Kehillat Israel History

Rabbi Irvin Chinn

Rabbin Irvin Chinn. a native of Baltimore, studied at Mesivta Torah V'daath andBeth Midrach Elyon. In fact, his derashot regularly contained quotes from hisrebbeim, Rav Kaminetsky, Rav Mendelovitz, as well as, the Klausenberger Rav.

His rabbinate may have been in Pennsylvania, but his influence resonatedthroughout the entire tri-state area. Rabbi Chinn was the voice ofuncompromising Orthodoxy and most compassionate Judaism.

When I first began my career, there was a family more traditional than therest, hailing from Shenandoah, PA. What made them so committed? The answer,"a young rabbi in Shenandoah; Rabbi Chinn, and there were more likeus." From Shenandoah to MCkeesport, he became there a pillar of faith forthe community. A young man who grew up in Mckeesport told me that everyoneloved him and that he treated everyone with respect and love.

For over fifty years, the rabbi led his congregation and community even indifficult economic times for the region. When he moved his synagogue acrosstown, he was concerned about a mikveh, so he built one in a garage adjacent tothis home. When the community began to decline, he brought in a day school, ayeshiva and a kollel to his synagogue building and reversed the trend.

His most treasured possession was a letter from the Hafetz Chaim given to hisgrandfather, thanking him and his family for their help in raising funds forhis Yeshiva.

Rabbi Irvin Chinn – a most treasured possession!

Grand Opening of a Tradition

While the headline is a contradiction in terms, it's still the truth.

The ribbon cutting is at Harris Bakery, Shenandoah, a landmark

in the community for 74 years, which just changed ownership.

On hand for the ceremony are, from left, Sam Schutawie, SCIDA;

Tom Gallagher, Manager Main Street Program; Mayor Connie

Reese, Jerry and Theresa Alshefski, new owners; Ethel and

Mendel Harris, former owners; Jean Sherako, president Merchants

Association; Henry Zale, secretary Chamber of Commerce.

The Harris Bakery business did not happen overnight.

It took years of hard work and patience beginning in 1916

when Sam Harris, Mr. Harris' father, of New York City,

set up a tiny shop at the rear of South Market Street.

Within that period, the bakery's reputation grew as it

did, and the need to expand became evident.

Two years later in 1918, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Harris

purchased a building at 222 W. Centre St., from Thomas

Manley and converted it to a substantial sized bakery.

Within another two years, the business continued to

grow rapidly, necessitating the purchase of a

six-family dwelling from Mrs. Theresa Macrees. An

annex structure, 30x75 feet, was erected, affording Sam

Harris his long awaited adequate space.

Finally, on April 12, 1937, the dream was complete-a

new, modern bakery constructed of steel and brick, with

fireproof walls of tile that could be kept meticulously

clean.

The business continued to grow after World War II

when Sam Harris' son Emmanuel, known by many to this

day as Mendel, came home from the service, working

closely with his father in the business.

Baked bread, baked goods, the fanciest of wedding

cakes and the start of making a variety of donuts, in-

cluding the notorious pretzel donut, a long-time favorite

in the community, which still remains today.

The pretzel donut, the brain-child of Sam Harris, who

wanted to expand the line and automate the famous

donut, but because of the consistency of raised dough as

opposed to pretzel dough, each and every one of the

tasty-twists of fluffy sweet treats are made by hand.

It was the final dream of Sam Harris to expand again

and the decision to move to its present, .........

location at 11 W. Coal St. was made.

Yes, Sam Harris' dream came true, but he never lived

to see it materialize on West Coal Street.

At the present location for 26(?) years, the enterprising

roots of Sam harris reached out to the community

before, continuing to grow through integrity and

ambitions of his son, Mendel.

As`Mrs. Harris pondered the change of hands, she

confidently said. "The baton has been passed to a

wonderful family - the Alshefskis."

So how do the new owners feel about "their" dream

coming true and good fortune? "Very excited." said

Mrs. Alshefski.

The warehouse and distributorship will be retained,

along with the guarantee that Harris baked goods will

remain the same, with the anticipation of expanding

with some additional specialty items in the future.

They will sell regular coffee and decaffinated, hot

chocolate in the winter, tea, including herbal, to take out

and they will even offer a line of potato chips and

pretzels.

The Alshefski's children are quite familiar with the.

business Mrs. Alshefski said. "After school they all had

chores" in helping with the distributorship.

The Alshefski's have five children, Jerry Jr. .....

Joseph, who work closely with their father; .....

Gabriel, who operates the House of Bargains store in

Hazleton. Linda Kurczewski and Loretta, who look

over the office duties at the Alshefski Enterprises

warehouse. Last but not least, there are three grand-

children. Also pitching in a helping hand with the

business are Jerry Jr.'s wife, Barbara Anne and

Joseph's wife Barbara Grace.

Mrs. Alshefski, in reference to the town of Shenandoah

and its people said, "We both like Shenandoah - wa...

the people and feel safe."

The Harris bakery crew will also remain the same.

Those responsible over the years in keeping ...

the business operating are: Joseph Cooney, Helen D....

Phillip Dubiansky, Al Endrick,Judy Heffner, R...

Karahuta, Jane Katotick(?), Marlin Keiter, Joseph K....

Christine Koncaler, Mary Krivitsky, Ed mack, Do...

Miller, Sam Natalo, Gale Nicholas, Benjamin Og....

Ronald Ogonek, Ed Perlinsky, Charles Rakum (?), ...

Sadusky, Allan Salter, Isabelle Schlitzer, Camill...

cavage and Carmella Toborowski.

A warm and friendly invitation on behalf of the Harris

and Alshefski families is extended to everyone to participate

in the grand opening celebration planned for October 2..

23.

THE SORIN TORAH SCROLLCOVER FROM SHENANDOAH

My home town in Shenandoah Pennsylvania is located in the lower part of the anthracite coal regions between Pottsville and Hazleton.  From its boom during the Civil War years as the mines developed, to its growth due to European immigration including many Jews, the population in 1920 was nearly 30,000 residents.  Since then the population has dwindled down to 5,624 at the 2000 census, with only four Jews remaining. 

But during those years, a thriving Jewish community grew.  Its beautiful synagogue, Kehillat Israel, with its gorgeous stain-glass windows, served Shenandoah’s Jewish community for decades.  The shul was located next door to the home of my brother Reubin Sorin of blessed memory.  In its early days, their home even provided the rest room facilities for the congregants, because the shul facilities were primitive and in the basement!

But throughout the years, this community produced generations of dedicated, committed Jews – who prayed together through the Depression and the Holocaust, in good times and bad, finding solace, support and hope in their religion andas a community.  They gained strength reading from the Torah, which was their link to the Jewish world – the world of their parents, the world of their children, and the world of our people.  Their synagogue has since been taken apart, their siddurim, windows and pews donated or sold to other congregations.  There is not much left of the Jewish community, except the Jewish cemetery, which is maintained by a strong committee of children and grandchildren living near and far.  As they were able, most of the Jews had moved on to better lives in communities around the world – including in Israel.

It was through a connection in Israel to the Aronoff family originally of Shenandoah, that we discovered this beautiful Torah cover in 2005.  It is white, so it was obviously used duringthe High Holydays, and is embroidered with the names of my beloved parents, Mr. and Mrs. Menachem Mendel Sorin of blessed memory, who donated it to cover a Sefer Torah donated by the Aronoff family.

The story of the Torahis representative of the wanderings of the Jewish people over the last 100 years.

The Aronoff family had been an active family in the Shenandoah Jewish community and synagogue and had bought several Sifreh Torah over the years to give to the shul in Shenandoah.  When the shul was closing because most of theJews had left the town or had passed away, the Aronoff family was interested in buying back a Torah.  It was not clear what Torahs were kosher and in fixable condition, so they sent a relative and a sofer stam to check them out. They chose one Torah and this white Torah cover.

Because a grandson was about to be bar mitzvah in Israel,the Aronoffs  transferred the Torah to Israel to be repaired and to prepare a new Torah cover. The Torah would be dedicated in ashul in Lapid, Israel, across the road from Maccabim where my daughter Karen Goldberg and her family live.

When the Torah arrived, they noticed that the writing on the cover was a dedication given by Mr. and Mrs. Max Sorin - my beloved parents, Max and Rebecca.  A notification was put out and THE TIMING WAS PERFECT.

I was in Israel just atthat time and gathered all the Shenandoah relatives together for the dedication of this now-kosher Torah scroll and new cover to the shul in Lapid. They offered me this white Torah cover and the Sorin family came away with an heirloom.

On the base of the Sefer Torah was printed that it was dedicated in Shenandoah in the year 1912: Tav Ayin Reish Bet  תער'ב.  The actual Hebrew year was Tav Reish Ayin Bet תרע'ב  , but the letters were changed around to avoid having theyear be listed as "in famine," which is the English translation of theword Ra’av רעב ,spelled Reish Ayin Bet.

When the Torah was checked, the sofer stam said that he had recognized the writing, as he had seen this writing from other Sifreh Torah and that the Torah was probably written around 1900 in Russia and then brought to the US and dedicated in Shenandoah.

There is no date on the Torah cover, but it is clear that the Torah and the cover were together in the Aron Kodesh for many years, whether or not they shared each other, they shared the Aron Kodesh.

It gave the Aronoff family and me a sense of closure to be part of the dedication of this Torah scroll in Israel after the Torah had made its way from Russia, which is where my family roots are, through Shenandoah, which is where I grew up, and over to Israel, the homeland of the Jewish people. 

It was in Israel that two families from a small Pennsylvania mining town, and who live so close together today, gathered to be part of this mitzvah.  I was blessed to be there withmy two daughters and their children, along with other relatives of my extended family who were in Israel at the time.

On the cover is embroidered the saying from the siddur: "Eitz chaim hee la'mach-zikim bah, v'tomcheh’ha, meh’u’shar."....."It is the tree of life for those who take hold of it, and happy are those who support it."

I’m so proud to be ableto contribute this historic Torah cover to Kesher Israel, my beloved congregation, to maintain the Jewish connection from Russia to Shenandoah to Israel to Harrisburg.   

In all its travels, it has been a pure white symbol of continuity and Jewish life in the four corners of the world.  May it serve as a reminder to this community of that everlasting connection among Jews everywhere that has kept our faith and our heritage alive. Shabbat Shalom.

Kurenets is not shown on this map, but it is located between Narach in the north and Vilyeyka in the south.  Narach was once called Kobylnik, which is where the Lewitan family is from.  The Lewitans were related to the Yankel Alperovich family and when Martin Alpert came to the US in 1903, he lived with the Lewitans (who changed their name to Levine) in Shenandoah, PA.  Most of them later moved to Norfolk, VA.

The whole story comes from one mans journey to Lithuania - his pictures and story can be found at :

http://www.eilatgordinlevitan.com/kurenets/k_pages/ns_pictorial.html

Monroe Township, New Jersey ? The Chabad Jewish Center of Monroe will mark an important milestone Sunday with the acquisition of an ark, the sacred structure used to house the Torah. But it's more than a new beginning ? it also marks an end.

The ark will come from the 159-year-old Kehillat Israel temple in Shenandoah, Pa., which is no longer in use. The empty synagogue was once the center of a thriving Jewish community in the coal-mining town.

?We had over 100 Jewish families when I was growing up. Now there's barely 11 Jews in Shenandoah,? said Herb Siswein, 80, who said he was an active member of the congregation. His grandfather attended services at Kehillat in 1892, he said.

?It's very heartbreaking,? said Ethel Harris, 79, who was president of the sisterhood there. ?It was really a very beautiful old synagogue.?

Her husband, Mendel Harris, 84, was the last president and treasurer of the congregation. He plans to say Kaddish, the Jewish mourning prayer, for the temple.

?It's like the death of a loved individual,? he said.

But the transfer of the ark will also keep a part of Kehillat alive, the Harrises said. ?It stood in that temple for decades and it represented God and the Torah in that community, and was part of the celebration of new life, of new marriages, (and) of life-cycle events in that community,? said Rabbi Eliezer Zaklikovsky of the Monroe temple. ?And now, instead of that ark being destroyed, it is moving on where it can have new life in a new environment.

?It will be a source of inspiration for anybody who will see it and will come to celebrate life in its new home."

Proceeds from the sale of the ark will also help celebrate the lives of Kehillat congregants who have passed on. The money will go into a trust fund used to pay for the maintenance of Kehillat Israel Cemetery, Mendel Harris said.

Zaklikovsky said the Chabad Jewish Center is still in the process of negotiating the price of the ark.

The rabbi and 10 volunteers will head out Sunday morning for a drive to Shenandoah, Pa., to retrieve the ark. It will be a complex and careful process, he said, because the ark was built into the temple wall in accordance with Jewish tradition.

It will be placed in a new building that is under construction. The building is expected to be completed and dedicated within six months, the rabbi said.

The acquisition of the ark coincides this week with the Yartzeit, or anniversary of death, of Rebbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, who was the leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, Zaklikovsky said. The Chabad Jewish Center of Monroe will honor his memory with the new addition, the rabbi said, and will also mark his 1994 passing by visiting his grave in Queens, N.Y., on Thursday

THE RECORDS OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY OF SHENANDOAH, PENNA.

They are few in number now. The last 5 represent the remnants of a once thriving Jewish community whose history parallels the history of America, at least 121 years of it. My family: great grandfather, 4 grandparents, my father, my brother, Aunts, Uncles and cousins are there as well ? in the cemetery on the hill.

These are the records of the Kehillath Israel  Synagogue ? the Jewish community of Shenandoah, Penna., chartered in 1884. It is officially over now, the synagogue and community center sold, the mikveh empty, the torahs gone, the shul dismantled piece by piece, beloved pew by beloved pew.

Shenandoah, in NE Penna lies at the western end of the poconos. It sits in a valley surrounded by the Allegheny mountains, part of the Appalachians.  Toward the middle of the 19th century, rich anthracite coal veins were discovered in the area and for about 90 years, till replaced by natural gas and oil, coal was king. The hills and mountains surrounding the town, now green with vegetation were black with slag when I was a child and the mines were working.

It was coal that brought thousands of immigrants to Shenandoah, among them all 4 of my grandparents from Lithuania, Latvia and the Ukraine. The Jewish immigrants, for the most part capitalized on the need to service the miners and their families in mercantile industry. Every shop on main street was owned by Jews.  In 1916, some years after my grandparents arrived,  Shenandoah had the densest population in 1 square mile in the country ? 30,000 people.

Many of the immigrants who came to Shenandoah did live the American dream. Safe from the fears of Europe they did business and got along with their gentile neighbors,  worked hard, did well and raised American children while preserving their Judaism. Moreover they forged a community and the institutions of a community a synagogue, a hebrew community center, a cemetery, talmud torah., ladies aid society. The minutes which begin in Yiddish in 1920 (first book from 1884-1920 has been lost) reflect a sick committee, membership committee, choral committee, auditing committee, journal committee, mikvah committee-a Board of Education, cemetery committee and butcher committee. The butcher shop was owned by the community and its fate was the subject of continual discussion and debate throughout the years.

These records reflect both the industriousness of community members in preserving the values, ritual and spirituality of their heritage and their equal assumption of their responsibilities as new Americans..  

The minutes of the community meetings are charming, humorous, informing, historical, disarming, sometimes disturbing and painful, e.g., the minutes after 1939  as a rather isolated Jewish community wrestles with the guns of war and the implications for them.

Some Examples:

On February 28, 1926 there was a Purim party where my grandfather  Sam Harris, a bakery owner and President of the shul provided 110 Hamentaschen ? for $11.

During the 1920?s and prohibition, the Shamos, Mr. Goldhoffer was relieved of his duties when it was found he was had made a ?still? in the mikveh.

During the depression times were tough, especially for the Rabbi whose duties included killing the chickens for the butcher shop.

There were planned debates at the end of each meeting:

November, 1938: ?Was Chamberlain Right in Signing the Munich Pact with Hitler?

April, 1939- Debate: ?Should Yiddish or Hebrew be taught to our children??

There are meticulous ledgers on the ?business? of the community , their assets and debits and strategies to keep them in business, especially during the depression. There were ledgers for shul dues, hebrew school fee and discussions about who paid and who didn?t , ( and in a small town, who didn?t was no secret); discussions as to who could and couldn?t among those who did and didn?t. Discussions re: membership recruitment,  teachers salaries, bills for carpenters, plumbers, food for events, cleaning the shul for Rosh Hashanna, fire insurance..

In World War II the Shenandoah Jewish community sent 110 sons and daughters to war in every branch of the service including every male member of my family. Two of them did not return.  A third, a POW was sent to the salt mines where the Germans sent Jewish GI?s vs. POW camp. Few returned. Buddy did. All served honorably and many received many medals of honor- purple hearts,  bronze stars, etc.

It was after the war that the community began to decline with the declining fortunes of the town as the mines closed, and the educational and economic opportunities (under the GI bill) in larger cities beaconed.

The records of the Shenandoah community are an example and a tribute to the many, many Jewish communities that once thrived but have since dissolved throughout 350 years of American Jewish history. Although the reasons vary, they all died of natural causes vs. the lost communities of Europe. And that is because America has been the golden medina. These records are my legacy and that of my children, grandchildren and their grandchildren. May they be blessed in memory. We come from a good place. I could not be more proud.