Deep Roots on North Broadway: 150-Plus Years of Jewish Life in Nyack
The story of Congregation Sons of Israel begins in March 1870, when twenty families, mainly German immigrants, gathered to form the Jewish Society of Nyack. They met in the back of a tailor shop on Main Street, just west of Franklin, holding services among the bolts of cloth and sewing machines. As the village grew, so did its Jewish community. On August 22, 1891, the congregation was formally incorporated as the Congregation of Nyack, B'nai Israel. Nine years later they opened a Hebrew school with ten students, and for several decades they continued to rent space, moving from place to place and, in colder months, gathering in members' homes.
By 1919 the congregation was ready for a permanent home. The Ladies Hebrew Aid Society, the precursor of today's Sisterhood, organized a building campaign. On March 2, 1920, the congregation paid $100 to Tunis Depew for a lot at the corner of South Broadway and Hudson Avenue. Four years of fundraising followed; the cornerstone was laid in 1924, and the synagogue building was dedicated on September 13, 1925. That same year brought the congregation's first full-time rabbi, Leon S. Lang, who declared the community would follow what he called Traditional Judaism, a path between Orthodox and Reform. Earlier in 1920 the congregation had voted to join the United Synagogue of America, now the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, an affiliation CSI Nyack continues to maintain.
The name Congregation Sons of Israel was adopted in 1936, and that same year the congregation's cemetery opened. Through the Depression and the war years, daily minyans were held at the Hudson Street synagogue, and Hebrew school met three times a week. During World War II, the community opened its homes to Jewish soldiers stationed at nearby Camp Shanks, the last stop in the United States before deployment overseas. An Army truck ferried the men to Nyack for Shabbat and holiday dinners; one family hosted thirty soldiers, in addition to their own relatives and guests, at a wartime seder.
The Move to North Broadway and a Painful Split
After the war, Nyack and Rockland County grew rapidly, and the congregation grew with them. By the late 1950s, with about a hundred families and a Hebrew school enrollment that had quadrupled to 134 students, the Hudson Street building could no longer accommodate the community. When the Depew family declined to sell the adjacent lot, the congregation turned its attention to a larger property on North Broadway, the old Lott estate, which included a two-story mansion behind a circa-1860 wrought-iron fence and a six-car carriage house with a chauffeur's apartment upstairs. The house stood empty for twenty years and was eventually demolished; the carriage house became a temporary synagogue during construction of the present building, which was dedicated with ceremony on September 21, 1967.
Disagreement about the decision to demolish the mansion, combined with other internal tensions, led to a painful split. Thirteen families left to found Temple Beth Torah. In at least one family, one brother joined the new congregation while the other stayed. The Hudson Street property was sold to the Berea Seventh Day Adventist Church, and Congregation Sons of Israel reaffiliated with the Conservative movement in 1965. Over the following decades the two congregations periodically discussed merging, but the requirement of a kosher kitchen was always a sticking point.
Building the Modern Congregation
The 1970s brought financial stress and declining membership, which members countered with cultural and social-action programming. The Chai Society produced a lecture and entertainment series called Sundays at Eight. Congregants made Braille books for blind Rockland County students, and the synagogue offered a Hebrew school class for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. As Nyack climbed out of its slump in the late 1970s, the congregation grew again, and the carriage house was expanded in 1983 to house the Audrey Beth Lender Hebrew School, named for the daughter of Harvey and Adeline Lender, memorialized after her death in a traffic accident at the age of twenty.
By the 1980s membership had passed two hundred families, a principal was hired for the Hebrew school, and Kadima and United Synagogue Youth chapters gave post-bar and bat mitzvah students a place to continue. In 1987, a dozen adults became b'nai and b'not mitzvah. The congregation marked its centennial in 1991 with a yearlong series of celebrations and established a Second Century Fund.
As real estate prices rose in Rockland County and singles, young couples, and young families found it harder to settle locally, enrollment in the Hebrew school dropped. Rather than scale back, the congregation reinvented the school as a small, boutique program responsive to each student. Today it includes the only special-needs Hebrew school program in Rockland County. In December 2011 a new school wing was dedicated, finally fulfilling the original 1967 design. Three years later, in 2014, Rabbi Ariel Russo became the congregation's first female spiritual leader.
The Building, the Grounds, and Temple Israel Memorial Park
Congregation Sons of Israel sits at 300 North Broadway in Upper Nyack, set back from the road behind a wrought-iron fence. The current building, dedicated in 1967 and expanded in 2011, holds the main sanctuary, a renovated social hall that can seat up to about two hundred guests for lifecycle events, and a community room and atrium that serve as smaller venues or cocktail reception spaces. The expanded school wing added modern, airy classrooms, and a larger, updated kitchen supports the synagogue's many kiddush lunches and catered events.
Adjacent to the main building, the old carriage house still stands, repurposed long ago as the Audrey Beth Lender School. Outside, a Giving Garden, planted in 2017, produces fresh vegetables that supplement the food pantries at People to People and Proyecto Faro. The grounds also host the community sukkah each fall.
The congregation's cemetery, Temple Israel Memorial Park, lies at 75 Van Wyck Road in Blauvelt. It is the only Jewish cemetery in Rockland County with a non-sectarian section, allowing couples and families of different faiths to be buried together when at least one family member is Jewish. Plots in both the Jewish and non-sectarian sections may be purchased through the cemetery committee.
Shabbat Services and a Participatory Bimah
At Congregation Sons of Israel, Shabbat is the heart of the week. Kabbalat Shabbat services are held on Friday evenings at 6:00 PM throughout the year. They are intimate, musical, and spiritually uplifting. Cantorial Soloist Ilana Davidson leads the service twice a month, accompanied by guest musicians, and the congregation joins in familiar melodies. On Shabbat the community recites the kiddush over wine or grape juice and honors loved ones observing their yahrzeits. Services are livestreamed on Twitch, allowing members who cannot attend to follow along from home.
Saturday mornings are highly participatory. Visitors and members alike are invited to take whatever role feels comfortable, from opening the ark or reciting a poem in English to reading Torah or accepting an aliyah. First-time guests are likely to be invited to the bimah for an honor but are always welcome to decline. The rabbi leads Torah discussions rather than formal sermons, and congregants are encouraged to engage, comment, and share. About once a month, the rabbi and hazzan lead a learner's minyan and study session. A pray-ground corner in the sanctuary gives children a place to play during services, and toward the end of the morning, Tot Shabbat and Hebrew school children join the bimah for a spirited conclusion.
After services, the community gathers for a sumptuous kiddush lunch in the social hall, where congregants schmooze, sponsor the meal in honor of a simcha, or celebrate birthdays with cake and ice cream. The congregation likes to say theirs is the best kiddush in Rockland.
The Audrey Beth Lender Hebrew School and Family Learning
Hebrew school at Congregation Sons of Israel is intentionally small and responsive. Classes meet on both Saturdays and Wednesdays, the only Hebrew school schedule of its kind in Rockland County, and learners participate directly in Shabbat services, making the bimah their second home. The school uses an arts-based, multiple-intelligences approach and maintains five multi-age classrooms that encourage collaboration and the development of social skills.
The Audrey Beth Lender Hebrew School serves children from third grade through b'nai mitzvah and beyond, with the rabbi and cantor teaching in the school and modeling Jewish practice for the students. The program has a long history of pioneering special-needs Jewish education in Rockland County. For the youngest learners, Preschool Hebrew School introduces three- and four-year-olds to the joy of Shabbat on Saturdays, using art, song, stories, and play to spark curiosity and a love of Judaism.
Tot Shabbat, offered twice monthly from September through June at 11:00 AM in the school wing, is designed for children from birth through age five and their families. The interactive service includes basic prayers, Jewish symbols, stories, and values, along with baby signs, movement activities, uninhibited dancing, clapping, and laughter. Afterward, all children are welcomed to the bimah for juice and challah, followed by a kiddush lunch with the congregation.
Adult Education and Weekly Coffee Chat
Adult learning at CSI Nyack meets learners wherever they are. The congregation offers classes at all levels, from beginning Hebrew and Torah reading to spiritual and philosophical study and weekly learning sessions with the rabbi. Every Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM, members and friends gather for Coffee Chat, hosted on Zoom, an informal hour of conversation and connection. The congregation also hosts a Yiddish Club, a Joie d'Juivre book club, the ROMEOS (Retired Old Men Who Eat Out), and the Giving Gardeners, along with other special-interest groups.
Learning is a two-way street at CSI Nyack. Rabbi Russo writes regularly on Rabbi Russo's Corner, and the cantor and rabbi work together to prepare b'nai mitzvah students, lead adult Hebrew literacy classes, and help congregants feel confident enough to lead parts of the service themselves.
Life Cycles: B'nai Mitzvah, Weddings, Conversion, and End of Life
Congregation Sons of Israel accompanies its members through every chapter of Jewish life. Rabbi Russo creates customized life-cycle commemorations, working with families on baby namings (Simchat Bat) and brit milah, b'nai mitzvah, aufrufs, weddings, and funerals, and meeting with people interested in conversion. She co-officiates on request and works with couples to create thoughtful wedding ceremonies; she also joyfully officiates at same-sex marriages. For couples preparing to marry, premarital counseling is offered as an opportunity to deepen the relationship in advance of the wedding day.
The synagogue's b'nai mitzvah program is nurturing and supportive. Students are met where they are in their learning and gently guided to make the most of the experience. The cantor prepares each student, beginning about six months in advance, with Torah trope, prayers, and Haftarah chanting; the rabbi works with the student on a D'var Torah. Each student completes a mitzvah project, choosing a cause or organization to support as a way of modeling responsibility for the broader community. The synagogue asks that children have at least five years of Jewish education prior to their b'nai mitzvah. The full B'nai Mitzvah Guide is available for download.
At the cemetery in Blauvelt, the rabbi visits families during illness and at the end of life, helping plan funerals and organizing shiva minyanim. The Chesed Committee provides meals, rides, and other practical support to those in mourning.
The congregation also embraces what it calls innovative rituals, ceremonies for milestones that have not traditionally been marked in synagogue life, such as retirement, divorce, fertility struggles and miscarriage, or moving.
Social Life: Sisterhood, Men Who Cook, and Friends Old and New
People at Congregation Sons of Israel genuinely enjoy spending time together. Weekly Shabbat lunches, free and open to all, follow Saturday morning services at around 11:30 AM, and on warm days children and parents linger outside at the playground. Sisterhood offers a year-round calendar of lectures, pool parties, dinners, and Mah Jongg tournaments; the twice-annual Mah Jongg tournament, held each May and November, draws players from across the county for a full day of play, prizes, and food.
Men Who Cook is the congregation's volunteer kiddush and luncheon team, ready to make any simcha extra special. Whether families choose an outside caterer, the Men Who Cook team, or a do-it-yourself event, the synagogue's recently renovated social hall provides the setting. A Three Star Luncheon for thirty to forty-five guests runs $359; a Deluxe Luncheon for fifty to sixty runs $672; and a Premier Luncheon for sixty to eighty runs $858. All food must be kosher and from a source approved by the rabbi, and the congregation maintains a regularly updated list of approved kosher caterers from across the Hudson Valley and northern New Jersey.
Beyond the synagogue walls, the congregation offers a Friday Night Dinner Club, with three cycles each year in which members host one another in their homes; the Free Birds, a group of members in their fifties and sixties; the HaBonim club for members aged fifty-five and older; and ROMEOS, retired men who gather for lunch at a different restaurant in the county each month.
Holiday social programming weaves through the calendar. Pizza in the Sukkah introduces children to Sukkot. Matzah Brei on the Porch takes members out to Art Cafe in Nyack during Passover. Lots of Latkes fills the social hall for Hanukkah. The Purim Carnival gathers the entire community for games, raffles, prizes, and face painting. On Simchat Torah, the sanctuary fills with families for a Klezmer band, chocolate fondue, and dancing with the Torahs. A Summer Family Shabbat BBQ, a Lag B'Omer BBQ, and an Annual Journal Dinner Dance in the spring round out the social calendar.
Chesed and the Caring Community
The Chesed Committee, named for the Hebrew word meaning loving-kindness, is composed of volunteers who make sure the congregation cares for one another during the highs and lows of life. The committee organizes emotional and logistical support and meals for members who are mourning, recuperating from illness, or adjusting to a new baby. It also celebrates accomplishments, from running a marathon to having an article published.
Through the Max Smith Golden Book, members can send cards for any occasion: In Memoriam, Get Well, Thank You, Mazel Tov, or Thinking of You, for $5 each. The committee provides rides to medical appointments, phone calls to homebound members, a minyan for shiva, and deliveries of meals to families sitting shiva. The committee also runs an opt-in listserv and a Caring Community e-chain for time-sensitive news.
Social Action: Welcoming the Stranger, Feeding the Hungry, Pursuing Justice
Social action is woven into the life of Congregation Sons of Israel. The congregation's social action platform centers on three Jewish values: Hachnasat Orchim (Welcoming the Stranger), Gemilut Hasadim (acts of loving-kindness, expressed through feeding the hungry), and Tzedek, Tzedek Tirdof (Justice, justice you shall pursue).
CSI Nyack is a founding member of Rockland Jews for Immigrant Justice, a collaboration of six local Jewish organizations working in solidarity with Proyecto Faro, a grassroots, immigrant-led mutual aid organization. The congregation participates in HIAS' annual Refugee Shabbat and maintains ongoing contact with resettled Afghan refugee communities across New York State. Before the pandemic, the congregation hosted an Annual Interfaith Dinner that brought neighbors from many Nyack-area faith communities together for a home-cooked Shabbat meal; it also participates in the Interfaith Clergy Association of Nyack's Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service each year.
The Giving Garden, planted on the synagogue grounds in 2017, produces fresh vegetables for donation to People to People's food pantry and to the community refrigerators operated by Proyecto Faro. Volunteers rotate through the garden from May to November; no gardening experience is required, and children and teens are welcome. The congregation is a year-round contributor to the Rhoda Bloom Kosher Food Pantry, administered by Rockland Jewish Family Service, and the annual Kol Nidre appeal is directed toward that pantry. CSI Nyack also participates regularly in the Nyack Homeless Project's Thanksgiving and Spring food drives, and Hebrew school children and young families have baked cornbread, hamentaschen, and seven species granola for Grace Episcopal Church's Thursday morning free breakfast program in Nyack.
In keeping with its pursuit of a more just society, the congregation has issued an Anti-Racism Statement grounded in the teaching that all people are created B'tzelem Elokim, in the image of God. The leadership commits to ongoing anti-racism training and to building bridges with Jewish and non-Jewish communities of color. The congregation also maintains close relationships with the Rockland Pride Center, Proyecto Faro, and the Interfaith Clergy Association of Rockland.
Keilim, Community Values, and an Open Tent
Congregation Sons of Israel is one of ten congregations that have worked with Sacred Spaces and the USCJ on the Keilim Policy Toolkit, a process of clarifying values, surveying the community, and enacting policies to prevent and address abuses of power. The CSI Nyack Keilim Cohort has identified eleven core values: B'tzelem Elohim (seeing the Divinity in each person); Omek (depth and a hunger to learn from diversity); Sokranut (curiosity); Ohel Moed (an Open Tent practicing audacious hospitality across race, sexual orientation, faith, ability, age, and neurotype); Midot (recognizing that every member is inherently a value); Hemish (a family-like community where everyone is seen and heard); L'Dor V'Dor (an intergenerational hub); Masorti (honoring tradition while creating new dreams); Chesed (conscious acts of kindness); B'emtza (centering marginalized voices); and Tikkun Olam (repairing the world).
Membership, Leadership, and the Office
Congregation Sons of Israel is led by Rabbi Ariel Russo, the spiritual leader of the community since 2014. A graduate of Barnard College and the Jewish Theological Seminary's List College with degrees in psychology and Talmud, Rabbi Russo received rabbinic ordination and a master's degree from the Davidson School of Jewish Education in May 2014, along with a certificate from the Center for Pastoral Care and Counseling. She serves as a mentor in the Pearl and Jack Resnick Internship Program and supervises a fourth-year rabbinical student at CSI each year. Rabbi Russo grew up at Temple Beth Sholom in Cherry Hill, NJ, and lives in the area with her husband, Matthew Russo, and their children, Aviv, Liel, and Shai.
Associate Rabbi Jill Hackell, MD, works alongside Rabbi Russo. Ilana Davidson, a Grammy-winning soprano who has performed works in Hebrew, Ladino, Sardinian, Arabic, Russian, and Yiddish, serves as Cantorial Soloist; her career in Jewish music was shaped by her father and mentor, Cantor and composer Charles Davidson, of blessed memory. The Education Director, Liat Lemberger, oversees the Audrey Beth Lender Hebrew School, Preschool Hebrew School, and Tot Shabbat.
Membership is open to Jewish adults, interfaith families, and non-Jewish family members, all of whom are welcome and encouraged to participate in synagogue life. Categories include Family, Associate, Individual, Long Distance, Young Adult, and Senior memberships, with new Family and Senior members receiving a 50% discount on dues for their first two years. Members receive admission to High Holy Days services, discounts on programs year-round, reduced rates for private events, access to the playground, eligibility for the Hebrew school, and preferred pricing for cemetery plots in Temple Israel Memorial Park. Members also have a voice in the life of the synagogue and the chance to celebrate life cycles in the sanctuary with the rabbi and cantor.
The synagogue office is open Tuesday through Thursday from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM and on Fridays from 9:00 AM to 2:30 PM. The office is closed on Mondays. The mailing address is 300 North Broadway, Upper Nyack, NY 10960. The phone number is 845-358-3767. Donations and dues may be made online through ShulCloud, by check, or through PayPal. Opportunities to give include the Tree of Life, the Brick Walkway, memorial and yahrzeit plaques, sanctuary chairs and library plaques, and the Siddur Lev Shalem bookplate program.
Congregation Sons of Israel Nyack remains a community proud of its past and confident in its future. With more than a century and a half of Jewish life on North Broadway, a sanctuary that fills with song on Shabbat morning, a Hebrew school that welcomes every learner, a social hall that hosts simchas and community suppers, and a congregation that gathers weekly around a kiddush table, CSI Nyack continues to bring tradition and community together for meaningful Jewish experiences and impactful social action.