Vision 2025
We are a cozy, friendly, open, and inclusive congregation. Our activities focus on Jewish religious services, education, ideas, and celebrations. Our programs range from cultural and learning events, to entertainment and dinners, to a broad range of activities that use our social hall to help strengthen community engagement and sustain operating income.
We own an architecturally distinctive building and an adjoining parcel of land. We maintain a beautiful sanctuary and social hall with a state-of-the-art kitchen. The parcel we own includes a landscaped pocket-park with a gazebo, a sukkah, and a wedding canopy or chuppah; a fireplace for barbecues; a community garden; and parking spaces.
We select our community engagement programs and services from among the following:
- Religion: Traditional and adult bar and bat mitzvah training
- Dining: Breakfast, lunch and dinner (from our fully equipped kitchen)
- Entertainment: Dances, movies, plays, and concerts
- Lessons: Dance, art, choral, crafts, sewing, knitting, cooking, and ESL
- Exhibits: Art, photography, and Chelsea’s ethnic and immigrant histories
- Markets: Swap meets, flea markets, yard sales, and auctions
- Wellness: Yoga/meditation, Zumba groups, and addiction recovery support groups
- Other: Rehearsals, recitals and lectures; local business, government and non-profit meetings and events; and mahjong, cards, and chess
We engage meaningfully with the following elements of Chelsea and other nearby communities:
- Religious: Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Jewish Arts Collaborative, local area chabads, the Walnut Street and Vilna shuls, college Hillel groups, and inter-faith events with other religious groups
- Nonprofit: Chelsea City Hall, City Council and Chamber of Commerce; GreenRoots; Chelsea Jewishlifecare; Chelsea Collaborative; Chelsea REACH Program; and Roca
- Neighborhood: We lead, assist, and host many local volunteer projects, including ALS and MS Walk for Living, and annual National Night Out community building parties, seminars, and exhibits.
We welcome multi-generation, interfaith, LGBTQ, and empty-nester individuals and families to our temple community with activities that strive to accommodate all needs. We serve our congregation while also offering secular programs for current, former, and new residents of Chelsea and other nearby communities. Our congregants, and others in the Boston area, regard us as honoring the Jewish tikkun olam tradition of benefiting local communities while helping to improve the wider world.