The Pacific Jewish Center Shul on the Beach has hosted many, many guest. Jews and non-Jews from all over the world have come through its doors marveling at its charm and aura.
This morning the Pacific Jewish Center hosted a special group of visitors. Friend of the Shul, Harry Medved is an active member of the Venice Historical Society. Today, the Venice Historical Society arranged a walking tour of Venice with a focus on landmarks and locations used in movies and Television.
The tour made a stop at the Shul on the Beach.This is our shul sporting a new, classic Venice paint job.
Once at the shul, I welcomed the group into the sanctuary where Harry told the attendees of some of the cinematographic significance of the shul.
I added my 2 cents to the discussion. We got a notice that NCIS LA is filming in front of the shul on Tuesday and that I was able to see the front entrance canopy in the movie “I Love You, Man”.
Then I addressed the crowd. I spoke briefly about the importance of the Shul on the Beach. A landmark that is passed by thousands of people every month has an impact on those who see it. Even if the only benefit the shul provided was that the passers-by reflected on their lives for a second, it would be an important place.
But there is so much more than just the brick and mortar of the shul. There is a vibrant community, weekly services, acts of loving-kindness, Torah classes and much more in our shul. I thanked everyone for visiting and invited them back to see us again.
We wrapped up this part of the tour with a group photograph in front of the shul. It came out really nice. (Thanks to my wife Tova for snapping the picture and thanks Leslie Friedman for giving me a hand welcoming the Venice Historical Society.)
Harry Medved is in the center wearing a blue shirt. See if you can spot the Rabbi…
It’s like that awesome game “Where’s Waldo”!
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