A New Chabad House Planned for West Boca
Chabad of West Boca Raton, an Orthodox synagogue known for its outreach to unaffiliated Jews, broke ground last week on a 1.2-acre parcel on State Road 7, on the south side of the Shoppes at Boca Greens.
Chabad’s rabbi, Zalman Bukiet, remembers moving to Boca Raton 24 years ago with Rabbi Moshe Denburg and their wives, figuring out where to live and how to meet the area’s Jews. They had gotten approval from Chabad’s worldwide leader, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, to start their congregations from scratch.
Now, Bukiet has four children, Denburg has eight, and their congregations are thriving. Denburg runs Chabad of Boca Raton at 17950 N. Military Trail. They have helped start several outreach programs and congregations in south Palm Beach County, including Chabad of East Boca, Chabad at Florida Atlantic University, Chabad Israeli Center and the Jewish Recovery Center for alcoholics and drug addicts, each run by fellow Chabad rabbis.
“We are open-minded and warm-hearted and nonjudgmental,” Bukiet said. “Nobody asks you who you are or what you are. You can come and learn on any level you want.”
Chabad rabbis are easily recognizable for their black suits, white shirts, long beards and black hats. Women wear long dresses and long sleeves and cover their hair. They observe the Sabbath, keep kosher, follow biblical commandments and separate men and women during prayer. But they welcome Jews of any background, encouraging them to observe the commandments when they are ready.
“Chabad is important for the survival of Judaism,” said Stan Sussman, 73, a congregant who grew up in the Conservative Jewish tradition. “We are open to receiving anyone.”
South Florida remains one of the largest Jewish communities in the country. In south Palm Beach County, there were about 136,800 Jews in 2005, the last time a study was done, making the area the nation’s ninth-largest Jewish community and the second largest in Florida. But only 20 percent of Jews reported local synagogue membership.
Bukiet said his congregation has about 200 members, with about 500 attending on the Jewish High Holy Days. Members have rented a 6,000-square-foot building across from Century Village for the past 18 years but decided to buy their own space when the lease expired.
They bought the new land with cash but still have to raise $1 million for the new 12,000-square-foot building, which will have a sanctuary, social hall, classrooms and a mikveh, or Jewish ritual bath, Bukiet said.
Danny Weiss, 51, a Boca Raton handyman who was born in Israel, said Chabad has helped him connect with his spiritual side, encouraging him to sing, dance and perform good deeds.
“I’ve gotten to learn about my hidden part, my soul, which every Jew has,” Weiss said. “It’s a little part of God that’s given to us, and we can transfer that inner joy to others.”
