Photo by Ben McCall: Some of the stained glass windows, like these shown with Beth Shalom President Kurt Kavanaugh, will be moved from Wornall to Lamar. Others will be put in storage. An era is coming to an end.

After 40 years of worshiping at 9400 Wornall Road in Kansas City, Mo., Congregation Beth Shalom is completing preparations to shut down the building. The Conservative congregation will celebrate its last Bar Mitzvah, and Shabbat service, on July 2. Members will take time to commemorate and pay tribute to the congregation’s history and show their appreciation for Rabbi Robert Tobin and Rabbi Adam Stein, who will soon be leaving the congregation, on Saturday morning, May 21. (For more information, see below)

For a variety of reasons, including financial ones, the congregation voted in November to close the facility — which sits on approximately 45 acres at the corner of Wornall and Bannister roads. The school wing opened in 1962 and the sanctuary wing, which included the chapel, social hall, administrative offices and library, was dedicated in 1971. While the building has been for sale in the past, Congregation President Kurt Kavanaugh said it has been off the market for the past couple of years.

Now the congregation is transferring all operations and activities, including regular religious services, to the Lamar facility, which opened in December 2005. The plan is to use the Lamar facility in its current condition and configuration, utilizing other community facilities when deemed appropriate. Since that painful decision was made, several committees have worked diligently toward the goals of closing Wornall and transforming the space in the Lamar building to make it more appropriate for religious services. A long-range planning committee is also studying the congregation’s future facility needs.

Kavanaugh said as the closing of the Wornall campus draws closer, he is both sad and excited because he has “seen the enthusiasm of our congregants, staff and volunteers as we plan and begin this next chapter in Beth Shalom’s history.”

Rabbi Tobin wishes the congregation well as it prepares to close the Wornall Campus.

“It is sad to see the stately sanctuary at Wornall close, and to know that Beth Shalom faces such challenges. I pray that the transition will be to a stronger future for the community,” Rabbi Tobin said.

Worship plans

Beth Shalom has determined that the last weekday minyan service will be held on Friday morning, July 1. Plans call for minyamim to begin taking place in the Appleman Synagogue at Village Shalom Sunday evening, July 3. Morning minyan will begin at 7 a.m., Monday through Friday and evening minyan will take place at 6 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. Sunday morning minyan will continue to be held at the Lamar building.

Goldsmith Hall at the Lamar campus is being reconfigured to provide a ritual space in the building. Except on special occasions, regular Shabbat services will be held there.

The Lamar space can hold a maximum of 325 chairs, so it is not large enough for the 800-member congregation to hold High Holiday services. This year arrangements have been made to hold the High Holiday services at the Jewish Community Campus.

“The Campus has been very gracious in providing space so we can hold two services simultaneously for our members,” Kavanaugh said.

The physical move

Photo by Ben McCall: The ark, bima chairs and reader's table in Katz Chapel will be moved to Lamar. Some items will be moved from the Wornall to the Lamar building. A few things, such as the menorah on the outside of the building cannot be easily moved and will remain on site. Other items will either be stored or sold.

The art deco ark and seats are being taken from the Katz Chapel and will be placed on a new platform to be installed in Goldsmith Hall, along with the menorahs and reader’s table that are currently in the Katz Chapel.

Mike Rogovein, chairman of the building and grounds committee, noted that the ark and seats being moved from the Katz Chapel “were originally from the chapel at 34th and Paseo” and moved to the Wornall building when that building was sold and its new owners took possession in January 1970.

According to Kavanaugh, the ark from Wornall’s main sanctuary will go into storage. Before the building is shuttered completely, the stained glass windows will also be removed.

“Those that aren’t used at Lamar will be stored,” Rogovein said. “Our goal is not to place anything else in outside storage.”

Rogovein said that since the space at Lamar is smaller than that at Wornall, it is clear that Beth Shalom cannot move everything from it to the Lamar building.

“Our art work is being reviewed by a talented, committed committee, which will select those items that will be used and which will be stored,” he said, adding that the committee is still making those decisions.

A great number of other items, Rogovein said, such as student desks and seats, banquet tables, chairs and dishes, will be sold because there isn’t space at Lamar to store it all.

Celebration planned

Rabbi Robert Tobin Beth Shalom’s Wornall building is about to close and Rabbis Robert Tobin and Adam Stein will soon begin new chapters in their professional lives. Members of Congregation Beth Shalom will pay tribute to the two rabbis and the congregation’s 133-year-history at 9:30 a.m. Shabbat morning, May 21, in the sanctuary.

Rabbi Tobin will be moving to West Orange, N.J., where he will be the rabbi of Congregation B’nai Shalom. He and his family came to Kansas City in the summer of 2008.

Rabbi Stein, who came to Beth Shalom two years ago in 2009, announced several months ago that he has taken a new position in Australia. For financial reasons Beth Shalom’s board announced in November that the assistant rabbi position would be eliminated following the completion of Rabbi Stein’s contract at the end of June.

Rabbi Adam Stein The celebration is being chaired by Rhea Salasche, Harold Kaseff and Sheila Sonnenschein. Dramatic readings, performed by Diane Azorsky, Jerry Fogel, Marlene Katz, Joanie Kort and Victor Wishna are on the agenda. A special “Torah Passing” will symbolize Beth Shalom’s transition from its past to its present. Leaders, both past and present, from the synagogue, Sisterhood and USY will participate in aliyot.

Beth Shalom President Kurt Kavanaugh said the community is invited to the festivities.

“Many in our community have worked with and learned from both Rabbi Tobin and Rabbi Stein. This is a wonderful opportunity to wish them and their families’ good luck in their future endeavors,” Kavanaugh said.