[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 206 (Monday, December 31, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1741]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING THE COMMUNITY SYNAGOGUE OF RYE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 31, 2018

  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, our houses of worship are often the ties that 
bind our communities together. In Rye, few institutions have been as 
successful in strengthening the neighborhood and bringing people 
together as the Community Synagogue of Rye, which this year is 
celebrating its remarkable 70th Anniversary.
  One Sunday in early autumn 1948, 7-year-old Betty Wolder asked her 
parents if she could go to church with her friend Susan who was 
Christian. Her parents explained that since they were Jewish and did 
not belong to Susan's church, she could not attend. Betty continued to 
ask questions and her parents wanted to give her better answers. The 
Wolders contacted the few Jewish people they knew in Rye about forming 
a Jewish religious school, and a sponsoring group of families. The 
response was extraordinarily positive, and the rest is history.
  A beautiful mansion--built in 1903 at 200 Forest Avenue--was 
purchased in June of 1950, and Rabbi Samuel H. Gordon, an experienced, 
widely traveled liberal Rabbi, was hired as the first spiritual leader 
in 1950. From there, Community Synagogue grew and flourished. The 
congregation is now around 500 families and over 300 students from Rye, 
and several communities between Greenwich and White Plains. The 
synagogue has an ambitious education program for both children and 
adults, numerous opportunities to become involved in social action, 
beautiful worship services, and life cycle celebrations. Their 
enthusiastic and active committees help make the synagogue a dynamic 
and caring community, and their work has grown beyond the congregation 
to serve the greater community.
  Community Synagogue of Rye has had an amazing 70 years. 
Congratulations to the leadership and congregation on this occasion.

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