Planting Seeds in the City

July 31, 2017 Alan Feiler, Editor-in-Chief

Diana Goldsmith and Josh Sherman of Repair the World: Baltimore (Photo by Evan Cohen)

Years ago, when I was a card-carrying, true-blue city dweller, if you’d told me there eventually would be a downtown JCC or a shul preschool in Federal Hill, I might’ve laughed in your face.

At that time, the Jewish community’s reclamation of the city had begun to take root but was largely organic. Young Jews were starting to flee the suburbs their parents opted to call home and relocating to such neighborhoods as Charles Village, Federal Hill, Mount Vernon and Canton. For many, it was a chance to soak up the ambience of urban living, if just for a few fleeting years, before going the family route and moving someplace “uptown” (translation: the ‘burbs).

Of course, the Jewish Museum of Maryland and its historic neighbors, B’nai Israel and the Lloyd Street Synagogue, were downtown. Beth Am Congregation and Shaarei Tfiloh Synagogue were nestled around Druid Hill Park. There also were a smattering of Chabad outposts and some in-town lunch-and-learn activities. And let’s not forget the headquarters of The Associated has always been in the city.

But other than that, there just wasn’t much of an organized Jewish communal presence. For the most part, there were simply Jewish singles and newlyweds scattered among the neighborhoods, sporting their “I Heart City Living” bumper stickers.

My, how times have changed. During the past decade, as more Jewish millennials, baby boomers and retirees have moved into the city, the organized community has picked up on the trend. Besides the aforementioned organizations, you have programs like Charm City Tribe, the JCC initiative that’s doing tremendous work to help Jewish millennials tap into their tradition in a fun, informal way. Bravo!

Then you have the groups profiled in this month’s cover story. The Downtown Baltimore JCC is catering to young families who want a Jewish milieu for their children without having to schlep up to Northwest Baltimore. Similarly, there’s Beth El @ Federal Hill. The Pikesville synagogue had the vision and wherewithal to address the needs of young parents who didn’t want to move from the city and wanted to give their kids a strong Jewish preschool experience.

Also, there’s Repair the World and the Moishe House, two groups that address the social justice and socialization appetites of young Jews. Both are part of national organizations, but with decidedly Bawlmer outlooks. While the Highlandtown-based Repair the World offers altruistic opportunities throughout the metropolitan region, the Moishe House in Federal Hill provides a physical presence for informal Jewish and general programming and interaction. Naturally, these groups often overlap and work in concert with each other.

That old cliche from “Field of Dreams” — “If you build it, they will come” — applies to this newest chapter of the Jewish Baltimore saga. But the folks who began working on the foundation of this building were those returning to the city, trying to forge a new life in Baltimore among the diverse groups there. And the organized Jewish community, noticing this trend, responded and should be commended for stepping up to the plate. Let’s hope it continues to flourish.

Warmly,

Alan Feiler,
Editor-in-Chief

Top photo: Diana Goldsmith and Josh Sherman of Repair the World: Baltimore (Photo by Evan Cohen)

Also see: Choosing to Live in the City