You can make a big difference in a small Jewish community in Oregon! We are close to reaching our goal, having raised more than 80% of the budget from our members. With your generous donation, we will cross the line and be able to realize this exciting dream.
We’ve grown from 5 families meeting in each other’s living rooms in 1974 to 140 families in 2017.
The Beit Am Mid-Willamette Valley Jewish Community, in Corvallis, Oregon, USA, has operated without a formal synagogue for over 40 years. Beit Am currently meets at a repurposed house which the community converted to a functional synagogue, but the building is too small to meet the needs of our growing membership. For special occasions, including Bar and Bat Mitzvahs and the High Holidays, the congregation has relied on other facilities in Corvallis since we are bursting at the seams in our current building.
Great Progress, Almost There
Please click on the video above for more information about our congregation and this initiative. Our small congregation has raised about 80% of the $2.5 million needed for a new building through a 10+ year capital campaign. Beit Am purchased five acres for a new building 16 years ago and we are proud to announce we held our groundbreaking event on October 8. Now, bulldozers are on the site preparing for the foundation. Now it’s more critical than ever that we push across the finish line with our fundraising goals.
Beit Am’s board and membership are committed to building our synagogue without any debt. As part of the final push, a team was formed to focus on four different fundraising avenues. These avenues include: engaging regional benefactors, a campaign to solicit donations and pledges from members, grant writing proposals to national organizations, and this Jewcer outreach to the online community. The online team has set a goal of raising $50,000 toward the remaining gap.
The building design is in its final stages, a builder is secured and we are actively planning for site preparations and construction. We are eager to begin building our new synagogue home!
The land is owned by the congregation and is located just one mile from the converted house-synagogue. The site is already used by the Beit Am community for outdoor programs and meditation.
A Regional Community Resource
Beit Am is the only Jewish community serving the Mid-Willamette Valley area that includes Linn, Benton, and Lincoln counties. Corvallis is home to the main campus of Oregon State University, a regional medical center, and many small advanced technology companies. Our congregation provides a Jewish “home away from home” for Hillel students at the university and a locus of Jewish culture and observance for new and long-time residents of the region. The new building location is less than a mile from the center of campus. Our members volunteer around the region in activities such as Jewish services at the Oregon State Penitentiary, Stone Soup, We Care, and staffing the local men’s cold weather shelter. These are natural extensions of Jewish programs such as Hadassah, Hillel, and the Jewish Burial Society, which open to all Corvallis community members.
A few more examples of Beit Am’s community outreach that would be enhanced by the new building:
- Beit Midrash – our religious school
- Tikkun Olam – community services like Stone Soup and We Care
- Active participation in the local interfaith community
A 40 Year Vision For A Jewish Community
Our congregation started with a dream of growing in size and engagement, including individuals and families with a variety of Jewish traditions and levels of observance. Our founding families dared to dream that someday we would need a building like this. We do, and we’re building it. The local Jewish community provides great support for our congregation but the limited regional population makes raising the necessary funds extra challenging. This article (click here) from the local newspaper provides insights into the overall campaign.
We Need Your Help to Realize This Dream
Your tax-deductible donation will help ensure that this vibrant and committed Jewish community can establish a permanent home for its members and the greater Jewish community in the Mid-Willamette Valley.
We had an incredible groundbreaking event just last week. Great support from the community! Our Campaign has just launched to the broader community. Let’s keep the momentum rolling… Please keep sharing with your friends and family.