Blog

By Executive Director Rachel Wallis Andreasson

When I became the Executive Director six years ago, one of the first books I read was History of Congregation Temple Israel written by Samuel Rosenkranz which encompasses our history from 1886 through 1986. Historical accounting such as this is a Jewish tradition. Our history should be recognized and honored. I hope you were able to join us at the Annual Meeting this year, where we featured impressive memorabilia from throughout TI’s history.

To preserve our history at TI, we also must focus on the future to keep our community engaged, and that means changes and improvements. The renovation of the Jack & Ellen Deutsch Family Education Center was a tremendous accomplishment brought forth by the generosity of our members who supported a safe, secure, and updated education center for our children and teachers. Through the generosity of the Bauer and Levinson families, we were able to renovate the Board Room, now a premier meeting space for all to use.

Through the thoughtfulness of Judith & Ira Gall (z"l), we received a large bequest to our Building Fund and now we are working on improvements to the 21 acres of land and the 100,000 square foot campus building. And with the unexpected and generous bequest of Robert L. Burg (z"l), we will continue to add to our Building Fund each year.

We also made changes to our Shofar Society levels for 2024. The Shofar Society is comprised of members who have helped ensure that all individuals who desire membership at TI have a place here. No one is turned away due to the inability to pay synagogue support. The change to our Shofar levels were made now so we will not have to increase the levels each year. Additionally, we will not automatically apply the Board increase to these levels since these families already give above our standard dues amount. If you can join our Shofar Society and help us support the Congregation in this way, please reach out to me.

We are most proud of the fact that since 2020 our membership has continued to grow. In 2021 we added 52 new member household, in 2022 we added 40 new member households, and through November 2023 we have added another 48 households. I love talking to new members about the reasons they chose TI: the clergy, the music at services, our Preschool, our Religious & Hebrew School, and most importantly, the feeling of being welcomed and embraced. We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful community and excellent staff that supports the Board and works together with lay leaders to ensure TI’s long-term viability.

As we reflect on our 137 years of history and acknowledge the ongoing initiatives aimed at securing our future, we also recognize the challenges faced by our sister Congregation, Kehillat Yozma Modiin, and the people of Israel. We must remember that these people are fighting for their existence amidst hatred and anti-Semitic groups who want to eliminate our Jewish homeland and our people. As we continue to honor our history, we will continue to pray for peace in Israel and the abolishment of terrorism and hate throughout the world. Adonai oz l'amo yitten – God, strengthen your people Israel; Adonai y'varekh et amo vashalom — God, bless your people with shalom, peace.

Rachel Wallis Andreasson
Executive Director
randreasson@ti-stl.org  |  314-548-9743