From The 1st Vice President

Dear Congregants and Friends,

Natalie introduced me last month as the new Vice President at CBI. I have been a member for almost 20 years and lived in the area since 1991 with my husband Steven Fein. We raised two daughters who were bat mitzvah’d at CBI, and prior to joining CBI we were members of Congregation Beth El in Bennington. I love our synagogue, and being in community. Jewish life is so important to me.

I’m writing today to introduce myself and invite your ideas and support for a project to celebrate the history of Jewish community and CBI in the Northern Berkshires. Part of what makes my Judaism meaningful is a deep sense of connection to those who came before me. Have you ever taken a moment to read about the history of Jewish North Adams and of CBI? It dates back to the 1860s and some of it is documented with pictures and narrative on our website. In fact, the mural referenced there was recently removed from the attic of a North Adams apartment building, formerly the location of the CBI synagogue, and installed at the Yiddish Book Center for all to appreciate; you can read more about it here.

I’m excited to work as a community on a project about the history of the Jewish life and community in North Adams and the Northern Berkshires, and I’d like to invite anyone who is interested in working on this effort to reach out to me! Our tasks will be setting goals and objectives for the project, reviewing historical material, and proposing and finding funding for a project to achieve these goals. It will certainly include collecting and documenting stories from congregation members and others who grew up in North Adams. I have been blessed to hear some of them, and am excited to preserve them for our children and future generations. I even dream we can pursue this effort with other regional congregations, perhaps Congregation Beth El in Bennington which also has a deep and vibrant history. I am sure that there are many stories that are asking to be told and shared.

I look forward to hearing from you!

— Wendy Penner
1st Vice President