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North Shore Jewish Center. File photo

By Peter Sloniewsky 

On Sunday, May 5, the North Shore Jewish Center hosted a Silver Jubilee gala celebration honoring two women, Executive Director Marcie Platkin and bookkeeper Mary Ellen Shouler, for 25 years of service to the NSJC.

“I am extremely proud to be the executive director of this wonderful congregation … I always say there is a feeling of Chevra [‘’your people”] and fulfillment working for NSJC,” Platkin said.

Shouler added that, “Working here at the North Shore Jewish Center has been like working for a family business. I will always remember the families I have come to know and the children I have watched grow over the years.”

The NSJC is a Conservative Jewish congregation in Port Jefferson Station that describes itself as a “vibrant center of Judaism in Suffolk County.”

Platkin, raised in Jericho and certified with a master’s degree in social work from Adelphi University, began a long career of community and religious services as an organizer for the Jewish Association for Services to the Aged. She later went on to become an administrator of the New York State Family Self-Sufficiency Program under Gov. Mario Cuomo before starting at the NSJC in 1999.

Shouler, described as being “known for her sweet and calm disposition,” said she has “worn many hats.” Growing up in Smithtown, she worked at first for Western Electric in New Jersey but then “wound up back in Smithtown.” She found herself at the NSJC first as a part-time secretary and gradually advanced to the position of bookkeeper. 

Both women placed extensive value on the positive effect that the NSJC has to the Long Island community. 

In her speech at the event, Platkin described it as a place to learn and grow as a Jewish people and to formulate Jewish identity, but also “the one place outside home where [she] feels most comfortable,” noting that she had announced her engagement on the same bimah [podium where the Torah is read] 22 years earlier.

Shouler was similarly grateful for her experience: “[Starting at the NSJC] was a totally new experience for me, I was also learning about Jewish culture and the Jewish faith. Who would have known when I started here at the North Shore Jewish Center that so much time would pass and that we would be able to share many life events with each other.”

The gala was a heartfelt tribute to the two remarkable women for their dedicated 25 years of service. Their personal reflections highlighted the profound impact NSJC has had on their lives and the community. 

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Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright, center, named Andy Polan, left, as the Fifth Legislative District’s Jewish American of Distinction. Englebright and Polan are pictured with Rabbi Aaron Benson of North Shore Jewish Center. Photo courtesy of Leg. Englebright's office

Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright (D-Setauket) has named Andrew Polan as the Fifth Legislative District’s Jewish American of Distinction for 2024.

“Andy is a steadfast figure in the Three Village Jewish American community and the surrounding area,” Englebright said. “He is a beacon of dedication and service.”

Last year, Suffolk County officials designated the first Wednesday of May as Jewish American Heritage Day in Suffolk. Elected county officials in conjunction with the American Jewish Committee held a ceremony on Wednesday, May 1, at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge. Each county legislator chose a Jewish American of Distinction to represent their district.

Polan, a former North Shore Jewish Center board president, continues to be an active member of the congregation. Rabbi Aaron Benson fondly describes him as “an all-around mensch and a sweetheart.” Polan’s reputation is one of quiet and humble giving, always ready to lend a helping hand.

The honoree is also an active member of Village Chabad in East Setauket and is the board president of Stony Brook Hillel, which strives to give Stony Brook University students a community where they can explore their relationship with Judaism, Israel and each other.

The owner of Stony Brook Vision World, Polan is a member of the Three Village Chamber of Commerce and one of its past presidents. Among his accomplishments, he has been credited with facilitating the installation of the chamber’s sign on Nicolls Road and Route 347. He was also an ardent volunteer and supporter of the Walk for Beauty, which was held annually at Stony Brook Village Center. Proceeds from the event were donated to a targeted Stony Brook Medicine breast cancer research fund.

Polan follows in the footsteps of his father, Sheldon, who was also an optician. His father was a World War II vet, and in addition to serving his Vision World customers, Andy Polan is the resident optician at the Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University. At the veterans home, he is known to go above and beyond to ensure the veterans’ eye care needs are met.

Polan said he was honored and flattered to be chosen by Englebright.

“At a time when unity is so important, I am honored to be recognized and included with others who have contributed so much to bringing others together,” Polan said.

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Rev. Gregory Leonard speaking at the 2016 Order of St. Luke Conference. Photo courtesy Beverly C. Tyler

By Beverly C. Tyler

On Sunday, April 14, members of Bethel AME Church in Setauket and the Three Village community came together to celebrate the ministry of Rev. Gregory Leonard who retired in 2020, after twenty-six years as pastor of Bethel AME Church.

I first met Rev. Leonard at the funeral for the Mother of Bethel AME Church, Lucy Agnes Keyes, who died on Friday, September 16, 1994. This was his first funeral at Bethel AME and he said something about getting his feet wet at Bethel or starting here by jumping into the fire. Interesting choice of words, as he soon became the chaplain for the Setauket Fire Department. Mrs. Keyes’ Going Home Celebration was on September 20, 1994.

Rev. Leonard’s extensive community service included serving as chaplain of the Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University, and the development of Hobbs Farm in Centereach. My wife Barbara noted at the celebration, “My association with Bethel Church and Pastor Leonard began through the Order of St. Luke-a Christian healing ministry. He became one of our two chaplains. Services rotated monthly among  Caroline Church, St. Cuthbert’s in Selden and Bethel.” For us it was a chance to add Christian friends and worship in different ways.

“One of our cherished times was when Pastor Leonard was the spiritual leader for our regional retreat called A Quiet Walk with Jesus. The format was four short talks by the leader who then gave us points for meditation in the quiet times that followed each talk. Pastor Leonard was perfect for this. He had previously attended several of these retreats very quietly. We knew that he would be a wonderful leader, but others were very pleasantly surprised by the leadership of this quiet but dynamic man.”

It was in the spirit of William Sidney Mount that the Bethel AME Church, Setauket and the Museums at Stony Brook held “A Community Coming Together” in the Art Museum on Sunday, February 25, 1996. The reception featured the exhibition, William Sidney Mount: Music is Contagious, plenty of good food — courtesy of Bethel AME — good company, and a few descriptive comments on Mount and on the Three Village Community.

Rev. Leonard, pastor of Bethel AME, opened and closed the museum’s event with an emphasis on the strengths of neighborhood and family, and how important it is to work at getting to know other people in the community-thus adding to the strength of community bonds.

This emphasis of family and community was on display during the Sunday service at Bethel AME on April 21 as well as at the luncheon and talks in honor of Rev. Leonard. Speaker after speaker spoke about his spiritual leadership and his humility. 

As detailed in Bethel AME’s celebration program, “Rev. Leonard built strong ties, bonds and personal relationships with co-workers, community and congregation members. He recalls that his proudest moments during his ministry at Bethel Setauket came in working with members of his leadership team, the congregation and community groups such as Building Bridges, Order of Saint Luke, the Setauket Fire Department and the Vets home.”

Beverly Tyler is Three Village Historical Society historian and author of books available from the Three Village Historical Society, 93 North Country Rd., Setauket, NY 11733. Tel: 631-751-3730. http://WWW.TVHS.org 

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File photo

By Rabbi Aaron D. Benson

In my opinion any holiday that includes matzoh ball soup is bound to be popular. Passover, which begins Monday night, April 22, features this dish, made with matzoh unleavened bread. The holiday is not just popular but is revered by Jews and non-Jews alike for its overarching theme of freedom. The ancient Israelites were enslaved in Egypt yet God, through the prophet Moses, freed them. As a reminder of this miracle, Jews refrain from eating anything baked with leaven and instead eat matzoh, the simple bread of slaves.  

For Americans, Passover resonates because freedom is a virtue at the core of our country’s identity. Being a citizen is defined as having freedom of religion, of speech, of press and of assembly. Quite literally “revolutionary” when first adopted, the principles in our Constitution, especially the Bill of Rights, have spread these standards of freedom and human dignity around the world.

The Bible’s message about freedom in the Passover story has a slightly different emphasis. It is not at odds with the American view, but it reminds us of a key aspect of freedom. Moses’ famous message from God demanding that Pharaoh, “Let My [God’s] people go,” is usually quoted without its conclusion, “that they may serve Me [God.]” 

When the Jews were finally freed from Egypt, it wasn’t so they could “let loose” after generations of enslavement. Such a life of abandon isn’t any true kind of freedom. Upon leaving Egypt, the Jews set out into the wilderness, eventually to come to Mount Sinai and there receive the Ten Commandments. To take on the responsibility of freedom. To accept laws that will build a society not of oppression, nor of indulgence, but one of respect and concern and common purpose. The Jews would march on, eventually coming to Israel, where they would settle and start to build a society based around the freedom to be responsible. Helping others isn’t a burden. Respecting them isn’t an imposition. Acknowledging that my own humanity is lessened if I do not also care for yours.

Whether you are celebrating Passover this year or not, make yourself a nice bowl of matzoh ball soup. And then, whether you’re celebrating or not, find someone to share that soup with, maybe even a lot of people, maybe even people who seem different from us. Freedom teaches us that we aren’t so different. At some point, we will all need help in our lives, and at some point we all can offer help. Let’s share that responsibility together, along with the matzoh ball soup.

Aaron Benson is the rabbi at North Shore Jewish Center, based in Port Jefferson Station. 

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Rabbi Margie Cella. Photo courtesy Margie Cella

By Rita J. Egan

For Rabbi Margie Cella, the path to serve her congregation differed slightly from other rabbis.

At the annual Jewish University for a Day held at Stony Brook University on Sunday, April 7, Cella shared with attendees her experiences when converting from Lutheranism to Judaism and ultimately becoming a rabbi. The Port Jefferson Station resident, who taught math for 30 years, became a part-time rabbi with The Jewish Center of the Moriches in Center Moriches and an educator with the Women’s League for Conservative Judaism in the last few years. Her new career blossomed after she wrote the book “Hindsight Is 2020: Torah Lessons from a Turbulent Time.”

In a recent phone interview with TBR News Media, she discussed her decision to convert to Judaism and how she became a rabbi after working as a math teacher for 30 years.

The journey from the Lutheran Church to Judaism

Growing up in Massapequa, Cella attended St. John’s Lutheran Church with her family. Her father was raised a Lutheran, and her mother converted from Catholicism to Lutheranism after she married Cella’s father. The rabbi said her mother devoted herself to the Lutheran Church, which became part of the family’s social life in many ways,

“It was a big part of our life growing up,” she said. “We went every Sunday, and I went to Sunday school.”

Her husband, Raymond, who was raised Roman Catholic, joined the Lutheran Church after it began morphing into a mixture of Christianity and Judaism. In 1982, the Cellas along with their children, Jessica and Benjamin, converted to Judaism after realizing St. John’s church was becoming more like a cult, according to Cella.

At its peak, the rabbi said the congregation included approximately 2,000 members from every denomination. People came from all over Long Island, the five boroughs, Westchester as well as out of state to attend services. She added while it was the way she was introduced to Jewish practices, due to the mixture of Judaism and Christianity, she felt “it was inauthentic to both religions.”

“I don’t think that it is actually possible to practice both religions, because they diverged so much,” Cella said.

However, as the church changed, Cella said she did a “total 180” initially and became involved, at times she felt due to peer pressure. After being part of the mixture of religions for 11 years, she said the church “gradually morphed [as] more and more Jewish practice was introduced.”

She added, “Christianity was emphasized and spoken about less and less, so when we left there … we were faced with a decision, where do we go and what do we do?”

After realizing they were traumatized by the experience, Cella said she and her husband knew “the one thing that made sense to us out of everything that we were doing were the Jewish practices we were observing.”

Once they decided to convert, the couple talked to Rabbi Moshe Edelman, who led the congregation of North Shore Jewish Center at the time, to ask what they needed to do. The conversion included a course of study and practice for at least a year, such as studying the basics of the Jewish religion and observing the practices.

“Now, in our case, we were already observing a lot,” she said. “It was just we had a lot of misconceptions.”

At the end of their studies, the couple was interviewed by a rabbi and two congregants. Soon after, a ceremony marked their conversion by immersing them in water using a mikvah.

From teaching math to leading congregants

Cella and her husband moved to Maryland soon after they were married. They were both certified teachers. However, according to the rabbi, there were no available teaching positions on Long Island at the time. After living in Maryland for approximately a year, the couple moved back to Long Island, living in Coram and then Miller Place until they moved to Port Jefferson Station in 1985.

When the couple first returned, there were still few teaching jobs, so Cella worked in retail until she had her first child. She stopped working for a few years and returned to teaching after her second child was 3.

The rabbi said while it may have taken nine years after graduating from college in 1975 to begin her teaching career in New York, in total she spent 30 years as a math teacher. The rabbi taught at William Paca Middle School in Mastic Beach, North Babylon High School, Bridgehampton High School and for the last 25 years at Southampton High School.

It was after she retired from teaching, that Cella began her studies to become a rabbi. She said for 25 years she thought about going to rabbinical school, but it wasn’t practical with raising a family and the necessity of being a two-income family. 

She attended the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, describing the five-year program at a school in Manhattan as “intensive.” For the first four of the five years she studied, she traveled into the city and attended every weekday except Friday. She also lived and studied in Jerusalem for one semester. She now holds master’s degrees in Bible and rabbinic ordination and was ordained in May 2019.

Cella said her 30 years of teaching comes in handy. One example is instead of a sermon for Shabbat, she said hers is more like a study of a week’s Torah portion, which is interactive, involving the congregants in the discussion.

Reflecting on the Torah leads to publication

Before leading The Jewish Center of the Moriches, during the COVID-19 mandatory shutdowns, Cella said North Shore Jewish Center’s Rabbi Aaron Benson reached out and asked if she could help him sustain the congregation while they could not attend in-person services.

“I had this idea, because I have always been a lover of text and a lover of teaching, I decided to do a daily study of part of that week’s Torah portion,” she said.

The rabbi added that each Torah portion is divided into seven parts, making studying a portion each day ideal.

“I would write about it, and I would relate it not only to what it said in the Torah portion, but where possible, I would relate it to what was going on in the world at that time, because that was a unique year,” Cella said.

Her writings were emailed to the congregation every day. When members were able to return to the synagogue to worship, Cella said she decided she wanted to finish what she started.

“It takes a full year to go through the whole cycle of the Torah, and that’s what I did,” she said. “I wrote basically every day for a year. I wrote on every piece of every Torah portion, the entire Torah, over the course of a year, and it wasn’t until I got to the end that I said to myself, ‘I think I have the makings of a book here.’”

Cella said she learned a good deal from her book-writing experience.

“I think now that we’ve returned to what we call normal — or the new normal — I think that a lot of times we tend to forget the lessons that we learned from that year,” she said. “There were a lot of really profound things that we could take away from that year because nobody ever anticipated we would have something like that in our lifetimes. It wasn’t just COVID, there was so much else going on that year. There was political unrest in the country. There was social unrest in the country. There was so much going on. That all shows up in my book.”

The rabbi said she also feels it’s important to talk about her life as she did on April 7, as she believes it’s a cautionary tale regarding following religious leaders blindly, especially those who may prey on younger people. She hopes to share her experiences in another book one day.

As she reflected on her life and all the changes that had occurred over the past few years, Cella believes that if a person has something they want to do, they can make it happen regardless of age.

“One thing I like to tell people is you’re never too old to pursue whatever your dream is,” the rabbi said.

For more information on “Hindsight Is 2020: Torah Lessons from a Turbulent Time,” visit www.rabbicella.com.

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Dan Kerr, on left, passes the baton to Herb Mones. Photo from Dan Kerr

Herb Mones was recently elected warden at historic All Souls Church in Stony Brook.  He succeeds Dan Kerr who served the maximin of two consecutive terms as the senior elected lay leader of the church.  Herb was formerly installed in his new leadership role by Father Tom Resse at the Sunday service on Feb. 4.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Kerr

Outgoing Warden Dan Kerr noted, “It is time to pass the leadership baton to someone else, and Herb is a great choice.”  Herb has served in many leadership roles throughout our community over the decades, including president of the Three Village Civic Association, Chair of the Friends of the Greenway, President of the West Meadow Conservancy, and Chair of the Greening of 25A. He continues his thirty plus years on the Board of the Three Village Civic Association as the Chair of its Land Use Committee.

Reflecting on his new role, Herb said, “This is a wonderful opportunity to serve a warm and welcoming congregation that is rich in history, tradition, and spirit. My hope, and prayer, is to advance our mission: All Souls is a Christian community in the Anglican tradition. We strive to be mutually supportive of the personal spiritual journey, respecting the individuality of all, and accepting the value of meeting people where they are on that journey.”

The Stanford White designed church at 61 Main Street in Stony Brook is open every day for prayer and reflection.  In addition to its Episcopal services on Sunday, All Souls offers Interfaith Morning Prayer every Tuesday at 8:00am and an Interdenominational Rosary on Wednesday at Noon.  Its monthly outreach events include Saturdays at Six concerts, Second Saturdays poetry readings and Native American Drumming. 

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Members of Bethel AME Church were welcomed at a special service honoring the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Pictured front row, third from left is Rev. Lisa Williams; back row, third from right is Rabbi Joshua Gray. Photo by Lloyd Newman

By Donna Newman 

A Friday night service at Temple Isaiah in Stony Brook honored the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in advance of the official Monday holiday. The congregants of the Bethel AME Church of Setauket, led by Reverend Lisa Williams were invited to join the celebration.

The Church members got to experience a complete Reform Jewish Friday night service in which Rev. Williams participated with two readings from the prayerbook “Mishkan Tefilah” and delivered a powerful sermon that combined the philosophy of MLK and references to the week’s portion of the Torah that Rabbi Gray read, “Parsha Va’Era.” (Exodus 6:3) Va’Era translates in English to “and I appeared”, the first word God speaks in the parsha.   

The service ended with a powerful rendition of the anthem “Rise Up” by Andra Day sung by Rabbi Gray and cantorial soloist Meghan Gray, accompanied on the piano by Dan Fogel. A fitting and emotive send-off to the “Oneg,” where there are refreshments, and time to meet and mingle.

The post-service refreshments and other aspects of the event were coordinated by Social Action Chair Iris Schiff and her committee.

“The service was so beautiful and poignant,” Schiff said. “It was one of those times you could feel that all who were present had full hearts and were surely enriched by the experience.”

After the service, Temple Board Member Andrea Barbakoff sat in conversation with some of the Bethel guests.

“The members of Bethel AME Church were all very friendly,” Barbakoff said, “and they were eager to learn more about us, about Judaism, and about our traditions.”

One guest was especially interested in Temple Isaiah’s Torahs, according to Barbakoff. It was mentioned that one is a Torah on loan that had been rescued during the Holocaust. Long-time temple member and local historian Mort Rosen was able to relate the scroll’s history and how it came to be at Temple Isaiah.

“Several guests, after asking if they could possibly schedule a time to come back and get a close up look,” said Barbakoff, “were grateful when Rabbi Gray graciously offered to take them back into the sanctuary, where he opened the scroll for them to view. It was definitely a moving experience for us all.”

Rabbi Joshua Gray has made interfaith connections an important part of his rabbinate. The Thanksgiving Interfaith Service was held at Temple Isaiah in November.

“Jewish efforts toward ‘tikkun olam’ (repairing the world) must start with coming together and confirming that we share common values and goals,” said Rabbi Gray, “and that we must work together to create the world we wish to inhabit.” In the immortal words of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “We must come to see that the end we seek is a society at peace with itself, a society that can live with its conscience.”

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METRO photo

By Rabbi Aaron Benson

Rabbi Aaron Benson

There would be no miracle of Hanukkah, the eight-day festival which begins this Thursday evening, without there first being darkness.   

Hanukkah is meant to be a time of joy. It is not a major holiday, still it is a time to play games, give gifts and enjoy foods fried in oil, reminiscent of the miracle at the heart of the holiday.  

In ancient times, the Holy Temple in Jerusalem had been defiled and when the Jews took it back from their oppressors, they found only enough oil to light the sanctuary’s special candelabra, the menorah, for one day.  Since the menorah must always be lit, the Jews did so, and miraculously, the oil burned for eight days during which time more oil was procured. 

But even more important than the oil, the miracle couldn’t have happened if there hadn’t been darkness at first.  

This year, Hanukkah occurs in a time of hatred and war for Israel and the Jewish People. It is a time of suffering for the innocent people of Gaza. It is a time in which Islamophobia has caused violent and deadly attacks on American Muslims; college students in Vermont and a little boy from the same part of Illinois where I grew up. Not to mention all that divides Americans from each other, too. 

This is a Hanukkah of much darkness. 

But it is only out of darkness that light, that miracles can come. 

I am reminded of the final scene from the first season of the HBO series, True Detectives. The two protagonists are discussing the fight against evil, the war between darkness and light. One of the two argues that looking in the night sky, there is far more darkness than the tiny points of light we see, “it appears to me that the dark has a lot more territory.” The other objects, saying, “You’re looking at it wrong, the sky thing … once there was only dark. You ask me, the light’s winning.”

If good people, Jews and non-Jews, can resist the vast darkness that surrounds us and bravely light one little light, we, all of us, will create a miracle. May such a miracle, one that brings understanding and peace, be kindled for us all soon. 

The author is the rabbi of  North Shore Jewish Center in Port Jefferson Station.

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Participants from last year's concert. Photo from Daniel Kerr/All Souls Church

Historic All Souls Church, 61 Main Street, Stony Brook invites the community to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas as it joins with eleven other faith communities to present its annual Lessons and Carols Christmas concert on Saturday, December 9 at 6 p.m.  

Heidi Schneider will be the featured soloist this year.

The free concert will feature Stony Brook University soprano Heidi Schneider and tell the story of the Nativity in scripture and song.  Heidi’s solos will include “Ave Maria,” “Silent Night,” and “Away in the Manger.” 

Local guitarist Bill Clark and his Brave Trio will also perform “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” “Hallelujah,” and “What Child Is This?”All attending will be invited to sing “Come All Ye Faithful” and “Hark the Herald Angels” as All Souls organist Dan Kinney plays the church’s 1855 Tracker Organ.

The readings will be done by clergy and lay people from The Stony Brook School, Caroline Church, Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption, Messiah Lutheran Church, St. Gerard Majella RC Church, Stony Brook Community Church, the Three Village Church, Religious Society of Friends in St. James, the Little Church of Smithtown Landing, St. James RC Church, and the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship at Stony Brook.

There will be a 15-minute intermission and refreshments will be served. All Souls Church collects food each week to feed the hungry at the St Gerard Majella’s food pantry. Please bring a can of food to donate (“Lend a hand, bring a can”). 

Please call 631-655-7798 for more information.

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