Without In-Person High Holiday Services, Synagogues Face Budget Concerns
A survey of Baltimore synagogues and how they are responding to the Covid-19 crisis.
Location: Baltimore, MD
This article has been excerpted from its original location at the Baltimore Jewish Times with permission from the publisher. Click here to view the original article in full.
As a result of the pandemic, many of Baltimore’s synagogues moved their High Holiday services online, or made in-person ones smaller and shorter. Some, which rely heavily on High Holiday services as a source of revenue, will lose out on money.
A handful of synagogues in the area spoke to the JT about the financial impact of these adjustments.
Beth El treats members to professional production
Beth El Congregation, a Conservative synagogue in Pikesville of 1.700 families, is treating its budget with caution. The synagogue usually sees up to 5,000 individuals at a High Holiday service.
“Like all synagogues and nonprofits, we’re going to have a large shortfall based on the closure of our facility, in terms of schools closing and camps closing or members having been hit by difficult financial times,” said Josh Bender, executive director of Beth El. “We’re not unscathed. We’re definitely taking a hit like all organizations.”
He is grateful the synagogue has some generous congregants who have helped them with their COVID-19 relief fund to continue operations and cover tuition and membership fees for those who could not pay in full or at all. The synagogue has been able to not turn away or limit any community members this year.
What also helped Beth El was that it had been prepared for a crisis and had determined it could get through the coming year. Moreover, it received some funding from the Paycheck Protection Program.
However, due to the lack of revenue, the congregation did have to furlough some employees, make operational changes and will continue to adapt its terms for childhood programs.
Going forward, Beth El will create its next budget with new priorities in mind.
“Before, it was easy to take on a new program and try it out,” Bender said. “But now, I think we need to look at the priorities based on the values we have. For example, there will be a much greater emphasis on social action in the community.”
The High Holidays are also a priority to the synagogue. Because of how supportive their members have been, the synagogue decided to put on as exciting services for High Holidays as they could given that it must be virtual. The clergy and staff hired a professional videography team, which recorded the services from the synagogue building without guests.
“For the holidays, we made a decision to do everything we could to create an uplifting experience, despite the fact that we’re physically distant,” Bender said.
Chevrei Tzedek concerned with community
Some congregations are not able to afford upgrades to their virtual platform. Chevrei Tzedek Congregation is one example, according to Elise Saltzberg, co-chair of Chevrei Tzedek’s Finance and Fundraising Committee.
The Conservative congregation only charges for tickets for nonmembers. In the past, this brought them anywhere from $6,000 to $7,000 of revenue during the High Holiday season.
This year, that number will be zero.
While Chevrei Tzedek is having a junior version of streamed services, and nonmembers are being asked to donate something toward it, Saltzberg expects a deficit for 2020.
On the other hand, she noted that at least there will be significantly fewer costs for them to incur. “For example, we usually have a break-the-fast after the shofar blowing, which usually costs $1,000, so we’ll save money by not having that this year.”
More than the financial loss, Saltzberg is much more concerned with the community itself.
“What we’re really losing is meeting each other,” she said.
A few weeks ago, congregants gathered for the first time since the pandemic at the Myerberg Center, where the synagogue holds services. People didn’t want to leave and lingered, missing the physical community.
“A congregation means congregating,” Saltzberg lamented.
Because of their new (and first) rabbi joining, Chevrei Tzedek had grown in 2019 and expected six to eight new membership households in 2020. But now, the synagogue anticipates it will lose about 80 families.
“We’ve talked about this on various committees,” Saltzberg said. “People are looking for more than an hour and a half of streaming services, so they will join a synagogue with outdoor services.”
She said that while some may leave to join more engaging opportunities, others will leave simply because they don’t want to pay for an online service. Still others might not be able to pay at all, but Saltzberg said that this is less of a concern because the congregation would never kick them out.
Fortunately, at this time, she only knows of one person who has left for a congregation that could offer more programs.
Temple Adas Shalom treads carefully
Temple Adas Shalom: The Harford Jewish Center has been relatively fortunate, but finances are something they are still careful about, according to Mark Wolkow, co-chair of the synagogue’s Religious Practices Committee.
The Reform synagogue of 140 households has been able to use federal funding for salary costs. Temple Adas Shalom has also found it does not need to spend as much, as heat and air conditioning operation expenses are not necessary now at the sanctuary. Their administrator is the only person at the building, and only part time.
“We save on cleaning and security,” Wolkow said. “Some of it offsets costs.”
He concluded that Temple Adas Shalom’s budget remains mostly the same. However, they are still continuing to pay off last year’s renovations. But Wolkow said they are in a good spot financially and are satisfied that congregants trust their transparency.
While the synagogue has lost some revenue from members not being able to pay, the community has not lost attendees and has actually grown on Zoom. For example, Wolkow’s mother in Annapolis now joins regularly, especially if her granddaughter is singing at a service. Before, Wolkow said, it was a difficult schlep for her to make it to the shul.
Click here to read the rest of this article at its original location at the Baltimore Jewish Times.
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