Chabad Jewish Center Settles into New Home

TEMECULA, CA — The Chabad Jewish Center of Temecula finally has a home that’s not, well —- a home. For the last 12 years, Chabad has operated out of the home of Rabbi Yitzchok Hurwitz and his wife, Dina. Almost immediately after they moved into Temecula, they opened up their house for a Purim celebration.

“There were boxes in our living room, dining room, all over,” Dina Hurwitz said, smiling at the memory during an interview at Chabad’s new office space in Temecula, a suite in the Nicole Lane shopping center near Overland and Margarita roads.

Although they had contemplated a move years earlier, the Hurwitzes decided late last year that it was finally time to move the services and classes that Chabad holds from their home.

After a search, they ended up in a Murrieta shopping center, but that only lasted for a month —- January —- because the owner of the building ended up losing the center, the rabbi said.

Finding a new spot ended up being tougher than expected, but they eventually leased the office space in the Nicole Lane center, a corner suite that faces the center’s gurgling fountain.

To help Chabad settle in after the move, the 35 families that regularly turn out for services and classes have given of their time and talents —- painting the interior, for instance —- and donated homemade items that are used during services.

The white curtain that is used to shield the holy ark, for instance, was donated by a synchronized-swimming coach.

“People in the community have really been getting together to help make this work … to make it their home,” he said.

With the new office up and running, the Hurwitzes hope more people will stop by to attend a class or service. When they were running things out of their house, they said, some people might not have attended a particular event for fear of imposing.

If participation soars as hoped for, they might be on the move again.

“Hopefully, we’ll have to move into a bigger place,” he said.

One of the obstacles that prevented a move earlier was the economy, they said.

When it was roaring during the middle of the last decade, rent was too expensive. When the economy crashed, some of Chabad’s longtime members left the area because of the housing crisis. Those who remained were hurting along with everyone else.

For people unfamiliar with a Chabad House, it serves as a sort of community center that works to share information about Judaism with different types of Jews and non-Jews.

“I say I’ve got a basket of candy, take what you want,” the rabbi said, adding that people from all different backgrounds are welcome.