MILWAUKEE – The growth of the Twerski community is a blessing, but it’s a blessing with challenge.
The largely Torah-observant community of Jews that lives a short Shabbos walk from Congregation Beth Jehudah, 3100 N. 52nd St., Milwaukee, has grown too large for its spaces, according to Twerski rabbis.
They’re considering options for expansion.
The neighborhood, often called the “West Side,” a swath of the Sherman Park area in Milwaukee, had fewer than 100 families about 20 years ago, said Rabbi Benzion Twerski, who helps lead the shul, with his father, Michel, and son Chaim. Now, it’s around 140 to 150 families.
He estimated that growth was at around four or five families per year until the pandemic, which blunted but did not stop the growth. “We’re back up now, probably two, three or four families a year, but there’s always some families that were leaving. So the growth is much slower now – post-COVID – than it was,” Benzion said.
“The school enrollment numbers really tell the story … we’ve grown younger,” said Chaim, noting that Yeshiva Elementary School is now at more than 200 students, an increase over the decades.
Milwaukee’s Twerskis are known throughout the Orthodox world, with the family originating from the Chernobyl Hasidic dynasty, in Ukraine. Patriarch Rabbi Jacob Israel Twerski immigrated from Europe in 1927 to lead Congregation Beth Yehudah. His son, Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski, was a psychiatrist who blended his approach to Judaism with addiction recovery.
The Hasidic community worldwide is also growing, the men said. Benzion said more local growth would be welcome, even with the challenges, but there’s no goal to build up to a big number like 1,000 families.
Yet even as the rabbis said they would welcome a few more families, there’s a problem. “Right now, both our school and our shul are at capacity. We’re out of space,” Chaim said.
“Kiddush after davening, just to give you an idea – every service morning, there’s a kiddush after that. It is so tight and so ridiculous. We can’t fit,” Benzion said.
A playground added two years ago beside the synagogue has given children some more space in summer, Benzion said. And a local cemetery used by the community is also running out of space, he said.
The community is considering options for expansion, the rabbis said, including a recent meeting with an architect to learn about options.
Benzion was careful to point out that he is grateful for the problem, for the many children in the community. Referring to the blessing of it, he said: “It’s such a bracha.”
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