KEEPING MEMORIES ALIVE
At final service in flood-damaged Houston synagogue, members reflect on past, future
LHOUSTON
peeking through stained glass windows illuminated the melancholy faces of the men of United Orthodox Synagogues as they put on their traditional tefillin and tallit to prepare for the temple’s last morning prayer. They bowed their heads alongside the women in the congregation, separated by a cloth partition.
After suffering damage from three floods in as many years, the synagogue’s board of directors made a decision to demolish the sanctuary, school wing and offices. More than 150 congregation members gathered or tuned in to a web stream for the final service on Feb. 4.
“If someone had told me 10 years ago that it would all end like this, I would have thought they were telling a fantasy,” congregant Denise Weinberg said.
The synagogue is in the historic Jewish community in Meyerland, just hundreds of feet from Brays Bayou. An estimated 2,000 households were flooded by Hurricane Harvey last year.
A tour through the synagogue makes clear the drastic effects of the floods of Memorial Day 2015, Tax Day 2016 and Harvey. Rust covers ovens in the kitchen. Watermarks stain memorial plaques that line the walls. In the library, shelves stand empty after floodwaters ruined hundreds of sacred books.
In an effort to save their synagogue, United Orthodox had engineers look at the building, received the help of over 500 volunteers and had many fundraisers. Rabbi Adir Posy said residents of 46 states and four Canadian provinces donated $400,000.
“In 2015 and 2016, Houston came together to help us; in 2017 it was the entire American Jewish community,” board member Amy Goldstein said.
Ultimately, the board decided repairing a building that repeatedly floods would be a poor investment.
The synagogue’s goal for demolition is March. Freedman Hall, an elevated reception hall next door, will serve as the temporary sanctuary.
Goldstein said the board of directors is exploring all viable options for a new building, such as rebuilding with elevated facilities or relocating. But since Orthodox Jews don’t drive on the Sabbath, congregation members must live within walking distance of the synagogue. After Harvey, several congregants spent a significant amount of their savings to fix their homes in order to stay in the neighborhood.
“Going anywhere else would be a significant religious choice to make,” Goldstein said.
On the final Sunday morning, photos taken in the synagogue were spread across tables. Rabbi Barry Gelman had many pictures of his family on Jewish holidays and occasions, which he said were moments he would never forget.
“I have fond memories of sitting with three generations of my family,” Gelman said. “The walls in this room have absorbed the story of a lifetime.”
United Orthodox broke ground on the complex in 1961 when the congregations Adath Emeth, Adath Israel and Beth Jacob merged. The building’s original plans were on display to honor the original days of the congregation. A photo of the synagogue when it was first built read, “Designed to Serve Forever.” Many congregants said that though their sanctuary soon will be gone, their memories will always remain.
“I have absolute faith that the things that mean the most to us are going to continue,” said Dov Liberman, an official in the synagogue.
After morning prayer, congregants reflected on a few of their favorite memories. They shared childhood stories of running behind the stained glass and emotional reflections of members who have died. When Holocaust survivor Alex Pollak reminisced about his second bar mitzvah last November, the crowd erupted in cheers.
Two congregation members, Max Reichental and Steve Moore, are cousins who have been with the synagogue since its beginning. The two said the building has always been the hub of everything in their lives. Moore had his bar mitzvah at the synagogue in its second year, and he teared up when he thought back to his sister’s wedding there.
“She looked so beautiful,” Moore said. “I will never forget that day.”
In a final gathering of closure, the congregation sat in its old seats to listen to speeches from United Orthodox President Rick Guttman and Gelman. The two thanked everyone who made the service possible and spoke about what the synagogue means to them.
Once the last words were said and the services were over, congregants talked and laughed with one another. Gloria Ribnick, a member for “forever and then some,” spoke of a brighter future.