Illinois Jewish Center Expands Focus

More than two decades after selling its building as part of an expansion campaign, a suburban Chicago synagogue and Jewish center is expanding once again, utilizing its former home to support a new organizational structure designed to leverage what its rabbis do best: helping people of all ages and Jewish backgrounds.

Spearheaded by Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi Yochanan Posner, son of Lubavitch Chabad of Skokie founders Rabbi Yosef and Zeesy Posner, the new project began in 2009. Comparing the work of the Chabad House to a presidential campaign, he assessed its need for a staff to support the 24 hour work of “transforming our corner of the world into a holy place.”

Among Posner’s conclusions was the necessity of acquiring office space to supplement a building that had plenty of space for weekly and holiday services, and daily Torah classes, but little in the way of staff. Aaron Miller, a three-year resident of Skokie who developed a close relationship with the rabbi after studying together, said the topic frequently came up in their study sessions.

“We had to ask, how do we run this?” shared Miller. “Not like a synagogue, not like a charity, but like a life business.”

Posner found out that the building the Chabad House occupied back in 1984 – and sold several years later to buy its current home – was back on the market. With a layout perfect for the operational requirements of a support staff, Posner and his parents reacquired the building back in February. Besides for cleaning, no renovations were required.

“This was obviously Divine Providence: to have the building then [and] have someone else handle the details in between,” said Posner.

Having inhabited the new space for four months, the Posners are hiring people and already seeing results. More people are attending classes and participating in other programming, and the rabbis can worry less about logistics, and more about teaching classes and counseling those in need.

Rabbi Yosef Posner, who founded the Chabad House in 1981, said the ability to centralize all of the activities that go on behind the scenes – from getting the word out about programs to processing donations and paying bills – has proven invaluable.

“I see the difference in the things we have been able to accomplish,” said the elder Posner.

Vadim Muchnik, a Skokie resident for 10 years and a member of the lay leadership at the Chabad House for six years, serves on its financial advisory committee. He gave the addition of a new youth center as an example of the synagogue’s increase in activities.

“There was a strategic opportunity to reach out to the teenage community,” said Muchnik. By expanding the Chabad House’s offices, “the rabbis and their families have increased their personal capacity by 25 percent.”

And with the support structure in place, the synagogue has brought on additional Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries in Rabbi Chaim and Rochel Telsner.

“When we say we want to reach every single Jew, we really mean it. This isn’t a cliché, it’s for real,” said Yochanan Posner. “There are now several families on board, and each one has their mission.”

“It’s much more than about space,” added Miller. “Space without proper implementation is just open space. Now there is a vision, an implementation, and everyone is working towards the same goal.”