Rabbi Isser Brikman moved to Cherry Hill in December to launch the Chabad of Cherry Hill West. He spent the next six or seven months engaging Jews in the area and building up programs, like a monthly women’s gathering to celebrate the latest Jewish holiday and a monthly men’s get-together to wrap tefillin.
Brikman was beginning to connect the Jewish residents of Cherry Hill, Merchantville, Pennsauken and other towns on the western side of Camden County. The area has two Orthodox congregations, but few other institutional options for local Jews looking to connect.
The next step for the rabbi was to find a place: Brikman and his wife were renting an apartment, but they didn’t have a consistent public location for people to gather in.
That changed in recent weeks. The Chabad of Cherry Hill West is now renting a large space on the bottom floor of an office building on Chapel Avenue.
The rabbi had been looking for a place for months. One option fell through because it was going to cost too much to fix up as a rental. He also just hadn’t found the right one yet.
“I want to get a good location for everyone in the area,” he told Philadelphia Jewish Exponent in April.
He’s found that here.
The building is next to the AMC Cherry Hill 24 movie theater. It’s also down the street from the township’s “Golden Mile” along Haddonfield Road, where businesses like Trader Joe’s and Jersey Mike’s continue to thrive.
“It’s a central location,” Brikman said.
Inside, it is laid out as a narrow hallway with small rooms along the sides. Those rooms can be used for educational programming for young children, according to Brikman.
At the end of the hallway, there’s a much bigger space. That’s where Brikman plans to hold Shabbat and High Holiday services. Just last weekend, he hosted a bar mitzvah service and party there for a local family. Between 40 and 45 people attended.
The rabbi proudly showed videos on his phone of people clapping and dancing around the room.
“We feel excited. We still feel like we can’t just be happy with a place. We have to fill a place and use it,” Brikman said. “So, that’s what we’re working on next.”
It was always Brikman’s plan to find a place. But it was also necessitated by the growth of his Chabad operation.
“We soon realized that we were growing too big for our apartment and we couldn’t constantly rent a place for every single event,” he said.
He was looking around and speaking to brokers, but the right option didn’t come up. Then, two months ago, he walked into the building on Chapel Avenue.
“It’s divine providence how we got it,” he said. “It’s the best location, the size, everything, so we just went with it.”
In April, Brikman recounted a meeting with a potential donor. The man told the rabbi he would contribute once the Chabad found a home.
The rabbi said then he thought a public meeting place would allow his organization to grow “10 times more.” He reiterated that point in July.
“It means growth by 10 times,” he said. “We’ll be able to have Shabbat services. We’ll be able to turn the rooms into kids’ rooms. We’ll be able to have more in-person classes. We used to have Torah classes on Zoom because we didn’t have a place.”
The night of that conversation, Brikman was planning on welcoming more than 10 people to the facility for a class.
“Much more events and programs on a bigger scale,” he said.
While he was talking, the rabbi got a call from a delivery driver. He had the Chabad of Cherry Hill West’s new chairs and was going to leave them outside.
The rabbi needed a new set for the room where he’ll host Shabbat and other services.
“We’re going to set this place up,” he said.
More space puts more responsibility on the rabbi and rebbetzin. Brikman said a few generous donors “stepped up to help us cover, but, obviously, we still need more people.”
“Hopefully, more people will help us out and partner with us,” he added. “We want all of our programs to be accessible to all. Whatever financial situation someone’s in, we want them to come. That’s why we don’t charge membership.”
jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com