Festival to promote Jewish community

Bethel Marcus with her daughter, Molly, 3½, and husband David.

Like so many young people before her, Bethel Marcus took her newly minted degree and went to work in Manhattan. She was young and single and the city beckoned.

But a husband and a child later, the one bedroom apartment they were living had grown tight. Her daughter, Molly, was living in a closet that had been converted into a bedroom. They were aching for something more, but not yet ready to move.

And then preschool tipped the scale.

“We were running around Manhattan just trying to find a preschool,” said Marcus, who grew up in Spring Valley. “We joined a synagogue, thinking that would help with its preschool, but the price, even as a member was outrageous,” she said.

Marcus had fond memories of growing up in Rockland, so the Marcus started house hunting here. They attended an open house at Reuben Gittleman Hebrew Day School, and were hooked. “It was very nurturing and it was right up the Palisades, the commute was really easy,” she said.

So in September, the couple packed up their apartment and moved to a four bedroom house in Nanuet. Her husband now commutes to Long Island City. Marcus, an occupational therapist, is able to work per diem, so that she can be available for her daughter.

And Molly, 3½, now enrolled in the threes program at Gittleman, has not only a bedroom, but a playroom as well. The family has been investigating synagogues in Rockland, which was daunting in the city.  Something as simple as checking out a tot Shabbat program across town could be a traffic-jammed hassle, she said.

They love JCC Rockland, which was their biggest surprise moving here, as it was not something that Marcus had when growing up in Rockland County. And the farmer’s markets that are open spring through fall, the big backyard and the general ease of living have all made the move more than worth it.

“It’s an easier life, a better life; the craziness, the noise, it was driving us up here,” she said.

SHALOM ROCKLAND DAY

Andrea Sherman, right, and Brenda Lender, chairs of Shalom Rockland

The Marcuses aren’t alone in looking for sanity in the suburbs. And it is more families like them that the Jewish Federation of Rockland County is hoping to lure up here when Shalom Rockland, a community showcase, rolls out the welcome mat from 1-5 p.m. on Sunday, April 10 at the Rockland Jewish Community Campus, 450 West Nyack Rd., West Nyack.

Part community promotions and razzle-dazzle festival, the event is meant to attract both young families house hunting in the suburbs, and local residents, as it shows off all that Jewish Rockland and the county have to offer. Folded into all the hoopla is a chance for families who are house hunting to learn about incentives the Federation has put together with the event sponsors to make a move easier.

“Rockland County has so much to offer, and we really want to tell everyone why they should make it their home,” said Brenda Lender, who along with Andrea Sherman has co-chaired the massive undertaking that will involve hundreds of volunteers.

“We have a great Jewish community here, and we just want to get the word out. We need everyone to promote this event not only here in Rockland, but outside the community.”

Sponsored by Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty, Provident Bank, and Helene and Barry Lewis, a Piermont resident with long-standing ties in the Rockland Jewish community, the day is meant to serve as a vehicle for local boosterism, as well as a fun day for families.

More than 30 Jewish, general cultural, organizations, as well as synagogues and civic agencies will have exhibition booths to promote what they do.  There’s a DJ lined up with dancing and activities for children and teens, a photo booth, and cartoon characters strolling around. Live music includes Moshe Katzburg, Jeffrey Friedberg and the Bossy Frog Band, Trey Kaley and the Temple Dudes.

Chanalee Fisher, “The Challah Fairy,” will be on hand for some baking lessons. There will be inflatable bounce houses, gymnastics, carnival games and a youth arcade. Swag bags with discount coupons will be given away at check in and raffles will be held throughout the day. Shalom Sesame will be screened in the JCC’s senior lounge. And there’s even henna body art for the adventurous, and a petting zoo.

“It’s not just any petting zoo,” said Lender. And a quick rundown of the animals that will be on hand includes a tortoise, two ibex, a hedgehog and a zebra. Yes, a zebra.

There will be free valet parking and overflow parking at the Salvation Army lot across the campus driveway and security is included. There will be a check in for visitors, but there is no entry fee; the only thing anyone will have to pay for is food from Bubba’s Bagels should they want.

“We wanted to pull out all the stops,” said Sherman. “We feel like Rockland is the region’s best-kept secret. So we’ve really been working hard to make this a fun, exciting day and get people to come up from the city.”

To that end, the event has been promoted in parenting publications and Jewish newspapers in New York City and other communities meant to lure a demographic slice that some feel is waning in Rockland. If there’s demand, there will be free shuttle buses from Manhattan, to make it as easy as possible for people to spend the day exploring Jewish Rockland.