A few years ago, Paul Sorenson and his wife, Katie Garland, were walking through the Botanical Heights neighborhood when Sorenson spotted a building with Stars of David etched in stone on the brick facade and in stained glass windows. Sorenson had heard about an old, vacant synagogue in the neighborhood, and it turned out they had stumbled upon it.
He asked the developers he eventually bought a home from about the synagogue. They told him they had purchased the building and were looking for a tenant.
“We said, ‘Hold on a second; we’ll get back to you.’ And that’s when we pulled the team together and started our conversation with” Jewish Federation of St. Louis, Sorenson recalls.
That discussion led to MaTovu, a Jewish center at 4200 Blaine Ave., which opened on Oct. 5.
Read more“MaTovu has a history, albeit short since we are just over a year old, of being a queer-forward space for LGBTQ folks to feel welcomed and empowered to participate in our programming,” explained Shira Berkowitz, president of the board at MaTovu and one of its founders. “When our community members started talking about the desire to attend the popular and whimsical drag queen story hours, but that Shabbat provided a barrier, it was a no-brainer for us to reach out and host our own. We chose to partner with PJ Library as both of our missions align on this program.”
Read moreCommenting on the verse, and noting “MaTovu”, Sforno, a medieval Jewish Italian biblical commentator, suggests that its uniqueness is, “because the existence of these Jewish spaces of learning and gathering are not only of benefit to the people who are in them — but that they also are good in a transitive sense, that is that their very existence is of benefit to all.”
Our MaTovu team sees a lot of truth in this 500-year-old teach- ing. We believe deeply that our “neighborhood center” will find success through prioritizing equity, neighborhood engagement, and pluralism of Jewish practice and ideas. MaTovu is creating a space that is accessible and open to all, regardless of race, gender, class, religion, ability status, and sexual orientation. We intentionally welcome Jewish and non-Jewish groups from the neighborhood and other parts of the City — and look forward to hosting a rich diversity of Jewish programming that will enhance our community’s knowledge, practice, and social connection.
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