By Greg Archer | Contributing Columnist
A happy fate shines down on Temple Beth El in Riverside. The revered spiritual institution is benefitting from two recent shifts that will stretch its impact.
One of them is an Inland Empire Community Foundation Field of Interest Fund grant the organization uses for programming and initiatives. The other is the installation of a new rabbi at Temple Beth El.
Rabbi Guershon Kwasniewski hails from South America, taking over the reins of longtime and beloved leader, Rabbi Suzanne Singer. President Jory Yarmoff is quick to note the significant shift, Singer’s legacy, and how special funding, such as grants, allows the organization to plan and move forward.
“Funds like recent grants help us make an installation of a new rabbi possible,” Yarmoff said. “Our new rabbi was officially welcomed in on a Friday night in an event that was open to our whole congregation, then on Saturday night, we had a gala fundraiser at the Marriott, where several speakers, including the mayor of Riverside, spoke. It brought the community together.”
Yarmoff also noted how the Temple Beth El benefits from general funding, especially several of its teaching programs. Educational opportunities include adult education and religious school for pre-kindergarten through 10th grade. The organization also offers junior and senior youth groups that meet monthly for social activities.
For many years, Temple Beth El has used grant funding to invite speakers from other places for its adult education programs. At times, these resources also allowed the organization to invite singers and musicians to perform.
These “enhancements” generate a ripple effect.
Looking ahead, Yarmoff said Rabbi Gershon will invite cantors to sing at some of the services. Temple Beth El does not have its own cantor.
“We have volunteers that serve as cantor every week,” he said. “But these cantors are important as they lead the service with the rabbi.”
Also on the horizon for 2025 will be additional adult education programs and speakers who will filter into the unique mix of programming offered by Temple Beth El. All of it, Yarmoff said, feeds into the collective life force at the institution.
“It’s really about the community,” he said. “We really feel like a family rather than just a synagogue. We’re all there for each other. There aren’t a lot of Jews in Riverside. We’re the only actual synagogue, so it’s really become a place where we have a very diverse group of people.”
Diversity is significant in the congregation.
“We have LGBTQ+ members, and people from all different places, but we all are united as a family in the celebration of Judaism,” Yarmoff said. “Everybody meets other people here. It’s friendly, and we have a lot of events together.
“People are ecstatic about the place,” he said.
The love spreads far and wide. The organization has a strong arm in community outreach, linking people to information and/or volunteer opportunities in the field of climate change, homelessness, and human rights.
“We’re always trying to get more people to come in,” Yarmoff said, “whether you’re Jewish or not, because all people are welcome here.”
Learn more at Temple Beth El at tberiv.org.
Inland Empire Community Foundation works to strengthen Inland Southern California through philanthropy. Visit iegives.org.
