FEATURE
Southern Hospitality and a Close-Knit Jewish Community Attract New Families to Memphis
By Linda Ostrow Schlesinger
Unlike many Southern Jewish communities (other than Atlanta) whose numbers are continuously decreasing, the affiliated Memphis Jewish community remains steadfast.
So, what brings new Jewish families to Memphis? Most settle here because of family, an obvious draw; some are transferred by employers, attracted by employment opportunities; or simply drawn by the warm, Southern hospitality they have experienced as visitors.
In 2005, victims of Hurricane Katrina received an enthusiastic welcome from the Memphis Jewish community. Devastated by homes left in a state of disrepair and an already struggling Jewish day school in New Orleans, some found resettlement here the perfect solution.
Last August, Dr. Eitan and Ahava Lang sought refuge in Memphis from New Orleans during Hurricane Gustav and fell in love with the community. After exploring Miami, Brooklyn, Dallas and Atlanta, Ahava and their three sons just settled here, while Dr. Lang will be commuting every weekend from New Orleans where he has a private podiatric practice. He is considering opening a practice in Memphis.
During their “visit” last summer, the Langs, who are Orthodox, knew they needed to leave their beloved native city for the benefit of their children’s Jewish education and social lives, but thought Memphis was too small. “We were overwhelmed with the amount of chesed (kindness) here, but it was a much smaller community than I wanted,” said Ahava, who particularly didn’t think she could live without a kosher restaurant.
Although the other communities were much larger, had kosher restaurants, more Jewish schools and more things for their kids to do, “they just don’t have the closeness that this community has. It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced,” said Lang, who knew that as a single parent during the week she needed to be where she would have a good support system. “No kosher restaurant can take the place of community,” she realized.
The Lang’s three sons, ages 11, 6 and 4 attend Margolin Hebrew Academy/Feinstone Yeshiva of the South. “The school was an amazing match for my children. I really lucked out. I not only got a school but an amazing community. I couldn’t find that anywhere else.”
Jerry and Lisa Vela recently moved
here from Skokie, Ill., after Jerry was laid off from his job. The couple
helped Lisa’s brother, Randy Gross, move to Memphis in 2003 and fell in love
with the city during their annual visits. Gross, who works in the restaurant
business, was transferred to Memphis from Kansas City by his former employer. Lisa’s
mother, Fran Artstein, also moved to Memphis from Skokie to help Gross, a
single parent, raise his now 3-and-a-half-year-old son.
(pictured: Noah Gross, Fran Artstein, Jason, Lisa (w/Tiny), Brian and Jerry (w/Coco) Vela)
The Velas love “the closeness of the Jewish and general community and are amazed at how many families know each other, even for generations,” said Jerry, who is an accountant in the City of Memphis Finance Department.
The Velas joined Beth Sholom last January. “The community has been great to us; our synagogue has been great to us, even synagogues that we haven’t joined have opened their arms to us. I guess this is Southern hospitality. I’ve heard about it but never experienced it. Being part of a small community you can see the charm and genuineness. People are making us feel like we are home…and we are home,” said Jerry. “I’m planning to retire here and hopefully down the road to raise grandchildren here – but not too soon,” he added.
The Velas have two sons, Jason, 14, a freshman at the Memphis Jewish High School (MJHS), and Brian, 12, at White Station Middle School.
Amy and Michael Egerman, owners of Dazzle, a fashion jewelry and accessories store in Germantown, moved to Memphis from Deerfield, Ill., in 2003 when Michael came to direct merchandising and design for a southeastern-headquartered furniture manufacturer.
The decline in U.S. furniture manufacturing led the couple to start their own business, a goal they had had for many years. “We felt so welcomed by the Jewish community from the day we arrived in Memphis,” said Amy. “When we decided to start our own business, there was no doubt that we’d do it right here.”
As an active Temple Israel member, Amy has been most impressed by the way all Jews in Memphis co-mingle. “As an outsider coming in, it amazed me that I could do things at Temple, [while] my daughter was in school at Schechter and in the bat mitzvah club with Rivky Klein at Chabad,” she said. The Egermans daughter, Melanie, 16, graduated from Bornblum Solomon Schechter School and is now a junior at Ridgeway High School. Their son, Mark, 20, also attended Ridgeway and is currently a junior at the University of Arizona.
Amy also observed that life didn’t revolve around organizations or synagogues in the larger cities where they have lived. “You had ties with Jewish friends, but didn’t need BBYO and Sunday school...life was centered around the park district,” she explained. “I’ve learned more about my religion because of the social aspects of the religion here. That was never on our radar before.”
It didn’t take any of these families long to realize that they had made the right choice by moving to Memphis.
For Ahava Lang, it happened in the first week. “I was taking a nap with my two younger children and I woke up to find my oldest son and my next door neighbor building my dining room table! Where else can you find something like this?
Linda Ostrow Schlesinger is a freelance writer and owner of Publicity a La Carte, Promotional Writing Services, and LifeTime Editions Personalized Children’s Books (www.lifetimeeditions.com.) You can email her at linda@lifetimeeditions.com.
