohr, meaning “House of Light.” There will be a closing ceremony on Sunday, June 26, where members—approximately 213—will help transfer Torahs from one congregation to the other in a symbolic ceremonial walk.
“I’ve been president for a year and a member for 15 years,” said Marc Miller, current president of Congregation Beth-El in Massapequa. “The congregation opened in the late ‘50s so a lot of people are third generation. Their parents were original members and it’s an aging congregation, which is often the case in Nassau County.”
According to Miller, who is a Plainview resident, the decision to merge brought about sadness as well as excitement for a new chapter in the congregation’s history. Beth-El hosted special dinners and services in the weeks before the close to celebrate the end of an era, but the beginning of a new one.
“Most of the congregants are making the move with us. I’m the last of the presidents of Congregation Beth-El, and it’s a transitional role,” said Miller, who will become a co-president with Tina Baron, the current president of the Bellmore Jewish Center. “I’m a psychologist by background, which lends itself to my helping people deal with the emotional issues of moving on. We’ve had a wonderful team of people who have been instrumental with our counterparts in Bellmore to work out a real blending together of a brand new congregation.”
Rosemary Gensler of Massapequa has been a member of Beth-El for 44 years. She will be co-chairing the June 26 event and shared her feelings on the move.
“I’m heartbroken, as are all the members, but the reality is we cannot exist on our own and I agree with the others that the only way we’ll survive as a conservative congregation is to combine with somebody else,” she said. “My kids grew up there. Our oldest members have been there from the very beginning.”
Gensler attended the congregation’s special Shabbat dinner and service with a Kiddish afterwards to say goodbye and also hello to a new future.
Baron, who is excited to share her leadership role, has been president of the Bellmore Jewish Center since January 2015 and a member for the past 20 years.
“I am very excited about all of the people that are going to be joining us. It’s a fantastic opportunity for both of our temples to grow together and really become a major presence on the South Shore,” said Baron. “The congregants of the Bellmore Jewish Center are pretty excited about being a full congregation again, as there will be more than 310 once the two are joined.”
Baron and Miller met each other during the merger process in February 2015, and will resume their duties as co-presidents on July 1. While there is room to accommodate members from Beth-El, Baron said that a renovation is planned to include the temple’s memorabilia such as the arch that holds the Torahs and artifacts on display.
“We’ll be integrating different aspects of our sanctuary into the new sanctuary; a blend of our identity and theirs into a new entity,” said Miller. “We’re all conservative Jews who have various levels of involvement with Congregation Beth-El. Saturday mornings are our main service and we usually have about 30 people.”
Miller continued to explain that although Beth-El has been functioning without a rabbi for the past few years, that won’t be the case for long.
“We are an egalitarian congregation, as is Bellmore Jewish Center, and we will be having a female rabbi, Dahlia Bernstein,” he said. “We also hired a woman cantor as well, which is fairly unique.”
The Torah transfer day is sure to be a celebration of old and new. All are welcome to watch the processional down Jerusalem Avenue before ending in Bellmore, as the Torahs are passed from one person to another, commemorating the joining of the congregations.
