JEWISH WORLD

22 JEWISH WORLD • JUNE 14-20, 2024 continued from page 9 Grossman Today’s Temple Adas Israel, resplendent in all its glory. Nearly 15 percent of Sag Harbor’s popula- tion early in the last century were Jewish, which is nothing short of remarkable. “Was there anti-Semitism in Southampton?” Abe writes. “Of course. It lurked in hidden corners of hostile minds, waiting to confront us, usually on unequal terms…like a constant pressure on the nerves, a part of day-to-day living: and we put up with it, as an old man puts up with a ringing in the ears.” For Jews in Southampton, “We had to accept there were people who did not like Jews, any Jews…. And there were times when the knife cut truly deep…. No way around it. In Southampton we were different from other people…” “We had a sort of prescience as to who was anti-Semitic and who was not. People put out vibes, sometimes unintentionally, and our antennae were always quick to catch them….” Abe Frank also writes: “While there was obviously no welcome mat for Jews in Southampton, not everyone bore a grudge against the family of Israel and Rachel. And there were many who showed gen- erosity and kindness to the Israelite in their midst.” For Temple Adas Israel in Sag Harbor, a major turning point came when Leon Morris, the last of sev- eral part-time rabbis, became its first full-time rabbi in 2010. In 2014 Rabbi Leon and his family made Aliyah, and he’s now president of the Pardes Institute in Israel. He was succeeded by Rabbi Dan Gef- fen. A nother major turning point has been the restoration of the syn- agogue, a magnificent job that start- ed in 2021. It originally was a vi- sion of Rabbi Leon. Architect Lee Pomeroy drew up plans but, sadly, passed away, and was succeeded by another superb architect, Bill Chaleff. Overseeing the project was contractor Roy “Buddy” Wines and his Southampton-based company RLW4. There were only minor changes in the footprint of the synagogue. The exquisite sanctuary has been left largely as it was. The stunning stained-glass windows fashioned by Sag Harbor artist Romany Kramoris, who used 10,000 pieces of glass, received vital protection. Most of the renovation involved digging out a basement, expanding other portions of the building and making such improvements as add- ing an elevator for the disabled and creating space for the Ronald S. Lauder Center for Jewish Learning. Ronald and Jo Carole Lauder, who live in Wainscott, are mem- bers. He is president of the World Jewish Congress and former U.S. ambassador to Austria. His late mother, make-up queen Estee Laud- er, was an Adas Israel member. The matching Lauder grant was crucial to the congregation’s being able to afford the $7.3 million project. The congregation had homes away from home during the renova- tion, thanks to the big-heartedness of First Presbyterian Church in Sag Harbor, known as Old Whaler’s Church, and the Cormaria Retreat Center. Services were held inside the church and also on its front lawn. And a string of services was held on the lawn of the Cormaria Retreat Center of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, a global Roman Catholic community. Sag Harbor has a tradition of ac- cepting others. There’s now another synagogue in Sag Harbor, the Center for Jewish Life, a Chabad. The idea for the cen- ter emerged in 2013 in the living room of the home of Rabbi Berel Lerman and his wife, Brocha, in North Haven, and at the Sag Harbor Inn, and is now on Long Island Av- enue and seeking a permanent home. In 2013, The Jerusalem Post pub- lished a story headlined: “The Jew- ish Hamptons.” It began by telling how the Hamptons “have attracted” many Jews who have “established thriving institutions.” In Riverhead there’s the Conser- vative Temple Israel of Riverhead. Its first synagogue building opened in 1926. An extensive history of the shul online includes among its many pages these items: • “1930s. Sam Saxtein inadver- tently stocks the Peconic River with carp when he digs a trench to link his pond to the river. Prior to the trench, there were a healthy number of fresh pike (pickerel) and perch (whitefish) in the Pecon- ic, but no carp, a necessary ingredi- ent for gefilte fish. So, Sam puts in netting at the end of the trench to prevent his carp from escaping. The roe slips through the net. Thanks to Sam, there’s carp swim- ming in the river today.” (Who knew the Peconic River was a source for gefilte fish!) • “1937. Nazi youths march on the streets of Camp Siegfied in nearby Yaphank. The Scheinberg family is vigilant. They hide a cache of diamonds in their base- ment in the event the Nazis come into power and the family needs to flee.” Here in Suffolk County—a con- cern by a family that it might need to flee to escape violent anti-Semi- tism, a concern shared by Jews throughout the world for ages. There are now plenty of Jews in the East End, and the community is flourishing. In the Town of Southampton, the top-elected official, the town su- pervisor, has been until this year— he was term-limited—Jay Schnei- derman, whose family are members of Temple Adas Israel. His son, Ruben, was bar mitzvahed at the synagogue, and before that his daughter, Magda, was bat mitzva- hed here. Jay’s late mom, also named Magda, left Hungary for the U.S. 1938. “Hitler wiped out the rest of her family,” says Jay. And in Southampton Village, Jesse Warren, a Jew, served as mayor between 2019 and 2023. A few blocks from the old Fa- hys’ watchcase factory, now con- verted into an apartment complex, our son, Adam, went to elementary school, then to Pierson High School. Adam went on to law school, became Riverhead town at- torney, and was a member and then chairman of the Southampton Town Zoning Board from 2002 to 2023 when he was appointed a Southampton Town justice. His great grandparents, Herman and Stefanie, would be so proud of Adam—as we are. Karl Grossman is professor of journalism at the State University of New York at Old Westbury and host of the nationally aired televi- sion program ‘Enviro Close-Up.’ For many years, there was great tension be- tween the town’s Hungarian Jews and those who came from Poland and Russia.