Wednesday, April 24, 2002
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Wednesday, April 24, 2002 |
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B'nai Israel breaks ground for synagogue By CAROLYN
CARY
The 21-year-old Congregation B'nai Israel held a groundbreaking last week of its very own building, a synagogue under construction at the corner of Corinth Road and Ga. Highway 54 east near the Clayton County line. The new facility is situated on seven acres purchased in 1991. The 6,233-square-foot building will include a 231-seat sanctuary, a multipurpose room, two offices and a kitchenette. The building is the first phase of a three-part building process which allows for two additions in the future. The congregation has been meeting for the past 21 years at the Christ Our Hope Lutheran Church on Ga. Highway 138 on the Fayette-Clayton line. The first meeting of the original families was in the community room at Sears in Southlake Mall. The congregation has grown from ten families to just over 80 families. "According to the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, we can expect our membership to double in two years because of the new temple," said building committee member Scott Siegel. Congregation B'nai Israel is a reform congregation and a member of the UAHC. The only synagogue on the south metro Atlanta area, it has members from a nine-county area. The building committee members are co-chairpersons Linda Dushman and Siegel, along with Norm Field, Mindy Smith (who is also president of the congregation), Mike Goldstein, Barbara Chuven, Max Baratz, and Rachel Tabachnick. The congregation can be reached at 770-471-3586 or www.Bnai-israel.net.
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