Grand opening of new Chabad House in Connecticut

Glastonbury, CT — These are very exciting times for the Greater Hartford Jewish community. For the thousands of families of all denominations touched by Chabad’s activities, this is a true time of rejoicing. Construction for the all new, state-of the-art Bennett Rothstein Chabad Jewish Center in Glastonbury is all but complete.

More pictures in the Extended Article

A Grand Opening date has been set for Sunday, June 3rd, and will take place at the site of the new Center – 25 Harris Street in Glastonbury. “We invite every member of the community to celebrate this great milestone,” said Rabbi Yosef Wolvovsky, Executive Director of Chabad: East of the River which operates the Glastonbury location. “Our doors are open to everyone,” he said. The event, which is free and open to all, will begin at 1:00pm.

The new Center will serve all segments of the community with a large variety of educational, social, cultural, and religious services. The largest space of the facility will be designated as a multi-purpose room, housing the sanctuary as well as the social hall. The educational wing of the building will include children and adult classrooms, a multi-media library, and a conference room. In addition, space is set aside for offices, kitchens, and an art gallery.

“The entire community is very, very excited about this new Center,” said the Rabbi. “People are eager to contribute and to get involved in any way possible.”

For the past six years, Chabad: East of the River has been operating out of the Wolvovsky’s home. For holidays and larger events, they would rent a local hall or school to conduct activities. With the steadily increasing demand for Chabad’s services, however, this setup proved to be inadequate. And so, armed with the desire to do good and help others, and the backing of some dedicated supporters, Chabad began searching for a permanent home.

With the help of some very generous community members, led by the Rothstein family, Chabad purchased a 5,000-square-foot building which formally housed the Glastonbury Market, a local convenience store. The building needed a complete makeover to make it suitable for a Chabad Center. To that end, the organization commissioned the services of Russell & Dawson, a local, renowned architect, to draw up plans that would reflect Chabad’s needs and activities. In addition, the services of interior designer Rita Brownstein were secured to help layout the interior of the building.

Rabbi Wolvovsky credits several key community members in helping Chabad purchase the building. They include: Mr. Harold Rothstein (who will name the building in honor of his son, Bennett); Mr. Eugene Rosenberg, an owner of Bob’s Discount Furniture; Mr. Alan Lazowski of Laz Parking; Mr. Ilya Tzvok (who will name the Sanctuary in memory of his son, Mark); Mr. Jeffrey Hoffman of the Hoffman Auto Group; Mr. David Chase of Chase Enterprises; The Gelles Family; Mr. and Mrs. Bruce and Roberta Singer of Puritan Furniture; Mr. Stuart Cohn; Dr. and Mrs. Steve and Nancy Hershcopf; Attorney Bruce Beck; Margery Gussak of Margery Gussak Catering; Doctors Peter and Emily Buch; The Balaban Family; and Mr. & Mrs. Marvin Selsky.

The Rabbi also emphasized how grateful he is to the supporters of Chabad in West Hartford, led by Rabbi Joseph Gopin, for enthusiastically supporting the East of the River project. “It is truly heartening to see how much the people and supporters of Chabad in Harford care about the entire region,” he said.

To assure the Chabad Jewish Center’s financial stability, the organization has formed several new “clubs” of donors. “Every person or family can be a philanthropist,” said Wolvovsky. “Everyone can be a partner in the vital work of the Center.”

Added the Rabbi: “It is a very exciting time for the Jewish community… We invite you to invest in a very bright future!”

For more information on the Chabad Jewish Center, please call (860) 659-2422, email Rabbi@ChabadER.com, or log on to www.ChabadER.com.