Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple

When I came to Fairmount with my family in 6th grade, I knew only a couple of other students. Transferring to a new program is always a little nerve racking… Immediately I was welcomed in with no problems by most everyone. That is when I really started to learn how well the people at Fairmount create a feeling of family and togetherness.

I’ve grown up surrounded by Judaism, ever since my first day at the Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple preschool. From day one I learned not just how to read, write, and color; but also how to live my life always keeping Jewish values in mind.

While Religious School encourages us to find God in our everyday lives, doesn’t it also encourage us to ask questions? To think for ourselves and wonder why all of this is happening? My Confirmation classmates have been nothing short of amazing. They have been open and accepting… I wonder if I find God in the unity and compassion of my close knit class.

There is a cove where we pray on the dads and kids campouts. Every time I’m there, I have mosquito bites on my leg and soaking pants from dew on the grounds. But I feel so in-tune with God and nature. The prayer Ahavat Olam talks about God’s love for us. If God loves me, God probably built that cove just for me.

Rabbi Robert Nosanchuk asked the overflow crowd of the Greater Cleveland Congregations that packed the Masonic Auditorium on Mon., June 6, 2011, to look at their hands. What can those hands do to fix what is broken within their struggling city, asked the Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple senior spiritual leader.

Traveling from Israel to Rosh Hashanah at Anshe Chesed was very special for me – coming home to the temple in which I was raised and nurtured since the third grade. It was such a good feeling to be greeted by family and friends of a lifetime.

Rabbi Nosanchuk, your words were inspiring on the tenth anniversary of September 11, 2001. Thank you for all you do for our community!