J. D. B. News Letter

(By our San Francisco correspondent)

The Jewish Center idea is taking root fast in the San Francisco Jewish community.

Not only have the past few months seen a crystalizing of intensive plans for the organization of an adequate Jewish Community Center and the erection of a suitable building to house it, but the center policy, with its opportunity for Jewish intellectual, cultural and recreational activity, is being adopted by more of the local Jewish congregations.

In fact, there has been manifested by San Francisco religious congregations an increasing desire to make of the synagogue more than a place of worship and to regard it as a gathering place for the members of all ages seeking to come together for their cultural and social benefit.

This idea, of course, has been carried out for years in the large Eastern cities but in the West the idea has been slow to take root and those congregations which have carried on cultural and social activities in conjunction with religious services have been hampered by lack of physical equipment.

Congregation Emanu-El was the first to provide its members with a spacious and properly equipped temple house, adjoining the synagogue, in which to carryy on its intellectual and recreational work. Now comes San Francisco’s second largest congregation–Sherith Israel-with elaborate plans to do the same.

For Years Congregation Sherith Israel, under the guidance of Rabbi Jacob Nieto, has fostered intellectual and recreational activities for its members but now there is a desire to expand this field of endeavor and definite plans are under way to provide a temple house for this purpose.

It is planned to erect a three-story building at a cost of approximately $100,000. A committee consisting of Harry K. Wolff, H. Sieroty and I. N. Eisenberg already has presented an architect’s sketch of the proposed new building which will adjoin the temple.

Congregation Beth Israel, of which Rabbi Elliott M. Burnstein is leader, also is considering plans for a temple house.

With this activity under way, plans are progressing favorably for the erection of a Jewish Community Center which has been a long felt want with the local community.

Developments in the past few weeks have brought the center movement much closer to materialization.

The idea first was broached some years ago by the Young Men’s Hebrew Association which sponsored the plan with the help of certain influential individual leaders of the Jewish Community.

Committee meetings have been held at intervals, there has been talk of seeking the necessary funds, but the project, a big one for San Francisco’s Jewish Community has lagged considerably. Now comes the Federation of Jewish Charities of San Francisco, rising to the need of a community center, and initiating plans for getting the project under way.

In fact, the federation seems to have taken the lead in a rejuvenation of the movement. Its president, Sylvain Kauffman, has been authorized to call a meeting of representative Jewish leaders to consider the whole center problem, to devise ways and means of obtaining the needed funds, and to launch an intensive effort to make the much-talked-of and long-anticipated center a reality.

This meeting, it is expected, will be held in the near future. In the interim, the federation officers are working in harmonions co-operation with the original center committee of the Y. M. H. A. consisting of Harold Zellerbach, chairman; Mrs. M. S. Koshland, Mrs. Leon Shoss, Jr. Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel and Louis H. Blumenthal.

It is believed that with the added force of the federation behind the project definite steps toward the desired end will be taken and much is expected of the meeting that now promises to take place within the coming fortnight of so.

Leading men and women of the San Francisco Jewish community are planning a farewell to Dr. Samuel C. Kohs, social service superintendent of the Eureka Benevolent Society who leaves here the end of May to become executive director of the Brooklyn Federation of Jewish Charities.

The resignation of Dr. Kohs, who has served virteally as directing head of all social service for the Federation of Jewish Charities, came as a surprise to the local Jewish community. To date no sucessor has been appointed and while names are being mentioned, no selection has been made.

Dr. Kohs came to San Francisco from Oakland, where he was head of social service for the Federation of Charities of that city. He came here as successor to I. Irving Lipsitch, who resigned to accept a simllar post in Los Angeles.