The Westville Synagogue is a vibrant beit Knesset, beit tefillah, and beit midrash rolled into one building in the Westville neighborhood of New Haven, Connecticut. The shul, under the able leadership of our young rabbinic team of Rabbi Wesley Kalmer and Rebbetzin Dr. Jessica Kalmer, owes its success to the dedication of many individuals of all ages and backgrounds who have worked tirelessly over these past 54 years.
Rabbi Albert Feldman, our Rabbi Emeritus, was appointed spiritual leader of the synagogue in August, 1954. With his devoted and hard-working wife, Rebbetzin Estelle Feldman, the Feldmans essentially “built” the Westville Synagogue. The many people who shared memories of the early years of the shul spoke of Rabbi Feldman’s ability to meet the needs of Jews from “every walk of life.” The shul has sensitively and proudly served the diverse religious and spiritual needs of all congregants and community members.
The beit Knesset known as the Westville Synagogue has a rich and exciting history, due in large part to the willingness of so many to work tirelessly to serve the shul--people regularly washed dishes and prepared spaghetti and meatball dinners, drove the streets of Westville in search of potential minyan participants, and reached out to new arrivals—especially our brothers and sisters from the former Soviet Union. And the phone at the Feldman residence was reportedly busy 18 hours a day for many years! Westville shul members have proudly formed deep and lasting friendships.
The story of the Westville Synagogue begins in the Spring of 1952, when three New Haven men had a dream. Charles Albom, Arthur Slutsky and Herbert Batt dreamed of having a synagogue in Westville. As a result of their vision and commitment, Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Harris opened their home for services, and Rabbi Levi Freedman leyned, using a sefer torah borrowed from the Young Israel of New Haven
In the Fall, 1953, Reverend Abraham Slutsky served as cantor for the first High Holiday services, which were held at the Davis Street School with 75 in attendance.
In January 1954, a growing group of interested New Haven Jews met in the home of Mr. And Mrs. Nat Fisher to discuss the future of the shul. Rabbi Leo Jung, rabbi of Manhattan’s Jewish Center, grandfather of our longtime member, Barry Etra and one of the most prominent rabbis in America at the time, came to Westville on several occasions to assure there was progress made towards the establishment of a shul. That evening, Rabbi Jung addressed the group.
Those in attendance adopted a resolution to maintain their Orthodox ideology and to pursue plans to purchase a building of their own. The Articles of Association were signed March 2, 1954, and soon after, a home for the new Westville Synagogue was purchased! A small house, with one room for men and another for women, was built. The first ever services on West Prospect Street were held on Shabbat Hagodol, April 16, 1954, days before the Passover Holiday. In those early days, only Shabbat morning services were held.
When the synagogue decided later in 1954 that it was time to hire a rabbi, Rabbi Feldman was selected—though he was clearly told that the shul had no money to pay his first paycheck! That year, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services were held in rented space at the Edgewood Club on Alston Avenue (currently a church).
Rabbi Feldman was formally installed as rabbi on February 21, 1955. Rabbi Feldman started a daily minyan and devoted members picked up and dropped off others to assure the minyan’s success. Services were held in the “house, from 1954-1958, until the auditorium (completed on the site of the former “house”), was completed in the Fall of 1958. The auditorium served as an all-purpose facility, with an “aron (ark) on-wheels” being used during worship services.
A gala dedication was held in November, 1958 which featured the singing of the prominent Cantor, Shalom Katz, from Washington, D.C. Congregants were in awe of both his incredible singing voice and his Holocaust survival story—just as he was about to be killed in a concentration camp, he asked the SS guard if he could recite one last prayer. When the guard permitted his request, Katz sang the Kel Maleh Rachamim prayer—he reportedly put so much feeling and emotion in to it, that the Nazi general spared his life.
Members came to the dedication, and they proceeded to bring neighbors and extended family members to the various activities of the shul, including The Mr. & Mrs. Club, which offered year-round events for couples, and “Jewelites,” which offered comprehensive programming to the senior members of the community. The Men’s Club sponsored breakfasts each month with an impressive line up of speakers—it was not uncommon for the mayor of New Haven to drop by and hang around to shmooze with the men!
And the sisterhood, for decades under the leadership of Rebbetzin Estelle Feldman, held social activities, art auctions and other fundraisers, and social action events which quickly became well-known throughout the community. People came from all over to participate in the Sisterhood-sponsored fashion shows, and the donor dinners were consistently well-attended events. The sisterhood also carefully prepared holiday educational materials to share with families who may have been unfamiliar with certain Jewish holidays and practices.
Rebbetzin Feldman’s commitment to Jewish religious practice and to inclusiveness are apparent in so many ways. For many years, the Israel Bonds Women’s Division hosted a non-kosher luncheon. Through much hard work and sensitive diplomacy, Mrs. Feldman was able to suggest a kosher Israel Bonds luncheon, hosted at the Westville Synagogue—the luncheon remains kosher until today and was held for many years at our synagogue!
Each year, at the conclusion of Yom Kippur services, members returned home to break fast, while our dedicated caretaker, Frank Anderson, worked quickly to break down the davening space. This was no small task. After all, the sanctuary and social hall were packed with more than 1,200 worshippers—many of them standing in the back. The bima was literally unbolted for the High Holidays and moved to the true-center of the combined shul and social hall! Past synagogue presidents, even those accustomed to public speaking, report feeling more than a little nervous as they addressed the congregation. Luckily, Frank restored order in under an hour, for that is when the entire congregation returned to the shul, Yom Kippur pledges in hand, of course, for a (free!) night of dancing.
Like many Orthodox synagogues at that time, the Westville Synagogue has a rich history of sponsoring dances. The Mr. And Mrs. Club sponsored many dances which served as big fundraisers for the shul. Perhaps the best attended dance and party of the year was held each New Year’s Eve—where congregants and community members enjoyed dancing, music, camaraderie and kosher food and wine under one roof . And Bingo Nights, held every Tuesday for more than twenty years, brought in more than $250,000 by the early 1970s and allowed the shul to pay off its’ mortgage. Many members fondly recall that strong friendships were made at the shul—even among people of diverse backgrounds and levels of religious practices.
And children of our members learned together in the shul religious school. Many former students recall walking as a group in the early 1960’s from the Davis Street School across the street the shul, where Rabbi Feldman kept order from his hallway shmira post. Rabbi Feldman taught five classes himself for many years, until he was joined by a retired man from Bangor, Maine who joined the community and lovingly taught our children—and always refused compensation! Rabbi Feldman and his teaching colleague lovingly cleaned each and every classroom before the students arrived for class.
The youth of the shul also enjoyed NCSY events, lovingly sponsored by the Sisterhood. The very active NCSY Emunah chapter boasted at least one regional president of our NER New England Region. Member families were delighted to have their children interact with observant children throughout the region, and to develop leadership skills which would serve them for life. The shul often “rocked” with Shabbatons for more than 200 NCSYers and advisors!
The Westville Synagogue continued to grow through the 1960’s and 1970’s. On February 28, 1962, Beit Hamedrosh Hagodol—Westville Synagogue was formed when The Westville Synagogue and Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol formally merged. Two years later, a larger sanctuary was completed in April, 1964. In 1965, the Westville Shul demonstrated its love and commitment to Rabbi Feldman by granting him lifetime tenure.
The synagogue’s long “official,” title can be traced to March 26, 1974, when the synagogue merged yet again—this time with Congregation B’nai Israel, affectionately known as the “Rose Street Shul”. The Synagogue then became known as Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol B’nai Israel - The Westville Synagogue.
The synagogue, under Rabbi Feldman’s leadership, continued to serve as a very active, inclusive beit Knesset which provided for the various needs of its members of all ages—across the life span.
In 2004, over 80% of the synagogue community met, and with the help of a facilitator, discussed plans for selecting a successor to Rabbi Feldman. The Search Committee narrowed its slate to four candidates who each joined the Westville community for a Shabbat. The congregation overwhelmingly chose Rabbi Wesley Kalmar, installed one year ago at our last shul dinner.
Rabbi and Rebbetzin Kalmer, in their just over a year in our community, have continued the great work of Rabbi and Rebbetzin Feldman. The warmth and new initiatives of the young rabbinic couple are appreciated by so many in our community. Our congregation offers innovative program nearly every day of the year—from an active three times-a-day minyan (including two Shaharit minyanim on Sundays), to innovative Shabbat children’s programming (Torah for Tots services and the 613 Minyan) to such youth and family learning initiatives as Mishmar Learning and Avot in the Afternoons—in the summer at the Kalmer home.
The Westville Synagogue is perhaps best known for its extensive adult learning program. The Westville Synagogue is the “official” home of Westville University, where high-level lectures and shiurum take place regularly. Bible classes often take place in the mornings for those who work nearby or have mornings free from work or childcare responsibilities. Shul members are frequently treated to classes presented by our own talented members—from l ocal doctors teaching about medical ethics, to long-time New Haveners teaching about “old New Haven,” to our more than a dozen visiting Israelis (on Sabbatical to Yale) teaching classes on their areas of academic expertise.
Our rabbinic team is always teaching! The Rabbi teaches his Talmud shiur each Shabbat afternoon, and manages to teach halacha each morning and between Kabbatlat Shabbat and Maariv each erev Shabbat. Rebbetzin Kalmer has volunteered to teach a series of “Women in the Bible” classes (ten to date!) as part of the Joy Rochwarger Series.
While shul members enjoy learning and worshipping together, the bonds extend to so many other areas. Shul members share Shabbat dinners together—both at the shul and in each others homes. They view Israeli films, play softball, attend sports events, enjoy barbecues at Sleeping Giant park, attend Jewish book fairs and Judaicasales, and celebrate smachot together.
Perhaps most inspiring is the way in which the Westville Community joins together for acts of chesed and outreach. When members of the community host smachot, shul families freely open their homes to out of town guests. When the shul hosts a shabbaton for NCSY’s Yachad members, shul members open their homes to adults with special needs and their advisors. And when members have an opportunity to send mishloach manot to friends in the shul community, many choose to send baskets to all members.
Rabbi Kalmer tells the touching story of several elderly shul members who called or wrote to thank the rabbi and the shul for thinking of them at Purim time and for sending mischloach manot. They felt they had been “forgotten” over the years. And this single act showed the shul cared! May we continue to show our members that we care. May be always be there for each other—for smachot and for less happy times. May be always be a virbrant, multi-faceted, inclusive beit Knesset.!.
The original home of the Westville Synagogue
1954
The "New Building" now the Social Hall
September 1958
