A group effort by Jack Dolcourt, Joyce Dolcourt, Joanne Slotnik, Stephen Trimble, Sharon Rishe, Alan Fogel, Jacqueline Fogel, and Rob Mayer.  Any errors are unintentional, the product of diminished memory over time.

​

 

Part 1

Community, Commitment and making Torah and Tradition our own

 

The Shabbat evening of June 13, 1986 coincided with Shavuot 5746.  A group consisting of Sharon and Harvey Rishe, Betsy Smith, Doris and Art Krensky, Janet Darley, Wyllis Dorman-Li, Sigrid Peterson, Suzanne Stauffer, Michelle Parchinski, Diana Dawson, Rabbi Eric Silver, Lee and Randy Arent met for services on the backyard deck of Jack, Joyce, Bram and Cameron Dolcourt in Bountiful. The group enjoyed each other and were uplifted and recharged because that Shabbat wasn't like anything that they had experienced. It felt good, like a cold compress on a burn.

​

In 1986, the only congregational options in Utah were the lay-led Brit Sholem (Reform, in Ogden) and Kol Ami (dually affiliated Reform and Conservative in Salt Lake). Congregational personnel actions often divide communities.  In 1986, the Kol Ami Board declined to renew the rabbi's contract, and the community split over how the rabbi was treated. 

​

Each of this Friday night’s group was somehow caught up in the embroglio, and they asked themselves why they were squandering their energies with such non-productive nonsense. What would happen if the same amount of energy could be redirected in a positive manner to enhance Jewish life? 

​

According to Midrash, upon escaping from Egypt the Israelites were trapped by the Sea of Reeds and Pharaoh's army was advancing in hot pursuit. What did their leader Moses do? He prayed to God for help. But Nachshon decided to take matters into his own hands. Although Nachshon didn't know how to swim, he waded into the water. The water continued to rise, yet Nachshon kept wading deeper. When Nachshon was up to his nostrils in water, the sea suddenly split so that the Israelites could cross. At that point, God said to Moses, "Stop praying already! Turn around and look at what your friend Nachshon has done. While you stand here praying, he’s taking action!"  This Midrash informed our tiny Jewish community’s decision to take action back in 1986.

​

The first High Holy Day services were held in the Rishe living room and the Residence Inn located on 400 South in Salt Lake. Randy Arent served as cantorial leader. Like Nachshon who didn’t know how to swim when he entered the water, this group didn’t know how to establish a new congregation. 

​

With winter snows close at hand, this nameless group held a retreat at  Brighton’s Wasatch Mountain Club to decide how to move forward. What began as beautiful fall weekend turned cold and drizzly. First, select a name that would announce the group to the world—and to ourselves. The group chose "Chavurah B'Yachad," meaning "a group of friends together." Janet Darley could lain Torah, but we all realized that as a collective group, we didn't have sufficient Judaic skills and resources.  If CBY was going to succeed, we needed to affiliate with a national movement that could provide us with resources.

​

The first three orders of civil business were incorporating, establishing tax-exempt status, and obtaining a sacramental wine permit. Janet Darley drew up the incorporation papers, signed by herself, Wyllis Dorman-Li and Jack Dolcourt. These original incorporation documents are still in effect.

​

Next came addressing a religious connection for resources, which meant contacting the more progressive Jewish movements. The Reform movement cordially declined, citing the sufficiency of two other affiliates in Utah. The Conservative movement never responded to CBY’s inquiry. 

​

In sharp contrast, the Reconstructionist movement responded quickly and warmly. Rabbi Mordechai Liebling, Executive Director of the Federation of Reconstructionist Congregations and Havurot (FRCH, now Reconstructing Judaism) sent a copy of Exploring Judaism-A Reconstructionist Approach, articulating the movement’s view of an evolving Judaism, including a non-supernatural God, the past having a vote but not a veto, women’s full participation, and a commitment to inclusivity that welcomed intermarried couples.

The book’s topics were well-aligned with CBY, but none of the congregation was even vaguely familiar with Reconstructionism, so they reached out to the Colorado Reconstructionist Jewish Federation, the furthermost western Reconstructionist outpost. Rabbi Steve Kaye, and founding members Ruth Chapman and Shirley Coren came to Salt Lake City. CBY agreed that the Reconstructionist movement fit well, noting its values of egalitarianism and inclusiveness, its progressive understanding of Judaism, its support of the havurah model, and the principle that the authority for decision-making rests with community rather than with rabbis or individuals or decisions of past generations.

​

CBY decided to join FRCH, but FRCH wanted to ensure that CBY was aligned with Reconstructionist values.  Accordingly, CBY submitted its bylaws, addressing inclusivity, who is a Jew, and the role of the non-Jew on the bimah.  For CBY members, full equality for gay and lesbian members was a non-negotiable civil rights issue. It may seem ho-hum now, but when CBY wrote those by-laws in 1987, rabbis and cantors could (and did) get terminated if their sexual preference became public. Not until 1992 did the Reconstructionist movement establish a policy for equality of gays and lesbians. In comparison, the first openly gay Conservative rabbi was ordained in 2011. 

​

In 1987, CBY was voted into FRCH as the 90th affiliate.

 

Part 2

The Early Years (1986-2000)

At first, CBY met in members’ homes. That arrangement fostered camaraderie and allowed people to know one another better. But several downsides led the group to find a public space. The burden of hosting weekly services fell to the few people whose homes were large enough to accommodate the group, and not always knowing the location of upcoming Shabbat services proved confusing.

​

CBY has rented space belonging to Lutherans, Episcopalians, Quakers, and Jews. We started off at Mt. Tabor Lutheran Church located at 100 South and 700 East, where we shared our first Passover seder with Mt. Tabor congregants. An estimated 100 people, mostly from Mt Tabor, attended the seder. CBY volunteered to do the catering, avoiding the spectre of an unwitting Lutheran showing up for seder with an Easter ham. Janet, Wyllis, Joyce, Jack and others got to the Mt. Tabor kitchen several hours early to prepare kosher briskets to be cooked on-site, ready for the meal at about one hour into the seder. Just before the seder began, we checked the ovens and learned an important truth: briskets cook faster if the ovens are turned on.

 

Since then, CBY’s food policy has evolved to vegetarian-dairy pot lucks. Some members keep kosher homes while others are vegetarian. The vegetarian-dairy food policy allows everyone to contribute and feel comfortable at our pot-lucks, which continue to be an integral part of CBY’s tradition.  Food is an important part of our culture and Shabbat pot luck dinners acts as a glue.

 

CBY has always believed that no one should ever settle for bad challah. Doris Krensky, a consummate baker, set the standard high, providing scrumptious baked goods over many years.  She often baked challah with kids about to become b’nai mitzvot, and inspired members to have their own challah-baking breakthroughs, facilitated by her challah-baking workshops. Jack Dolcourt has carried on Doris’s tradition, passing his skills on to the next generation (now including a gluten-free variation of homemade challah). 

 

CBY left Mt. Tabor because our small congregation was dwarfed by the large Mt. Tabor sanctuary and members were put off by the Christian iconography. And most humorously, meeting at Mt. Tabor fueled rumors in the Jewish community that CBY was a Jews for Jesus group, something we had never anticipated.

​

We began meeting again in member homes and held Passover seders at Betsy Smith's home. But the frequency of weekly home services became a burden, and some hosts were reticent to broadcast their home addresses. Thanks to personal connections and a similar world view, CBY was able to strike up a deal with the Quakers and, in 1990, moved our Shabbat services to the Second Avenue Friends Meeting House.

​

Reconstructionist prayer books did not exist in the early years. Weekly services were cut-and-paste from published prayerbooks or from other congregations willing to share their materials.  Wyllis Dorman-Li acquired Berkeley's Aquarian Minyan High Holyday Makhzor, which CBY used for several years. It was bare-bones and required many fill-in materials.

​

On one hand, it was hectic and sometimes frenetic putting together a new and creative service every week, striving to come up with something a little different each week, something new and engaging, maybe even surprising. On the other hand, members benefitted by becoming familiar with the liturgy and readings and cognizant of the structure of the service. Fridays were punctuated with a rush to the copy store and then on to lead the Shabbat services. Usually the service went well, generally proving to be a positive experience all around.

​

FRCH eventually changed its name to the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation and produced the Kol Haneshamah prayer book, first for Friday nights only, and then for Shabbat in 1994. Next came publications of the makhzor and Passover Haggadah.  These publications relieved the burden of having to create services from scratch, but at the cost of members more fully engaging with the underlying service structure and incorporating creative alternative rituals.

​

CBY never tried to develop a large membership. At one time, the number of household addresses dropped down to eight. The problem wasn't just recruiting designated service leaders each week. We also faced more practical issues. Who knows the combination to the Friends Meeting lockbox and who will unlock it on Friday evening? What if the food at the potluck isn’t enough for the number of attendees? What if we don’t have a minyan? And members always felt pressure to attend. Yogi Berra said it about funerals but it applied as well to CBY services: "Always go to other people's funerals; otherwise they won't come to yours."

​

While the Friends appreciated our presence, without air conditioning, the Friends Meeting House became unbearable during the heat of summer.  As a solution, CBY held Friday night services in City Creek Canyon,  at a group picnic area above Salt Lake City’s water treatment facility.

​

During the early years, CBY channeled its creative energy in many directions. CBY celebrated Tu B'shevat using Ellen Bernstein's environmental seder. Rock Oakeson led a powerful Tisha B'Av service at  the Great Salt Lake. The blistering August heat and the biting flies made the theme of devastation feel so real. Daniel Messinger led the High Holy Days Jonah discussions, one year interpreting the story as if Jonah were psychotic, and another year as if it was all a dream. CBY hosted Pesach community seders and the Chanukah book exchange, and rolled historical events of Hiroshima Day and Kristallnacht into themes for Friday night shabbat services.

​

Activism has been an important part of CBY from the beginning.  During the first Intifadah in March of 1989, Janet Darley and Wyllis Dorman-Li wrote a grant to the Utah Endowment for the Humanities to bring Tikkun magazine editor, Rabbi Michael Lerner, to Salt Lake for a community presentation.  The topic, "Ethical Conflicts of Zionism and Contemporary Israel," focused on a two-state solution to the Middle East, a radical concept at the time. The grant required matching funds, but none of the Salt Lake Jewish organizations wanted to have anything to do with it. In a “Nachshon moment,” Janet personally donated the matching funds, stepping into unknown waters and opening a discussion on a topic important to many community members.

 

Torah Acquisition

Because the US government is not permitted to legal own any religious objects, when a military base is closed, any Judaica from the base must be disposed of.  In the late 1990’s, CBY learned that Torahs were available and contacted Jay Greenspan, then the only Torah scribe and dealer in NYC. After CBY raised sufficient funds, Jay purchased a Torah on behalf of CBY. Based on the Torah’s physical height, number of lines per page, and decorative stylistic elements on certain letters, Jay surmised that our Torah originated in Germany, likely in the 1890’s.  The Torah was registered to CBY in November, 2020.

​

Original Torah repairs, including re-inking some letters, replacing one or both of the aitz chaim (the poles on which the Torah is wound) were done by Jay.  Rabbi Kevin Hale (pronounced Ha-LAY, as if in French) completed two subsequent repairs. For the first, CBY shipped the Torah to New York. For the second, Rabbi Hale visited Salt Lake, primarily to service Kol Ami’s Torahs. He included ours in his visit and also invited members to the Dolcourt’s home for a Torah workshop.

​

The whole community welcomed the new Torah just as it was saying farewell to a beloved CBY member, Wyllis Dorman-Li, who died on January 26, 1998.  Beth Krensky created the Torah breast plate, "A Wing For Wyllis," in her memory. Michael and Dixie Shafir donated the crowns. Also that year, Jacqueline Fogel, who had earlier spearheaded the construction and draping of an Ark-on-wheels, organized the “Fiber Guild,” which created a tie-dyed Torah cover, as well as matzah and challah covers. Given the number of places CBY has celebrated services together, the portability of the Ark proved to be a very practical feature while the Torah cover enhanced the aesthetics of wherever we happened to be at the time.

 

B'nai Mitzvot

Cameron Dolcourt, Friday, Oct 21, 1994

David Bullen, Friday, June 23, 1995

Timna Fischbein, Friday, May 29, 1998

Greg Kogan, Friday, June 5, 1998

Rose Maizner, Saturday, June 28, 1998

Menasheh Fogel, August 7, 1999

Jacqueline Fogel, July 21, 2000

Brandan Mayer-Blackwell, Saturday, October 28, 2000

 

Weddings

Liz Paige & Perry Hull Aug 5, 1995

Karen Nielson & David Anson 1998

​

Part 3

The Middle Years (2001-2011)

​

When the Friends meeting house was sold, CBY moved to the James White Jewish Community Center, located just off Foothill Drive on 1700 South, for several years.  Subsequently, CBY moved to the Episcopal Diocese's Jubilee Center, which was also eventually sold. When Kathi Cohen had served as CBY’s President, she had approached Kol Ami’s Rabbi Tracee Rosen and Danny Burman about possibly moving to Kol Ami, but CBY’s membership wasn’t ready to buy into that idea.  Alan Fogel, then CBY President, reconnected with the Friends (Quakers) and negotiated to meet once again in their facility, now located in Murray. It turned out not to be the right space or geographical location, so Alan then shifted gears and navigated the tricky waters that led to CBY holding services at Kol Ami. The move was also aided by Karen Nielsen-Anson, who was just developing her Jewish musical identity and had been co-leading services with Tracee Rosen in addition to providing music for CBY. Karen suggested that the time might be right to reconsider the previous decision about moving to KA.

​

Joint board meetings between KA and CBY resulted in a working agreement and then a move. At that juncture, CBY was eager to be housed in a Jewish space and enough time had passed to make joining KA in their building acceptable to membership.  We held a joyous Torah procession, taking turns carrying our Torah from the adjoining park into its new home at Kol Ami.

​

The first shabbat at Kol Ami took place on September 21, 2008. The Pepper Chapel was a comfortable space, and a better location for our Torah. We were welcomed by Presidents Danny Burman and Karen MacArthur as well as Rabbis Tracee Rosen and then Alana Schwartzman. 

​

Being part of Kol Ami meant CBY needed to be able to define itself and to differentiate Reconstructionist Judaism from Reform or Conservative Judaism. Questions were sure to be asked, and we wanted to be able to respond knowledgeably.  We re-read Exploring Judaism: A Reconstructionist Perspective and then workshopped the meaning of each chapter.

​

When Kathi Cohen finished her presidency in the mid-2000’s, it became clear that the administration of CBY needed to change. The president was doing everything and suffering from burn-out, while many members seemed to be simply along for the ride.

​

Michele Straube facilitated a survey of membership for ideas about restructuring leadership. At that year’s annual meeting, the quarter system was created, ushering in a new era for CBY. The President became the Chair of the Governing Board. Each year was divided into quarters, with a different group of members responsible for the holidays that fell within each quarter. One person was responsible for lining up members to conduct Shabbat services throughout the year.  Committees were renamed “task forces” after someone cited research suggesting people were more likely to sign up for a “task force” than a “committee.”  And off we went into a newly restructured CBY.

​

In the early 2000’s, music took a big step forward at CBY, becoming an increasingly central part of all services and celebrations, adding a new depth of spirituality. Multiple strands contributed to this important aspect of CBY.

​

Shefa Gold, a Reconstructionist rabbi also associated with Renewal Judaism, had reinvigorated the idea of Jewish chanting, which used a single, sacred Hebrew phrase, repeated over and over, to achieve a deepening level of spirituality. Visiting Salt Lake several times in the ‘90s, her ideas began to resonate. Alan and Jacqueline Fogel and Karen Nielsen-Anson were especially taken with chanting, and eventually CBY established a chanting group, The Leopard in the Temple. Outside of CBY, some members of the chanting group performed twice at the annual  Interfaith concert in the LDS tabernacle, at an event hosted by the Ghandi Society for Peace, as well as several times for a group of hospital chaplains.

​

CBY’s musical development was also aided by several visiting rabbis. Rabbis Michael Becker-Klein, Rachel Gartner, and Amy Loewenthal all introduced CBY to new Reconstructionist music.  And Michael Ross, a beloved visiting rabbi with a notable lack of tunefulness, gave us motivation to keep our music program strong! Amy also introduced meditation into services, which was very well-received. It’s unclear whether Amy or Michael suggested that CBY organize a High Holiday Choir, but in any event, Alan and Karen jumped on the suggestion. Many musically-inclined members came forward and music became an increasingly important element, bringing uplifting joy and deeper spirituality to all CBY services.  Rhythm instruments were always available to help keep the beat.

Alan Fogel and Karen Nielsen-Anson, both of whom had musical training and performance experience, created scripts for incorporating music as a central part of CBY worship. Working with service leaders, they led “traditional” versions of CBY melodies and also introduced new melodies from contemporary Jewish composers. They sometimes led the musical parts of services together, sometimes on their own, and often with the assistance of other CBY musicians.

​

We have Rabbi Michael Ross to thank for introducing CBY to a more spiritual process around the High Holy Days.  With more maturity and wisdom than some of our early and younger student rabbis, Rabbi Michael emphasized the importance of Elul as preparation for the Days of Awe to come. Autumn became a season for reflection rather than a string of separated holy days. Betsy Smith reinforced this concept with daily “Jewels of Elul,” points of focus for introspection.

​

On June 5, 2011, CBY celebrated its 25th anniversary at the Art Barn, with a theme of “Generation to Generation.”  Jack Dolcourt spoke to the past, Alan Fogel  to the present, and Rabbi Michael Ross to the future. A show by Beth Krensky, the creator of the breastplate for the CBY Torah, was hung at the Art Barn, which made the venue all the more appropriate.

​

B'nai Mitzvot

Dory Trimble, Saturday, August 25, 2001

Adult b'nai mitzvah, Saturday, October 27, 2001 

Alan Fogel 

Lauren Weitzman 

Robert Sherlock 

Sharon Rishe 

Luz Teicher

Nate Borgenicht, Saturday, May 17, 2003

Woody Adler, Saturday, May 29, 2004

Jake Trimble, Saturday, May 14, 2005

Sierra Adler, Saturday, May 26, 2007

 

Weddings

Menashe and Laura Fogel 2001

Aufruf for Susanna Cohen & Derek Hackmann 2010

​

Part 4

The Recent Years (2012-2024)

 

CBY has a certain character that inspires people to enter the rabbinate.  A congregation typically expects that the flow of energy will be from the rabbi to the congregation. But at CBY, the energy flows both ways, from the rabbi to the congregation and also from the congregation to the rabbi. CBY has had a profound inspirational impact on five people who eventually became rabbis: Janet Darley, Robert Sherlock, Amy Loewenthal, Ben Luks-Morgan and Maeera Shreiber. In her final High Holiday sermon, Amy shared that CBY was her inspiration to study at the Reconstructionist Rabinical College. How many congregations have inspired even one person to become a rabbi, let alone five?

 

Seder in the Desert

Twice, Joanne Slotnik and Steve Trimble hosted CBY for “Seder in the Desert” at their home in Torrey on a redrock mesa overlooking Capitol Reef National Park. In 2014, 33 people attended. In 2016 , they mis-remembered the home’s capacity and posted the limit at 45. Every seat was reserved before they realized their mistake. We all squeezed in, but barely. CBY borrowed tables and chairs from the local LDS ward. The local bishop and his cohorts were both accommodating and intrigued. And when folks went outside, many were quite moved by our own “escape to the desert.” To think we would be there for 40 years was daunting and astonishing—bringing some of us to tears. 

 

Tisha b’Av at the Great Salt Lake

At Maeera’s suggestion and with Steve Trimble’s relevant expertise, we gathered on the shores of the receding Great Salt Lake on a summer evening in 2024 to commemorate Tisha b’Av.  Gathered in a circle, Maeera read Eichah: Lament to the Earth, a poem exploring the dying lake and the inadequate response of humans, alternating with Hashivenu. Steve provided the relevant history and scientific background to better understand what we were seeing. With all in a somber mood, we responded emotionally, exploring the personal impact of our changing environment.  Ending on a hopeful, if guarded, note, many folks wandered the expansive beach in the setting sun. With little warning, the wind gusts suddenly picked up alarmingly and a fast-moving dust storm came barreling across the lake towards us, chasing us all back to our cars. A memorable, sobering evening of introspection.

 

Rabbinic Internship

After years as a member of CBY, Maeera Schreiber decided to go to rabbinic school. While a student, she served a multi-year internship with CBY, from June of 2021 to June of 2025. CBY had not previously had a rabbinic intern, and this relationship proved mutually beneficial by providing Maeera with the opportunity to try out her ideas and experience practical rabbinics, and for CBY to profit from what has been an unprecedented source of knowledge. She began holding monthly Saturday morning Torah study sessions at her home which proved to be quite popular and developed a devoted following. 

 

The COVID Years

When the lockdown occurred in March of 2020, CBY (like so many other organizations and individuals) turned to Zoom.  For the next couple of years, we gathered online.  Under the guidance of Maeera Shreiber, who quickly recognized the importance of staying connected as a community during this challenging time, we increased our Shabbat services to twice a month. Being together, even virtually, was a blessing for all of us, but perhaps especially for those living alone. We celebrated two Chanukahs online, lighting candles together each night over the internet. For the High Holy Days, we zoomed, with Maeera as our spiritual leader. We also virtually joined Rabbi Dan Fink’s Boise congregation for one service and zoomed another from Sugarhouse Park.

As vaccines were developed and the threat of Covid lessened, Rob Mayer facilitated a move to the Garden Park Ward for the subsequent High Holy Days, where we could find both solace in the Park’s natural beauty and social distance as we gathered outside to worship. As a bonus, the stream running through the Park provided a perfect spot for Tashlich. As Covid gradually moved into the past, we noticed a distinct increase in attendance at our events. People seemed to be yearning for community after the extended isolation of the Covid years.

 

CBY’s Sponsorship of a Refugee Family

In the fall of 2022, the SLC office of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) started a new program, partnering with community volunteer groups to support a newly-arrived refugee family. Eric Goldman, CBY president at the time, brought this opportunity to CBY. Partnering with Kol Ami, together we raised the required $3500 ($1750 per organization) and assembled a group of volunteers. We were the first community group to participate in the new IRC program. 

In November, we learned that our family, the Ws, was of South Sudanese origin but, like the ancient Hebrews, had sojourned in Egypt for the last ten years.   The family included a single mother with four children, ages 21 to four years old.  The mother spoke no English, while the three oldest children had at least some English proficiency.

Although our team had many skills, we were unprepared for the number of ways the W’s needed help. We learned a lot just by doing. We helped enroll the mother in language classes and the children in school, find employment for the mother and oldest son, ride public transportation, set up a credit union account, construct a budget, and pay bills.  Our team also helped the W’s navigate the many social service programs designed to provide them with economic assistance and medical aid.   Along the way, our team encountered many helpful and generous people.  Perhaps most notable was St. Olaf’s Catholic Church in Bountiful. With leadership from Carole Mayer-Blackwell, they provided a full scholarship for the 4-year-old at their private school, including after-school and summer care.

​

The W’s had many ongoing needs.  One of our team members tutored the teenage children.  Another helped the family with medical needs.   Several team members assisted the family in dealing with government agencies, including the IRS, and real estate and utility companies.  A high point occurred when the W’s received their first federal income tax refund in April, 2024.

Still, much fell through the cracks. The W’s lost their health insurance and food assistance, and they almost had their heat and electricity turned off several times due to unpaid bills.  Over time, most of the work fell on CBY members, but we appreciated the Kol Ami members who stuck with us.

We shared many activities with the family, baking Christmas cookies, joining in birthday party celebrations, taking them sledding and bowling, accompanying them to the public library, and introducing them to games of the University of Utah’s women’s basketball team.  

Although our team’s official commitment to the IRC was for six months, we stayed engaged with the W’s for more than a year and a half.  In the summer of 2024, the W’s decided to relocate to North Carolina to join an established relative there. Our team members were sad when they left but also quite relieved as the family’s needs continued to challenge us.

 

The Move to McGillis

In May 2024, Kol Ami rented the Youth Lounge space that CBY had been using to a private school, necessitating yet another move. While the Pepper Chapel had been a lovely place for services, CBY had outgrown it for the High Holidays.  In addition, post-Covid, many members felt uncomfortable meeting in such a small and enclosed space. 

​

In searching for an alternative meeting location, we quickly identified the McGillis School as an obvious choice. Joanne McGillis had been a member of CBY for several years, and the school’s philosophy very much aligned with CBY’s.  In the fall of 2024, Madeleine Sigman-Grant (CBY President) and Joanne Slotnik (Board member) approached Jim Brewer, the Head of School, with a proposal to use the Gathering Space and adjacent area for our services and potlucks. The values of the McGillis School and CBY were a good match. Jim’s openness to our proposal and eagerness to work with CBY was most gratifying, and within short order we had a signed contract to make McGillis our new home, both for CBY shabbat and evening High Holiday services.

​

Nearing the end of our first year at McGillis, we can say the move was an excellent one.  McGillis is perhaps the most hospitable home CBY has had, and we hope our tenure there will be a long one. 

 

B'nai Mitzvot

Daniel Anson, April 25, 2013

Rachel Weinstein, October, 2016

​

Part 5

Into the Future

​

Early 2025 found CBY at a major crossroads.  Maeera’s internship was coming to a close, a cohort of younger families with children were thinking about Jewish youth education and bar and bat mitzvahs. More older members needed pastoral care.  CBY had come face-to-face with an existential crisis: How to create a sustainable future with a small congregation, modest dues, and increasing costs? The time had finally come for CBY to reckon with its future.

​

So, this is part that we all write—b’Yachad—together: "How to sustain ourselves so that we can continue the legacy of a Reconstructionist congregation?"

​

To find a starting point, we went back to our roots and the Midrash about Nachshon.  Nachshon wasn’t concerned with being a leader, nor was he concerned with what anyone else was doing. He unflinchingly pursued what he believed to be right. He didn't pontificate or sermonize. He acted. He did what needed to be done without waiting to see whether people would follow. This is in stark contrast to Moses, who had to be criticized by God before even lifting his staff.

​

To meet the moment, the CBY Board, under the leadership of President Madeleine Sigman-Grant, first sent out a survey to elicit input from members about attitudes towards CBY and concerns for the future. The 34 respondents described CBY as a supportive, welcoming Jewish community, important both to individual members and families. 70% reported their satisfaction with the spiritual aspect of CBY was good or excellent. 80% reported their satisfaction with CBY as a community was good or excellent. Although only 17% of families had kids who now or in the near future will need Jewish education, fully 75% of respondents recognized the importance of youth education to CBY. The spectrum of responses to a question about models of spiritual leadership elicited wide-ranging and differing responses, with no clear consensus.

​

Next, a membership Envisioning Retreat was held in January of 2025, professionally facilitated by Susanna Cohen and Jessica Sanders, with a goal of clarifying two-year and five-year goals for CBY.  The Board is currently working on two-year goals, which include:

• Deciding on a model for spiritual leadership and a financial model that can support it; engaging in the hiring process;

• Hiring a part-time administrative assistant, with emphasis on organizing/enhancing CBY’s communications to members and compiling policies and procedures to regularize CBY’s work;

• Developing Youth Education program and better integrating children into CBY services; Supporting first cohort of b’nai mitzvot students;

• Revamping committee structure to better meet CBY’s needs.

​

Finally, with these ambitious goals, the Board committed to a $90,000 fundraising goal in order to create a financial bridge to help meet expenses over the next three years of transition. At the same time, the Board will work to increase membership, both to offset the increased expenses of a spiritual leader and administrative assistant and to enhance the vitality of the congregation. 

While CBY has no guarantee of success, we do have the commitment to move ahead and do what needs to be done. Like Nachshon, we believe a solid future for CBY is possible, if only we have the courage to act.  That effort begins now.

 

Addenda

CBY's presidents and co-presidents:

• Janet Darley

• Wyllis Dorman-Li

• Jack Dolcourt

• Lynn Richardson

• Debbie Feder

• Menasheh Fogel

• Jacqueline Fogel

• Liz Paige

• Terry Kogan

• Mark Stracks

• Laura Bullen

• Rachel Fischbein

• Jim Gebhardt

• Kathi Cohen

• Karen Nielsen-Anson

• Alan Fogel

• Rob Mayer

• Lisa Browdy

• Ben Luks-Morgan

• Eric Goldman

• Madeleine Sigman-Grant

 

High Holiday rabbis (as best as can be recalled)

• Howard Cohen 1990

• Joyce Galaski

• Marcia Pik-Nathan

• Kevin Hale 1993 and 1994

• Rachel Gartner (2 years)

• Rebecca Lillian

• Elise Wechterman 1998

• Micah Becker Klein 1999

• Shefa Gold

• Shoshana Gross 2002

• Amy Loewenthal 2002-2007

• Mona

• Michael Ross 2009-2012

• Jane Litman 2013-2015

• Stephen Booth Nadav 2016-2018

• Rebecca Lillian 2019

• Dan Fink-jointly with Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel in Boise (Internet) 2020

• Maeera Shriber 2021-2024

 

 

 

 

In Memoriam

 

Wyllis Dorman-Ligh

A founding mother

Wyllis Dorman-Ligh was like the little girl in braids from Brooklyn who could wump any of the tough boys on the school playground.  Wyllis’s views and actions reflected her Socialist upbringing in New York City. She was passionate about causes and always fought for justice and for the marginalized. She was tenacious, persistent, often militant, and sometimes annoying. But Wyllis cared. She lived in the central city area of SLC and was very committed to her neighborhood. She served one term in the Utah House of Representatives in the late 1970s. She was responsible for getting Fred Meyer (now Smith’s Market Place) to open a store at 4th South and 5th East, ending the designation of a food desert for the area. She was very involved in Utah’s chapter of Women’s American ORT, which raised funds for education and job training for the disadvantaged. She was part of CBY’s original leadership team. She was instrumental in filing the official incorporation papers, including the complicated process of obtaining a sacramental wine permit from the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services. Without prior experience, she sang Kol Nidre at CBY’s first Yom Kippur service as a congregation. She died on January 26, 1998. The breast plate on CBY’s torah was created by Beth Krensky and is titled “Wings for Wyllis” as a tribute to their friendship and Wyllis’ vision and love for CBY.

 

 

 

Doris and Arthur Krensky

A founding Mother and Father​

Doris and Arthur Krensky were among the founders of CBY and served the organization for thirty years.  When they moved to Salt Lake City in 1975, they built their own home. Their children remember that during the construction they “lived in a camper (and tents in the back yard when it was warm enough)!”

 

Happily married for 61 years, Arthur and Doris gardened, cooked, traveled, and enjoyed the great outdoors. Arthur graduated from Columbia University Graduate School of Business.  He served in the United States Air Force during the Korean War and was stationed in Greenland.  For the first several years of CBY’s existence, he and Doris served as treasurers, helping our organization get off to a solid start.

 

Doris graduated from Harvard Graduate School of Education. Teaching was her calling and she reminisced about her students for her whole life.  A famed challah baker, she combined that with her love of teaching by giving workshops in her kitchen - where many CBY members learned the art of challah baking.  She was also part of a CBY craft guild.

 

Doris lived a life of gratitude.  She was always first to offer help to anyone in need.  She died on November 28, 2017. Arthur died from COVID-19 on New Years Eve, 2020.  Both are greatly missed. CBY would not be such a place of generosity and joy without their hard work and dedication.

 

 

 

Luz and Izzy Teicher​

In the early decades of CBY, our elders were old enough to have experienced the Holocaust directly. Israel (Izzy) Teicher was one of those remarkable people.

 

Izzy was born in 1935 in an Orthodox family in Berlin. His entire family survived the Holocaust, waiting out the war in Switzerland, where Izzy lived in foster care for several years. Post-war, the family reunited and came to New York City.

 

After years of rabbinical training, Izzy chose a secular education and, eventually, a career in social work. When he married Luz Colón, his family disowned him for marrying out of the faith (even though Luz converted to Judaism)—while her Puerto Rican family embraced him. They were married for sixty years before their deaths from Covid days apart, as 2020 turned to 2021.

 

Izzy’s obituary notes: “Because he knew from bitter experience the negative consequences of religious intolerance, Izzy was committed to unconditional love and acceptance. This allowed him to celebrate Judaism without prerequisites.” Izzy and Luz did a lot of that celebrating with CBY, where his warmth and sense of humor matched his ability to step up to read Torah year after year without any need to practice.
 

Luz grew up in Puerto Rico, eldest of 12. She came to New York when she was 18, and earned a Ph.D. in genetics, a rare achievement for a Latina of her generation, particularly one who had just learned English. She added a gorgeous voice to the CBY choir and often added one-of-a-kind metaphysical thoughts to our discussions. 

 

 

 

 

Michael Schafir​

Michael Schafir was another early member of CBY with a harrowing history. Long before he and his wife, Dixie, moved to Salt Lake City, the Germans invaded his hometown of Bedzin, Poland. Michael was close to his grandfather, Avraham, a Jewish scholar, who inspired a lifelong passion in the young boy for education and children.

​

Picked up in an SS raid in March 1940 when he was just 12, Schafir never saw any of his family again. He spent the next five years in forced labor and concentration camps.

​

Three weeks before the war's end he was liberated by American troops. Michael weighed just 75 pounds, barely alive. Forty-seven members of his family perished in the Holocaust.

​

Michael came to the United States in 1951 on a Rotary scholarship. He became a pediatrician with a 30-year practice in California, retiring and moving to Utah in 1988—where he eventually found the Chavurah.

​

Michael and Dixie remained members until his death in 2009. Their generosity was lasting: they contributed the funds to purchase our set of prayerbooks and paid for the silver finials that clothe our Torah.