Area Rabbi visits Ahavas Sholom

It is unfortunate that I missed Shaul Solomon's recent visit to the Ahavas Sholom synagogue building. He and a friend of his, the self-proclaimed "Roving Rabbis," came to visit Ligonier and emailed me wondering if there were any Jews left in the city or if I knew of any families who had connections to the founding members of the Jewish congregation of Ligonier. I replied that although most of Ligonier's Jews left in the 1950s for places like Chicago, Indianapolis, South Bend, and Ft. Wayne, there is one woman from Fort Wayne who I know of who has a direct connection to Ligonier and remembers the last Jewish service in the building. I followed this up with inviting him to participate on a panel or conduct a talk about religious diversity and tolerance from the 1850s to present times. Hopefully we'll hear back and be able to organize an event for the Ligonier community!

Field Trip Guide

Patrick with the Noble County Visitor's Bureau just emailed me asking for a revision of the short blurb description of the Ahavas Sholom building and Ligonier Historical Museum. This blurb will be part of a Field Trip Guide that is sent to area school groups. I think this is a great opportunity for kids to come into the synagogue and learn more about Jewish history! I came up with this and sent it to him:

The Ligonier Historical Museum is located in the synagogue building of the Jewish congregation, Ahavas Sholom. Built in 1889, the synagogue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and showcases beautiful stained glass windows depicting the life of King David. The museum displays artifacts from the Jewish community in Ligonier from 1850-1950. Here, students can learn more about Jewish history and faith.

Moveable Feast! Saturday, July 21, 3:30

I am excited to be attending the Moveable Feast in Ligonier and its surrounding neighborhoods this Saturday, July 21. The feast begins with a walking tour of Ligonier's Jewish sites at 3:30. We will have appetizers at the Ahavas Sholom synagogue building begininning at 4:30. The group can also grab a bite to eat before dinner at the Solomon Meir Mansion just down the street. Solomon Meir was one of the influential Jews in Ligonier during the late 1800s and helped build the economy of the city as well as the synagogue building itself. After this we will relocate for dinner at the 1839 Stone's Trace Historic Tavern. I haven't visited Stone's trace in about 25 years, so this will be a wonderful experience for me to see this amazing historic site as an adult. Dessert will be located at two sites: The 1879 Kimmel House Inn and the 1930 Luckey Hospital. While I've had lunch and tea several times at Kimmel House over the years, I've never had the chance to visit the Luckey Hospital. This hospital was run by my best friend's (Tina Luckey) ancestors. Tina came from a long line of incredible local doctors.

In preparation for the Moveable Feast, a few folks asked me for some ideas for recipes for the appetizers served at the Ahavas Sholom building. I was drawn to the 1901 "Settlement Cookbook." This cookbook was used by Jewish immigrants across the US and most definitely by those in Ligonier at the time. When sifting through the pages, I found recipes for noodle puddings, a variety of kuchens, hearty soups, and even instructions for how to buy and cook meat and fish. As an added bonus, the cookbook claims to be THE way to a man's heart!

I was surprised at how easy it was to reserve my tickets online for the event. I simply went to http://adventure2012.eventbrite.com/  made a few clicks! I purchased four tickets for my parents and fiance, you should hurry up and purchase yours!

Next steps

As you might know, I met with two architects at the synagogue building and they were both really helpful. Both replied to their initial survey of the building that it was in good shape from what they could tell. Therefore, I think we should move on to an inspector or individual professionals who can give us objective advice on the status of the windows, roof, brick work, foundation, HVAC, plumbing, and electric. If one individual cannot address all of these areas, finding someone to look at each category might take time. I'm assuming that a traditional inspector would be able to provide the status of the roof, brick work, foundation, HVAC, plumbing, and electric, but the windows we might want to consult a professional stained glass artisan.

I believe, with the current monies from the Landmarks Fund we can pay for the inspector. However, there is no "one" grant we can apply for to pull off the whole museum concept. We will have to apply for separate grants for each steps of the project. These steps may include: 1. Restore/stabilize exterior, 2. Restore stabilize interior, 3. organize and preserve collections (both Jewish and non-Jewish), 4. Set up temporary exhibit, 5. Plan permanent exhibit.

While this makes things a bit more complicated, it also makes the project a bit more digestible- tiny bites seem much more doable than applying for really competitive large sums of money. 

Advance Leader and Indy Star

Jerry Nesbitt and Jed Mast at the Ligonier Public Library sent me this clipping from IndyStar.com. I thought I'd post it here along with my response to Bob Buttgen at the Advance Leader in Ligonier who asked me to respond to some questions about how the proposed project would affect the Ligonier Historical Society, the Library, and the archival collections. I've summarized my comments to Bob below:

Right now we have been awarded an Indiana Landmarks Endangered Places Grant in the amount of $1750. These initial funds will help provide honoraria to architects for their help in recommending a scope of work and budget to stabilize the building structure. I don't have specifics yet, but the architects were very impressed by the way the Ligonier community has taken care of the building. It is in incredible condition and is a physical testament to the community's commitment to historic preservation of a sacred space. But, being built in 1889, there are some regular maintenance issues that need to be addressed. The architects acknowledged that the building needs a new roof (which might have originally been slate), some plaster on the interior needs to be repaired due to water damage, and some masonry needs restorative tuck-pointing. The stained glass windows currently have protective glass covering them. However, with recent archival techniques, we can replace this glass with glass including UV protection to prevent the windows from fading due to the sun's rays. Several of the windows are bowing around the bottom panes which will need to be stabilized by a professional. In addition, the front doors to the building do not have an appropriate seal, allowing bugs and the elements to freely come into the building. 

  

The Ligonier History Museum will most definitely benefit from any renovations of the Ahavas Sholom building. The Library owns the building, so the Library too will benefit from the renovations. Included in a grant proposal will be a line item to organize and provide adequate storage and display of the Historical Society collections. Whether or not the Ligonier Historical Society collections will stay in the Ahavas Sholom building, or being relocated, has not been determined. At the end of the day, that's putting the cart before the horse! If we are awarded the monies- the building must first be stabilized and the collections of the Ligonier History Museum will ONLY be enhanced and showcased for the community education and enjoyment.  

Initial architect meeting on Friday

This Friday, I will be meeting with an architect for an initial walk-through of the synagogue building. We hope to determine and rough budget and a scope of work in order to apply for additional funding. Fingers-crossed!

We made the headlines!

Indiana Landmarks awards Endangered Places Grants in northern Indiana

Projects in six cities receive Endangered Places grants

3/28/2012

Media Contact:

Todd Zeiger, Director, Indiana Landmarks Northern Regional Office 574-232-4534,tzeiger@indianalandmarks.org.

Indiana Landmarks recently awarded Endangered Places Grants to preservation projects in six cities, including Elkhart and Ligonier.

The Elkhart Redevelopment Commission received a $2,500 grant for a structural analysis of a vacant structure at 200 North Main Street on the city’s River Walk. Known as The Armory although never officially used as one, the building was constructed c.1885. In 1911, the structure was doubled in size with an addition designed by Elkhart architect E. Hill Turnock. The study will assess the cost of stabilization and the landmark’s viability for reuse. The grant will be matched by $500 from the Downtown TIF district.

A coalition of organizations in Ligonier are partnering to restore a landmark that represents the community’s Jewish heritage. The coalition, led by the Ligonier Public Library, received a $1,750 Endangered Places grant to develop renovation plans for the 1889 Ahavas Sholom Temple.

The coalition will use the grant to assess the landmark’s potential for adaptation as a museum honoring the community’s Jewish heritage, with interactive exhibits to promote respect and mutual understanding among the city’s diverse ethnic groups. Other partners in the project include the Future Ligonier Alliance, Ligonier Historical Society, and Noble County Visitors Bureau.

Indiana Landmarks makes Endangered Places matching grants to nonprofit organizations for feasibility studies and other activities related to saving landmarks and strengthening preservation groups. Other recent grant recipients include organizations in Indianapolis, Martinsville, New Albany and Seymour.

To learn more about The Armory project in Elkhart, contact Barkley Garrett, City Economic Development Manager, 574-294-5471, barkley.garrett@coei.org.  For information on the reuse of Ligonier’s Ahavas Sholom Temple, contact Wendy Fergusson, wendyfergusson@gmail.com.

For information on Indiana Landmarks’ grant programs, contact Todd Zeiger, director in Indiana Landmarks’ Northern Regional Office in South Bend, 574-232-4534,tzeiger@indianalandmarks.org.