DECEMBER 21, 2001 / 14 TEVET 5782

 

The congregation at Temple Emanu-El celebrated its first major sanctuary renovation in twenty-five years.

 

Over the course of roughly sixty days, the entire sanctuary was re-polished, re-floored, re-lit, and in many cases, completely rebuilt.

 

The before picture is bottom-left. The after photo is bottom-middle.

 

The green carpet was removed and replaced with new, patterned carpet that better complimented the updated color scheme. The hardwood flooring, original to the Temple’s 1941 construction, was cleaned and polished. It now covers the area immediately beneath the refurbished pews and updated pew cushions.

 

The single-scroll Torah stand was replaced with a specially-constructed stand designed to support two Torah scrolls.

 

The organ, which sat on the edge of the Bimah, was donated to a local charity. The Bimah steps were then rebuilt and carpeted to fill the emptied space. New handrails were installed on each end of the Bimah.

 

Upon completion of the much-anticipated renovation, congregants gathered for a “well-attended Potluck Dinner…and then a Torah Procession from our temporary Ark on the [Fellowship] Hall stage to the Bimah of our Sanctuary.

 

After . . . opening prayers, we marched our Torah scrolls around the Sanctuary, and then placed them into our Ark on our Bimah.”
            – Cantor Neil Schwartz, January, 2022