Features
Faye Rosenberg-Cohen has been at the forefront of some of the most momentous changes in the history of Winnipeg’s Jewish community
By BERNIE BELLAN Faye Rosenberg-Cohen is one of the longest serving staff members at the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg. She actually got her start at the forerunner of the Federation, the Winnipeg Jewish Community Council. (During the course of our interview, she was able to find the date of her first day of employment at the WJCC: May 18, 1994.)
For the past many years Faye has been serving as the Chief Planning and Allocations Officer for the Federation, a role that carries with it a great many different responsibilities.
Recently though Faye has announced that she will be retiring from the Federation as of this coming December and entering into a totally new phase of her life.
I contacted Faye and asked her whether she’d consider being interviewed – about how she came to be doing what she has been doing for the Federation, the changes she’s seen in the Jewish community over her time as a senior administrator, and what life holds for her as she moves into retirement.
I should note that I had the opportunity to sit with Faye at a recent session of the Remis Lecture Series, which is held now at the Gwen Secter Centre on Thursdays at noon. Faye was the guest speaker one Thursday in July and, although she didn’t reveal back then that she would be retiring soon – and I wasn’t taking notes (which I would have had I known that Faye was summing up her career for perhaps the last time in public), much of what she had to say stuck with me, and so when I began my phone interview with her one recent Friday morning, I was able to look back upon much of the information she had disclosed that particular Thursday afternoon.
During the course of the interview, which was conducted August 12, Faye disclosed that her oldest son had just got engaged the night before. Faye and husband Harvey Cohen have three sons altogether (in order): Binyamin, Yitzchak, and Meir. As Faye put it succinctly: “three weddings in three years….One got married last October, one will get married this October and the one who got engaged will get married next summer.”
JP&N: “Where do your sons live?
Faye: “Binyamin lives in Chicago (where he’s a Jewish educator and his fiancé is doing a PhD in the school of divinity), Yitzchak (who obtained an engineering degree from McGill and is now moving on to acquire another degree in computer science) lives in New York where his wife is a resident in pediatrics, and my youngest, Meir, has lived in Toronto for many years, where his fiance is doing a PhD in clinical psychology.”
I observed that Faye and Harvey’s situation is, in some ways, emblematic of the problem that has affected Winnipeg’s Jewish community for years now: “Retaining people in Winnipeg.” I asked Faye to respond.
Faye: “Yes, because we have a global Jewish community and they can move back and forth whenever they need.”
I referred to Faye’s having told at that Remis lecture how she had transitioned from being a volunteer for the Winnipeg Jewish Community Council in the early 1990s to a paid staff member. I asked her to repeat the story.
Faye: “I was on the planning committee for the WJCC and it was really an exciting time because we were talking about what would be needed on the campus.
“The planning committee was vetting the needs and the requirements to go into the campus development plan.”
JP&N: “So this is in the early 90s then. And you were already working in data management – so your skills would have been a perfect fit for what the campus planners were looking for.”
Faye: “I had a masters in computer science (from the U of M. Faye noted that she was one of “three women in the masters class… My mother was one of three women who graduated in commerce.) I had been working in data design and executive information systems management for almost 13 years (at that point).”
I asked how she became involved with the WJCC?
Faye: “I started as a volunteer with the Young Women’s Division. Then I was invited to take a seat on the board as (a representative) from Young Leadership and chaired the young leaders course. I was given a Young Leadership award when my oldest son was a baby.”
I remarked to Faye that I recalled her telling the Remis Lecture audience that when she began working for the WJCC she was actually doing work for which she had previously volunteered.
Faye: “I was on the planning committee, but then the actual Director of Planning, Loraine Bentley, moved to Ottawa because her husband got a job there. So Bob (Freedman, who was then the executive director of the WJCC) called me. He knew that at that particular moment I was not working and he invited me to apply.”
JP&N: “Were you not working because you were looking after one of your kids?”
Faye: “No, I was not working because I had a brief but very bad experience at another job – which is a whole different story.”
JP&N: “So Bob offered you the position that you’ve been holding ever since, although your title has changed slightly.”
“You were involved in the original development of the campus – right?”
Faye: “It was a campus committee before it became the campus corporation. Sheldon Berney was the chair. The meetings were held in a little building on the site.”.
“I worked with the planning committee to finish vetting some of the requests and the expectations. I had been in technology so I worked on the technology requirements part of it…the rfp for putting in phone systems and networking.”
I remarked that the offices of the WJCC used to be at the former YMHA building at 370 Hargrave. “So you must have worked there first?” I asked.
Faye: “I did. I got the job offer from Bob – another offer for a different systems job – and a positive pregnancy test – all in the same morning.”
“I didn’t know I was pregnant when I got the job offers so I called both of them back and said, ‘I’m going to give you a chance to withdraw the offers.’”
But – the offer from the WJCC still stood – even though Faye says that she did take a pay cut to take the job.
Faye: “I remember trotting along with Evelyn Hecht – who is a very fast walker and I was very pregnant, and we walked over to the Immigration Office and we met with someone who was a prospective immigrant to Manitoba. He was from Buenos Aires – and he was Jewish, and lo and behold that became the inspiration for ‘Grow Winnipeg’.”
At that point I wanted to switch gears, and I asked Faye to give a description of how her role as the community’s principal planner has evolved since the first took on the role 28 years ago?
Faye: “I was very fortunate in that I was given the freedom to grow it – to identify the most important areas to work on, and bring those forward to different leadership and planning committees. So I got to work writing the ‘Grow Winnipeg’ strategy. We were going to have a new home and we could focus more on bringing the community back together and focus on other issues rather than worrying about whether all the buildings were going to leak.
“I was just going through some files. We got to work on youth engagement as part of that. I was involved in helping build the ‘Club Fed’ leadership training program. Then, much later we got to build a ‘Jewish engagement strategy.’
“I say ‘we’ because that was the point when we had other people come on board, like Rena Elbaze (Secter), Avi Posen, and Florencia Katz – who’s now the director (of Education and Engagement). We brought Limmud to Winnipeg, PJ Library…PJ Library is probably the best thing that’s happened to Jewish communities in North America – maybe in the world – in over 40 years. It’s such a fantastic way of engaging young families and getting to know them.”
JP&N: “In terms of ‘Grow Winnipeg’, what were the basics of the plan? I take it it was to encourage immigration.”
Faye: “It was actually more than that. It was to encourage immigration, it was also to encourage people to stay. It turns out that the factors that allow young people to stay include that it’s easier to live here, they find significant others, they build lives here…it’s actually been a growing population. We’ll find out for sure when we see the next census data (which is not scheduled to start being released until November).”
JP&N: “There’s always been much talk about the initiative to Argentina. I assume you were quite involved in that, weren’t you?”
Faye: “Yes, I worked alongside Evelyn (Hecht) and after two years I was responsible for Grow Winnipeg, where I supervised Dalia (Szpiro) (GrowWinnipeg director), so I was part of it right from the start.”
JP&N: “Speaking of immigration, I know there’s been a bit of a downturn in the numbers coming here since Covid, but since all provinces have been given increases in the numbers of immigrants they’ll be allowed to bring under Provincial Nominee Programs, can you put your finger on how many new immigrants have come here over the years?”
Faye: “I can honestly say when I look at those numbers it’s somewhere around 1/3 of the community.”
JP&N: “So you’d say it’s somewhere between 4-5,000?”
Faye: “I think it’s more than that.”
JP&N: “You know that I’ve always been skeptical about the numbers that have been used for the population of the Jewish community by the Federation. I think though that it’s always been more of a case of identification – who identifies as Jewish? Has part of your role been trying to get people who didn’t identify as part of the community more involved?”
Faye: “Yes, in the 1990s it was called Jewish continuity and Jewish renaissance and now we talk about welcoming and engagement, but I think the key issue is trying to build the community and make everyone feel welcome in some part of Jewish life. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they have to have a membership somewhere.”
JP&N: “I know we’ve spoken about this before. Evelyn Katz used to be the unofficial demographer for the community. Is there a database for what you would consider the entire Jewish community?”
Faye: “No, once privacy legislation came along, that was it. Evelyn used to talk to real estate agents, and find out who died, who was born. And then it stopped, nobody could tell her anything. It was against the rules.”
JP&N: “So how do you arrive at your estimates for the size of the Jewish population then?”
Faye: “I rely on the analysis from the census.”
JP&N: “But the last census that was really valid was the 2011 National Household Survey.”
Faye: “So we had to make the best guess that we could – what we could see with our own eyes, and where the gaps were in the data.”
JP&N: “I remember when you started a community planning process in 2016 where Carol Duboff was the chair.”
Faye: “Yes, we called the consultations community conversations.”
JP&N: “What do you think are the keys to maintaining a strong and vibrant community?”
Faye: “That’s always been my focus, Bernie. I’m the person who’s been tasked with looking ahead as the planning director. If you look at our webpage, which is jewishwinnipeg.org/planning, you’ll see that we lay out those priorities. I talked to more than 400 people that year.
“We focused it around four priority areas. It turns out that one of those priority areas, which was Jewish connection, is not something that you act on by itself. It’s the glue that says everything we do needs to promote more and more connections between Jews and with the Jewish community
“Then we focused on the priority areas in terms of goals that we could set – an action plan including: vibrant Jewish life, an inclusive and caring community, and then the things that were the supportive structures.
“I think there are a lot of different kinds of vibrant Jewish life; there’s not just one kind.”
JP&N: “Let’s talk about your retirement. Are you going to be fully retired when you leave your position?”
Faye: “I am. I have an ambition and a plan. I’m going to go be a student for a term.”
JP&N: “And what about Harvey (Faye’s husband)? Is he also retired?”
Faye: “Harvey is also about to retire. He’s worked at the Convention Centre for many years where he worked as the systems manager for the director of the Convention Centre. Once he retired from there he worked at a Catholic counseling centre for the past six years, where he was the equivalent of a CFO.”
Faye then proceeded to explain that both she and Harvey will be going to Israel in the near future. “Harvey is going first and I will go in January when I’m finished (at the Federation). I will be a student at the Pardes Institute…where I’ll be studying Talmud and maybe Chasidut, maybe something about Jewish history…When I was graduating high school those things weren’t available to girls in the same way it was for my boys. You couldn’t go to a program in Israel where you were allowed to study Talmud in a co-ed situation.”
JP&N: “I think there’s something to be said for the Federation, too, as people have come in. It seems to me there’s always been someone there to provide them with mentorship.” Are you the longest-serving employee at the Federation?”
Faye: “No, Elaine Goldstine came a year before me. She worked with (the late) Gerry Kaufman on the fundraising side, who was also a mentor to me. Gerry told me that when he went out on calls he wasn’t soliciting funds, he was finding Jews. If you found the pintele Yid (the Jew inside) the money would follow. But first you need the connection.”
At that point I told Faye that I would send her this interview and offered to let her add anything pertinent that we might have missed during the course of our half-hour conversation.
She sent this post script:
I have worked with so many brilliant lay leaders who taught me so many things, I can’t even make a list small enough for the paper. In the last few years, we’ve been able to build up process, create continuity with vice chairs set to become the next chair, building strong collaboration across the community.
We are not a large enough community to have too many separate groups and agencies and silos. Our great advantage in Winnipeg is that we are out here in Winnipeg. We have to work together to get things done for ourselves and embrace the diversity of our community. We have a long history of doing just that.
I feel like I’m leaving behind something robust enough to let the next planning and allocations director dig in, get started, and then put their own self into the work. And I am grateful for having had the chance to serve my own Jewish community.
Features
Colleges With the Largest Jewish Student Communities
Choosing a college is hard enough without factoring in whether you’ll be the only Jewish person at the Shabbat table. For students who want Jewish life to be a real part of their college experience – not a weekly drive to the nearest city – campus community matters as much as academic reputation.
The good news: several major universities have Jewish student populations large enough that Jewish holidays are actually acknowledged, kosher dining isn’t a special request, and you’ll find everything from traditional minyanim to social justice groups to Jewish Greek life. What follows is a breakdown of the schools that consistently rank highest, based on Hillel International’s annual data and campus reporting.
What to Look For Beyond the Numbers
Raw population numbers don’t tell the whole story. Some students want a large Jewish population to maximize the number of organizations, fraternities and sororities, and participation at Jewish events. Others want schools with easy kosher dining options and a range of religious options for services. Still others want easy access to a large Jewish community off campus.
Top schools also come with serious academic demands. Jewish students who want to stay active in community life while keeping up with coursework often treat writing as something to outsource strategically. Students who decide to hire essay writer online guidance for specific writing tasks often find that the quality of that support keeps them on track without sacrificing everything else. Some things are worth delegating so you can actually show up for Shabbat or make it to the Hillel event on a Tuesday.
The questions worth asking before committing to any campus:
- Does the Hillel have a dedicated building, or does it operate out of shared space?
- Is kosher dining available in the main dining hall, or is it a separate facility that separates you from non-Jewish friends?
- Does the school adjust exam schedules around major Jewish holidays?
- Is there a Chabad house nearby for students who want a more observant environment?
- What’s the campus climate like regarding antisemitism, and how does the administration respond?
The Top Schools by Jewish Population
University of Florida
UF has 6,500 Jewish students – bigger than some entire colleges. The Jewish community is so established that they have multiple Jewish fraternities and sororities, plus Hillel programming that goes well beyond awkward mixers. The Hillel at UF is nationally recognized, with kosher dining and daily minyanim. Gainesville’s Jewish community includes Orthodox synagogues within reach, and UF’s administration’s efforts to combat antisemitism, as noted in 2024 Hillel reports, ensure a welcoming environment.
Rutgers University
With 6,400 Jewish students, Rutgers gives you every type of Jewish person – from very religious to “only goes to synagogue on Yom Kippur.” Being in New Jersey means NYC is accessible for internships, Shabbat with family, or just a real bagel. Rutgers Hillel is one of the most active in the country and the campus has a long history of Jewish student life.
University of Maryland
One of the most significant Hillel building projects underway anywhere in the country. The new Ben and Esther Rosenbloom Hillel Center For Jewish Life at University of Maryland will be a 40,000-square-foot building in College Park, including a kosher dining area, café, rental catering spaces, and classrooms. Maryland’s Jewish population is large, geographically convenient to Washington D.C., and has been growing.
New York University
NYU sits in the middle of one of the largest Jewish communities in the world, which changes what campus Jewish life looks like entirely. The off-campus options – synagogues, kosher restaurants, Jewish cultural institutions – are unmatched anywhere else on this list. NYU Hillel is active, and students who want a more immersive Jewish urban experience rather than a contained campus bubble tend to thrive here.
Brandeis University
A different category from the others. Brandeis was founded as a Jewish-sponsored institution and still reflects that in its campus culture. Brandeis Hillel recently announced a $20 million project to renovate a former administrative building into a new 28,000-square-foot center for Jewish life on campus. Jewish studies programs are among the strongest in the country, and the campus calendar is built around Jewish holidays as a matter of course.
Cornell University
Cornell has the largest Jewish student population in the Ivy League and is finally getting the college hilel building to match. Construction began in spring 2026 on the Steven K. and Winifred A. Grinspoon Hillel Center for Jewish Community at Cornell – a 24,000-square-foot facility expected to serve over 3,000 Cornellians each year, featuring a kosher café, event hall for Shabbat dinners, a communal kosher kitchen, and a Beit Midrash. Until it opens, the community operates out of Anabel Taylor Hall, where space has been consistently stretched.
Princeton University
Smaller numbers than the large state schools, but the infrastructure is serious. Princeton’s Mandelbaum Family Dining Pavilion opened in March 2025, providing twenty kosher meals a week supervised by the Orthodox Union. Anyone on a Princeton meal plan can eat there – and students of all backgrounds eat there because the food is genuinely good.
Campus Comparison
| School | Approx. Jewish enrollment | Kosher dining | Hillel building | Chabad presence |
| University of Florida | ~6,500 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Rutgers University | ~6,400 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cornell University | Largest in Ivy League | Yes (new facility 2027) | Under construction | Yes |
| University of Maryland | Large | New facility opening | Under construction | Yes |
| NYU | Large | Yes + off-campus | Yes | Yes |
| Brandeis | Majority Jewish | Yes | Renovation underway | Yes |
| Princeton | ~13% | Yes (OU-certified) | Yes | Yes |
What Actually Makes a Jewish Campus Community Strong
Numbers matter, but they’re not everything. When you get above around 25% Jewish, the whole campus culture shifts. Jewish holidays become things that professors acknowledge. Kosher food isn’t some weird special request. Everyone understands why you disappear for three days during Rosh Hashanah.
Beyond that threshold, what separates good Jewish campus communities from great ones is programming depth and physical space. A Hillel with a real building, a kosher kitchen, and regular Shabbat dinners creates the conditions for genuine community. A Hillel sharing a conference room and running events sporadically does not.
The schools on this list all offer something real. What varies is the scale, the feel, and whether you want a sprawling state school where Jewish life is one of many communities, or a smaller institution where it’s closer to the center of things.
Features
Is AI Making the Canadian Gaming Sector Safer for Consumers in 2026?
The phrase “artificial intelligence” seems ubiquitous nowadays. It represents an extremely efficient technology that is revolutionizing virtually all industries; the Canadian online gambling market is not an exception. Although the first associations related to AI in the context of online gambling are connected with the creation of new content, it performs one of its key functions far from the spotlight.
By 2026, AI will become an absolutely necessary means for ensuring consumer safety within the regulated gaming market.
If it’s fraud prevention or responsible gaming promotion, artificial intelligence is used by operators to increase the security level in the market. This task becomes especially relevant in the case of a regulated market like Ontario where consumer safety becomes a primary concern.
Let us have a closer look at the concrete applications of AI for this purpose.
Detecting and Preventing Fraud
Among the primary risks faced by any online website that conducts financial transactions is the risk of fraud. This can range from using stolen credit cards to more complicated cases of bonus abuse.
In the past, such activities could only be detected through manual analysis by the security team of the organization. However, modern technologies have brought about significant changes in how this challenge is handled.
The current generation of online gambling sites employs advanced algorithms that help monitor all activities conducted on the site in real-time. The algorithm is designed to detect any suspicious patterns that could indicate any malicious intent on the part of the user.
In addition, the program can examine several data points within seconds, identifying any abnormal behavior of the player. For instance, the AI may identify a situation where a player makes many deposits using different payment instruments.
This helps to address potential issues before they become problematic for the operator and the users of the platform.
Ensuring Fair Play
In order to ensure fairness in an online world that is full of competition, especially within a game such as poker, it is essential to keep cheating at bay. AI technology is being applied in order to do this.
One of the major issues that arises when it comes to online poker is the use of bots. Bots refer to computerized systems that play poker without a human being.
Using AI to protect a poker room includes using AI security measures that can distinguish the patterns in which bots play. AI can help identify other types of unfair plays such as collusion, where there is cooperation among players at the same table.
These AI security measures have the capability of analyzing the hand histories and patterns of play that would take human beings too long to do.
Promoting Responsible Gaming
The most important application of AI in the Canadian gaming industry could be seen as the area of responsible gaming. The gambling license holders should offer various instruments to help players control themselves, but the AI technology will allow taking a step further.
With the help of AI algorithms, licensed operators may learn to detect signs of gambling disorder based on specific patterns of playing. It is worth mentioning that AI technology is not meant to evaluate the gambler but analyze his behavior objectively.
For instance, the algorithm can warn the operator about a player who spends much more time or money than before, as well as someone who chases their losses.
Once the patterns are detected, the appropriate measures can be taken. For instance, an automated warning could be sent to the gambler informing about responsible gaming resources. If necessary, the player can be contacted by a person who has undergone special training for this purpose.
It can be considered a highly effective solution to make the gaming process safe.
A More Personalized and Secure Experience
Furthermore, AI is employed in creating a customized and safer environment for players and currently, many platforms utilize AI algorithms to provide personalized suggestions regarding games.
By analyzing the preferences of the user and the kinds of online slots in Canada they like, the system can make recommendations on other games they would enjoy playing. Thus, users have the opportunity to explore new games and get greater satisfaction from using the platform.
Regarding security, the technology is also used in order to make the login process more secure. Many platforms currently utilize AI algorithms based on behavioral biometrics.
Thus, the system identifies unique patterns of a specific user, including how he/she types or moves the mouse and in case somebody tries to log in under someone else’s name, the algorithm detects unusual behavior and initiates extra verification procedures.
Final Thoughts
There is no denying that artificial intelligence is quietly working in the background to ensure the safety of Canadian gamers.
From fraud and cheating detection to the benefits of promoting responsible gambling, the application of AI is aiding the development of a more reliable gaming industry.
With new developments expected in the future regarding AI, the industry will continue to benefit from this technology and this is indeed good news for all Canadians who enjoy online gaming as entertainment.
Features
A Jewish farmer broke ground on a synagogue in an Illinois cornfield. His neighbors showed up to help.
By Benyamin Cohen May 8, 2026 “This story was originally published in the Forward. Click here to get the Forward’s free email newsletters delivered to your inbox.”
Benyamin has been reporting for more than a year on the improbable story of Nik Jakobs. Catch up here and here, and stay tuned for a forthcoming piece about a trip they took to the Netherlands to visit the towns where the Jakobs family survived the Holocaust. Yesterday was an important moment in Jakobs’ overall journey, and we wanted to share it with you.
STERLING, ILLINOIS — On Wednesday, Nik Jakobs was planting corn. On Thursday, the 41-year-old Illinois cattle farmer stood in a two-acre cornfield preparing to plant something else: a synagogue.
Around 75 people gathered on the edge of the field this week in Sterling, Illinois, a two-hour drive west of Chicago, where Jakobs and his family broke ground on a new home for Temple Sholom, the small congregation that has anchored Jewish life here for more than a century, and where his family has prayed since the 1950s.
The planned 4,000-square-foot building will also house a Holocaust museum inspired by the story of Jakobs’ grandparents, Edith and Norbert, who survived the war after Christian families in the Netherlands hid them in their homes for years. Jakobs described the future museum as a place devoted not only to Jewish history, but to teaching the dangers of hatred and division. “If you have the choice to be right or kind,” he said, repeating advice from his grandmother, “choose kind.”
A 60-foot blue ribbon — chosen by Jakobs’ wife, Katie, to match the color of the Israeli flag — stretched across the future building site. His four daughters held it alongside his parents, brothers and friends. Then they lifted oversized gold scissors and cut the ribbon as pastors, farmers, city officials and members of neighboring churches applauded.
The synagogue rising from this Illinois cornfield will house pieces of the past.
A nearby storage area holds Jewish objects Jakobs rescued from shuttered synagogues across the country: stained-glass windows, Torah arks, rabbi’s chairs, memorial plaques and wooden tablets engraved with the tribes of Israel. Many came from Temple B’nai Israel, a 113-year-old synagogue that closed down in 2025. It served generations of Jews in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, now a ghost town since the steel mills closed. Its remaining congregants donated sacred objects to Jakobs so their story could live on rather than disappear.
The day before the groundbreaking, the Jakobs family began opening some of the crates for the first time since they were packed away nearly a year ago. Nik’s father, Dave Jakobs, pried open one box with a hammer and crowbar while Nik loosened screws with an electric drill, the family gathered around like archaeologists opening a tomb.
Inside was a stained-glass window with images of a tallit and shofar bursting in jewel tones of blue, yellow and red. Jakobs’ mother, Margo, lifted Annie, the youngest of Nik’s daughters, so the 4-year-old could peer inside. The bright red glass matched the bow in her hair.
Nearby sat the massive wooden ark salvaged from Pennsylvania, topped with twin Lions of Judah whose carved paws once overlooked generations of worshippers.
Faith on the farmland
Temple Sholom — founded in 1910 — was once the center of Jewish life in Sterling, a town of 14,500 surrounded by flat farmland and tall grain silos. Its Jewish community once included a pharmacist, the manager of Kline’s department store and the owner of a local McDonald’s franchise.
Over time, membership dwindled. The roof sagged. The pews emptied.
Last year, the congregation sold its aging building and relocated High Holiday services to a tent on the Jakobs’ farm, where prayers mingled with the smell of manure and cattle lowing nearby.
At a moment when many small-town synagogues are closing, Temple Sholom is doing something increasingly rare: building a bigger new sanctuary from scratch. The synagogue will sit prominently along one of Sterling’s main roads — a highly visible expression of Jewish life in a region where Jews are few.
Thursday’s groundbreaking took place on the National Day of Prayer, the annual observance formalized under President Ronald Reagan, who grew up a few miles away in Dixon, Illinois. Earlier that morning, attendees gathered inside New Life Lutheran Church for a breakfast sponsored by Temple Sholom.
“I was so happy to see bagels, lox and cream cheese,” said Rev. James Keenan, a Catholic priest originally from Brooklyn. “It reminded me of home.”
Inside the church sanctuary, a large wooden cross glowed amber and blue above the dais while two giant screens displayed the National Day of Prayer logo. Jakobs, wearing cowboy boots, jeans and a powder-blue blazer, addressed the crowd.
“Tolerance is not weakness,” he said. “It is strength.”
The new synagogue will sit beside New Life Lutheran Church on land sold to Temple Sholom by farmer Dan Koster, 71, who has known the Jakobs family for three generations.
“We need more religious presence in the community,” Koster said.
For Drew Williams, New Life’s 38-year-old lead pastor, the synagogue and museum represent more than neighboring buildings. His church already hosts food-packing drives, summer meal programs and community events. He imagines future partnerships with Temple Sholom.
“I don’t think there’s any community that is immune to hate,” Williams said. “That just means it’s on us” to be on the other side “spreading peace.”
Sterling Mayor Diana Merdian, who is 41 and grew up in town with Jakobs, said the project reflects a broader desire among younger generations to preserve local history and identity. “If we don’t carry those stories, we lose them,” she said. “Once you lose that, you can’t get it back.”
During the ceremony in the cornfield, Temple Sholom’s longtime cantor, Lori Schwaber, asked those gathered to remember the congregation’s founding members and recite the Mourner’s Kaddish together. Jews and Christians stood side by side in the prairie wind as Hebrew prayers drifted across the open farmland.
Lester Weinstine, a 90-year-old congregant who was the first bar mitzvah at Temple Sholom when the shul was still housed out of a Pepsi bottling plant, looked out across the field in disbelief. “I never thought I would see this,” he said.
For Jakobs, the synagogue project has become inseparable from the lessons his grandparents’ survival taught him. “You sometimes feel on an island as a Jew, especially in rural America,” he said. “But this community — that’s not what I’ve experienced here.”
If construction stays on schedule, the synagogue will open in fall 2027. Its first major service will not be a dedication ceremony, but the bat mitzvah of Jakobs’ oldest daughter, Taylor.
Members of the Pennsylvania congregation are planning a bus trip to Illinois for the occasion, after donating many of their sacred objects to help build Jakob’s synagogue. Their former rabbi has offered to officiate.
“If a farmer can build a synagogue in a cornfield,” Jakobs said, “anybody can do it anywhere.”
Benyamin Cohen is a senior writer at the Forward and host of our morning briefing, Forwarding the News. He is the author of two books, My Jesus Year and The Einstein Effect.
This story was originally published on the Forward.