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Temple B’rith Shalom Records, SHM MS-32 1952-2002

SHM MS-32

History of Organization

Members of the Jewish religion have lived in Prescott since pioneer days. Starting in 1879, Morris Goldwater, an uncle of Barry Goldwater, was the mayor of Prescott for many years. While there are records of Jewish ceremonies and services being held during the early years of Prescott history, there were no organized Jewish congregations. Attempts were made in the 1940s to start a Jewish congregation in the Prescott area but nothing actually came of it.

Beginning in 1977, Irving and Shirley Brohner were living in Prescott but traveling back to their old Temple in Phoenix to worship. It was that year on a cold winter night while making the trip, that Shirley had a dream. She dreamed of how wonderful it would be to have a Temple close by - maybe even in Prescott. From that dream, Temple B'rith Shalom was born. Shortly after that cold drive, Shirley placed an ad in the Prescott Daily Courier that read, "Nice Jewish couple would like to meet other Jewish families." The ad garnered just five responses, but it was enough. In 1978, the small group held its first Chanukkah party, and the next few years brought picnics, dinners, more Chanukkah parties and other social gatherings. As the group grew, it began to hold Friday night services at the old YMCA. These services were conducted by members of the congregation using borrowed Torahs, while Sunday school was held at various locations and taught by members of the group.

Soon the idea of a permanent Temple became more of a need than just a simple want. In 1980, Mark Goodman and his family from Phoenix made the initial donation toward a fund to construct a permanent temple in Prescott. This donation was matched by Irving Brohner, and the "Building Fund" was officially established. That same year, the Temple chose its name, Temple B'rith Shalom or Covenant of Peace. As the “Building Fund” grew, so did the congregation. In 1983, the first student Rabbi, Lon Moskowitz, arrived. In 1984, the first Torah, a Holocaust Torah rescued from Slany, Czechoslovakia, was brought to the Temple. In 1985 services and Sunday school were moved to a small house on Moeller Street. However, the ever-increasing community needed more space. Hence, in 1990 the Temple was officially moved to a building which previously held a doll factory. This would be the home of Temple B'rith Shalom for the next eight years.

Finally, in 1992 the congregation found the perfect parcel of land located off of Willow Lake Road. Under the leadership of Greg Raskin, Alfred Falk, and Bob and Dorothy Morris, Temple B'rith Shalom's plans for a new temple were underway. Simultaneously, in 1996, Temple B'rith Shalom hired our first ordained rabbi, Rabbi William Berkowitz. On July 1, 1997, over 100 people attended the official groundbreaking ceremony. On November 12, 1997, the street where the Temple is located was renamed Brohner Way in honor of Irving and Shirley. On January 11, 1998, Rabbi William Berkowitz, Temple President Robert Morris, and the members of Temple B'rith Shalom held a dedication ceremony for the newly completed Temple and the congregation began to experience a huge growth in numbers. In 1999, the synagogue acquired an area within the Heritage Memorial Gardens cemetery which was consecrated as a Jewish cemetery. Each year this congregation continues to grow and the history of Temple B’rith Shalom continues to evolve.

Scope and Content

This collection consists of the history, correspondence, scrapbooks, photos, news clippings and other ephemera materials. The collection contains a folder on the history of the Jews in Arizona, which contains handwritten notes and copies of excerpts from books regarding when Jews settled in Arizona - includes a letter exchange with Barry Goldwater. Also, the collection consists of correspondence regarding the permanent loan of a Torah primarily with the Congregation B’nai Israel of Freeport, New York. There is a booklet regarding the Bar Mitzvah of Bret Simmons, which is in Hebrew. The collection includes the Temple B’rith Shalom newsletters, The Ram’s Horn, from 1995 to 2002. In addition, there are nine (9) scrapbooks that include letters, news clippings, photos and other information and ephemera regarding the congregation and members’ publicity, events and activities. Three of the scrapbooks include information and activities of the Temple B’rith Shalom Sisterhood.

System of Arrangement

Restrictions

Conditions Governing Access

None.

Conditions Governing Use

Unpublished and published manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder. The Sharlot Hall Museum may not own copyright to all parts of this collection. It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the State of Arizona and the Sharlot Hall Museum - this includes its Board of Trustee officers, employees, outside contractors, and agents from and against all claims made by person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Controlled Access Terms

Administrative Information

Custodial History

The materials found within this collection were donated by Susan Lorant on behalf of the Temple B’rith Shalom congregation to the Sharlot Hall Museum on April 20, 1999, and given the accession number 99.064. The materials were processed and placed into a non-standardized arrangement and organization scheme and were originally cataloged in Document Box 414. Apparently, no finding aid was created for this document box. The collection was re-processed using a DACS compliant finding aid and was re-assigned a new manuscript number SHM MS-32 in November 2013. On November 14, 2013 an accrual was donated by William “Bill” Weiss, a member of the Temple B’rith Shalom (Acc #2013.120). He donated more Ram’s Horn newsletters from 1995 to 2002. Brenda Taylor processed the newsletters and weeded out all duplicates.

Preferred Citation

Temple B’rith Shalom Records, SHM MS-32. Sharlot Hall Museum Library & Archives.

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