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July 11, 2003/Tamuz 11 5763, Vol. 55, No.46
Synagogue founded in Fountain Hills
LEISAH NAMM
Managing Editor
Residents in Fountain Hills recently founded the town's first synagogue.
"We've been talking about it for years," said its president Fred Widom. "There weren't that many Jews around but in recent years, more and more Jewish people have moved in."
Nearly 40 people attended the initial Shabbat service of Beth Hagivot - "house in the hills" - on May 30.
Beth Hagivot holds services on the last Friday evening of each month at the Fountain Hills Community Center, with Cantor Howard Tabaknek, formerly of Temple Beth Israel in Scottsdale, officiating.
The synagogue will also conduct High Holiday services.
Widom describes the service as a blend of Reform and Conservative but said Beth Hagivot is not formally affiliating with either movement's organization at this time. The congregation is in the process of obtaining a Torah rescued from the Holocaust, he added.
"I am thrilled that there's going to be some sort of religious-based Jewish organization in town," said member Bob Slobin, who is also the president of Shalom of Fountain Hills, a Jewish social group that has met for the past 20 years. Its 60 members gather monthly to celebrate Jewish holidays, attend cultural events and hear guest speakers.
The average age of Shalom of Fountain Hills members is 60, but "the push for the coming year is to attract younger members," Slobin said.
There is a large population of retirees in Fountain Hills, but that's changing, he explained. "More young families are moving in."
The group recently formed its first membership committee, with Slobin's wife Alice serving as chairwoman.
Slobin said many Shalom members belong to synagogues in Scottsdale, but notes that there are many unaffiliated Jewish families in Fountain Hills. "(Those are) the people we're trying to reach," he said.
"If you want to go to (a synagogue), the nearest one is usually 30-40 minutes away," Widom said.
Fountain Hills is on the eastern slope of the McDowell Mountains bordering Scottsdale at Shea Boulevard near 140th Street.
In 1990, the town's population was 10,030 and by 2000, had grown to 20,199, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The 2002 Greater Phoenix Jewish Community Study combined the Fountain Hills population data with those from Scottsdale and Paradise Valley, so the number of Jewish households in the town is not known.
Beth Hagivot's next Shabbat service is 7 p.m. Friday, July 25, at the Fountain Hills Community Center, 13001 N. LaMontana Drive.
For information about the synagogue, call Fred Widom, 480-837-7926. For information about Shalom of Fountain Hills, call Bob Slobin, 480-836-0591.
Contact the writer at leisah_namm@jewishaz.com.
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