Chabad New Canaan Serves Town’s Growing, Diverse Jewish Community

Smiling wide, Rabbi Levi Mendelow on Sunday morning stepped to the front of this small room overlooking Morse Court and turned to the 16 seated New Canaan boys and girls who’d just finished their first year of Hebrew school here.

Chabad New Canaan Jewish Center marks the end year one for its Hebrew School program, created in response to calls for formal education in Judaism by local families. Standing at right are the center’s co-directors, Rabbi Levi Mendelow and Michal Mendelow. Credit: Michael Dinan

“We’re very proud of you boys and girls in how much progress you have made in your studies, especially in your Hebrew reading,” Mendelow said during a short, laughter-filled ceremony attended by a handful of parents—the end of a successful pilot program that organizers are calling the first of its kind in New Canaan for a diverse, growing Jewish community that at some point will need a permanent physical location.

“It’s about community and about being here in New Canaan, a growing Jewish community being able to celebrate their Judaism and participate in the full richness of Jewish life, here in town, as a community,” Mendelow said during an interview.

New Canaan’s Ben Skrelnuas was among the kids who finished their first year in Hebrew School at Chabad New Canaan Jewish Center. The program will start up again in September. Credit: Michael Dinan

Chabad New Canaan Jewish Center was formed four years ago under Mendelow and his wife, Michal, and it serves about 100 area families, most of them New Canaan residents, he said.

Gathering at the New Canaan Nature Center for larger, high holiday services (“They’ve been amazing, the Nature Center,” Mendelow said), the center until about two months ago used space above 106 Main St. (now Kids Home Furnishings).

Formed and expanding its programming exclusively in response to needs expressed by the New Canaan Jewish community—for example, for religious education, holiday celebrations and synagogue services—Chabad New Canaan is seeking to meet a growing need for a diverse group, Mendelow said.

Michal Mendelow co-directs Chabad New Canaan Jewish Center with her husband, Rabbi Levi Mendelow. Credit: Michael Dinan

“Many people are or have been members of synagogues or temples in surrounding towns, and many people within the Jewish community are unaffiliated with any of those institutions,” he said. “One of things we found is that people have appreciated that there has been a local Jewish presence where people can participate in New Canaan.”

One of those people is Karin Petersen. She and husband Christopher last year asked Levi and Michal Mendelow to tutor their kids in Hebrew.

“It’s excellent,” Petersen said of the center. “It’s warm, it’s comfortable, there is no judgment on what level of observance you come in at. It’s just a nice, nurturing place and my kids have learned a lot of songs, learned some prayers and they let you go in as deep as you want to go.”

The center for about two months has been located on the second floor of an Elm Street building that faces Morse Court. A permanent center is part of Chabad New Canaan’s longer-term vision, Rabbi Levi Mendelow said. Credit: Michael Dinan

Asked the characterize the Jewish community in New Canaan, Petersen said there were many spiritual Jewish people in town and also families where one parent was raised Jewish or understand Judaism strictly from a traditional point of view.

“I think it’s a nice community because you don’t have to do one certain thing, but everybody sort of comes together for the holidays,” she said.

Peterson’s kids, including a Saxe Middle School sixth-grader and two students at East, were among those who on Sunday wrapped up year one of Hebrew school. For the ceremony, the children who completed that first year, ranging from preschoolers to middle-school students, were given olive-imprinted medallions, certificates that said “Aleph Champ Program” or “Nachas Note,” and a bag of candy for their efforts. During their own short presentation, the kids reflected on the past year, saying it was fun, full of learning and that they made new friends.

A Johannesburg, South Africa native who came to the United States 16 years ago to study at rabbinical schools in the tri-state area, Mendelow married Michal (who is from Pittsburgh) about 10 years ago, and she began working as a teacher at Chabad of Stamford.

Mendelow said that the center in New Canaan is designed to meet a need while complementing existing organizations that serve the Jewish community, including the 40-year-old New Canaan Jewish Group, which he described as “wonderful group that’s done a tremendous amount to unite the community, they’ve done amazing things,” including social gatherings among others.

Rabbi Levi Mendelow at Chabad New Canaan Jewish Center on June 1, 2014. Credit: Michael Dinan

“Most of the people who come to Chabad would not self-identify as observant or particularly religious, but they are interested in the Jewish community and they are interested in some education for their children,” Mendelow said. “The community is very diverse and different people are looking for different things. What we’re trying to do is create a space where people can participate in a wide variety of Jewish options at the level of participation that they would like, and obviously different people are interested in different things. Some people are interested in their children, some in studying as adults.”

The downtown space that Chabad New Canaan is operating out of now—several small, carpeted offices along a narrow hallway—is temporary, Mendelow said. Asked what he envisions in terms of a future location, he said: “One thing we are realizing is that as the community grows, we are going to need a facility that is more of a permanent facility. We are not yet at a place where we are ready for that, but it is definitely in the long-term [vision] to have a center and a space which can be a Jewish center for the Jewish community.”