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What It Means to Invest in Community
Learning a lesson from religion that could be applied to politics
According to a recent story in eJewishPhilanthropy.com, a new rabbi is coming to Martha’s Vineyard. His name is Tzvi Alperowitz. He is 25 years old, and with his wife Hadassah, they are parents of a newborn. Also, with the help of local benefactors led by a philanthropist named Terry Kassel, they are buying a house on the island, where the median price of a home has skyrocketed since the pandemic to $1.3 million. Kassel, who is reportedly the longtime girlfriend of rightwing billionaire Paul Singer, is “helping fund [Alperowitz’s] nascent operation, whose $600,000 budget for this year includes the cost of a down payment,” according to eJewishPhilanthropy.
A week ago, the new Chabad center on the Vineyard held a housewarming event at its new permanent home in a large house in Vineyard Haven, complete with a buffet dinner and a bar with cocktails. Alperowitz is planning to hold more community events, including lectures, classes meals and children’s programming. “People are looking for connection much more than you think,” he told eJewishPhilanthropy. “People are waiting for you to reach out and people want to be part of a Jewish community,” he said. I’ve heard that one of the first acts of a Chabad emissary, upon their arrival in a new community, is…
