For six years, the Jewish Congregation of the San Geronimo Valley has held services in the homes of its members, in the community cultural center, in the local fitness club, even in West Marin’s state parks and redwood groves.
But the 61-household congregation has never had a place of its own, until now.
This summer, the congregation settled into new digs — a 500-square-foot rental space in the heart of Lagunitas.
“It was a matter of finding a spiritual home,” said Suzanne Sadowsky, president of the congregation. “We had, over the past 6-1/2 years, acquired quite a number of things that belong to the congregation — prayerbooks, for example, our Torah scroll, the ark, candlesticks. We had been meeting in people’s homes once a month [for Shabbat], or in rented space for the bigger holidays, and we would always be having to carry our stuff with us. Everything began to feel really scattered.”
Earlier this year, the nomadic tribe began holding weekly Shabbat services, as an experiment to determine attendance. The services drew at least a minyan, and often quite a few more, confirming the need for a home in which the group could continue to grow and flourish.
So when a modest space opened next door to member Andrew Rader’s Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture practice, above the Swing Cafe, the group swung into action. The room will accommodate 25 to 30 people, and will serve as a meeting place for Shabbat services and most other occasions.
The congregation was founded in 1992 by Sadowsky (an expatriate Brooklynite) and a group of West Marin friends who found a need for Jewish community in their lives, but also felt somewhat detached, both physically and spiritually, from other Marin synagogues.
Sadowsky placed an ad in the San Geronimo Valley newspaper, announcing the formation of a congregation “to celebrate Jewish holidays and Shabbat. Other activities may include children’s bar/bat mitzvah classes, adult education, a community seder, etc.”
The ad led to several calls, Sadowsky said. “We had our first Shabbat at my house, and we just started, and we’ve been doing it ever since. We haven’t missed a beat. We’ve celebrated every High Holiday as a community, we have our community seder, and we’ve started our children’s school, which is now in its third year.”
West Marin resident Armin Rosencranz, a Stanford professor specializing in environmental law, has acted as lay cantor — leading Passover seders, High Holy Day and Shabbat services, though other members often lead services as well. Occasionally, services are led by a guest rabbi.
The congregation, which is not affiliated with a particular Jewish movement, is based more on community than ideology, Sadowsky said. “We’re inclusive, in that we’re accepting of people at whatever level of Jewish practice or affiliation that they have.”
Members reflect diverse social, economic and Jewish backgrounds, and are just as likely to attend services in blue jeans as in more formal attire. Fees are on a sliding scale — an important feature for a congregation in West Marin, which is home to many low- and moderate-income families.
Some believe the congregation’s rural location is one of its greatest assets. The first Shavuot services were held in the shade of Roy’s Redwoods, a majestic grove in San Geronimo (and purported site of the Ewok village in George Lucas’ “Return of the Jedi”).
Each year, on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, the tashlich service is held in Samuel P. Taylor State Park, and worshippers cast their crumbs into Lagunitas/Papermill Creek. Some members come from “over the hill”– from Fairfax, San Anselmo, San Rafael, and even San Francisco — to attend such services.
“We’re smaller than a lot of congregations; there’s more of a sense of closeness, so people don’t get lost in a big crowd. It’s more personal,” said Sadowsky. “We try to have everybody get a chance to be a participant, and not just listening. We want everybody to have a part in it.”
The board is encouraging congregation members and friends to take part in the move. The congregation is looking for help in acquiring audio-visual equipment, bookcases, storage cabinets, comfortable chairs, folding tables, a stand for the ark, and a sign for the door, to welcome all to the new spiritual center in Lagunitas.