Valley's first female rabbi celebrates 10 years at Beth Sholom
RANDI BAROCAS
Staff Writer
Rabbi Bonnie Koppell - pictured here with her husband, David Rubenstein, and two daughters, Jessie (right) and Sarah - is celebrating her 10th anniversary at Temple Beth Sholom in Mesa.
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Rabbinical milestones come only so often - say, every 10 years or so. And Rabbi Bonnie Koppell has hit the first such marker with 10 years of service at Conservative Temple Beth Sholom in Mesa.
But this milestone is more than just a personal one. Koppell's time on the job also marks the 10th anniversary of the Valley's first female congregational rabbi.
Koppell says that when she first was hired, the concept of a Conservative woman rabbi was one that some Beth Sholom congregants simply couldn't adjust to, and those few "chose to leave."
"What happened 10 years ago (was that) the congregation had talked extensively in theory about hiring a woman rabbi. They had processed it and come to peace with it," she says. "So by the time I arrived, that issue had been pretty much resolved."
Alan Sapakie, who was president of the congregation when Koppell was hired and is serving another term now, says Koppell's hiring marked an "exciting" time for Beth Sholom.
"We hired the first female rabbi in the Valley," he says, "and that was a very bold step at the time. It was an exciting process and one that was fraught with some resistance, of course. But we were willing to go out on a limb to prove that this was the right move for our congregation."
It turned out to be a perfect fit, Koppell says.
Since moving to the Valley to accept her position, the New York native has seen the congregation's numbers more than double. Only about 65 families belonged to the shul 10 years ago. Beth Sholom now has more than 175 families and is busting at the seams. The temple's facility at 316 S. LeSueur no longer can accommodate its growth, and a move to a new facility - possibly in Chandler - is on the horizon, Koppell says.
Aside from dealing with physical space requirements, Koppell is handling the other duties required of a sole rabbi just fine and has no plans to hire an assistant rabbi, she says.
"I'd like to have more professional staff working with the youth programs. That would be more of a goal," she says. "We have some paid staff, but we still rely a lot on parents as volunteers. Eventually I'd like to give them the relief of being more advisory."
Koppell finds herself balancing several roles in life. In addition to being a wife, mother of two and a full-time rabbi, she is a major in the U.S. Army Reserves and serves one weekend a month fulfilling her obligations at Williams Gateway (formerly Williams Air Force Base).
Given her congregational duties and personal religious convictions, the military has been very flexible with her schedule, she says. "I don't drill on Saturday because it is Shabbat. On Sunday, they are gracious enough to let me come in the morning, leave for Sunday school, and then return in the afternoon," Kop-pell explains.
Many of her congregants admire her ability to balance such a varied career. Rory Gilbert, a past president of Beth Sholom, says, "Rabbi Bonnie, as she is known to us, is a pioneer.
"You've got a person who is (an intellectual), loves children and has a certain amount of grit. She's gone against the grain ... and I think she is a wonderful role model for girls."
Koppell will be honored for her 10 years of service to Temple Beth Sholom at a special "Roast the Rabbi" luncheon, scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, March 29, at the Scottsdale Radisson Resort, 7171 N. Scottsdale Road.
Tickets to the event, at which a kosher lunch will be served, cost $45 per person. For information or to inquire about reservations, call 964-1981.
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