By Andrew Coen
Graber replaced Rabbi Alan Lavin, who spent the past seven years as the temple's spiritual leader. During the past two years, Lavin had a strained relationship with the temple's board of trustees, who voted by a more than 2-to-1 margin not to renew his contract.
Despite the controversy between Lavin and the board, Graber had nothing but positive things to say about the man he replaced. I think that he's a wonderful gentleman and that he was loved by a lot of people, and the people I have spoken with have nothing but full respect for him, Graber said.
New Temple Hillel President Steven Kline is looking forward to working with the new rabbi. We're very pleased to welcome him, he said. He has a lot of good experience ... We're optimistic that he will bring some excitement and prestige to the temple.
Graber's main goals are to reach out to the people, to solidify the synagogue membership, to attract more people and to make those at the temple happy to be members.
I hope to help people become more active, he said, to give them the attention that they need, not just from the bema, but in the office, at the bagel shop, on the street, in their living rooms Ñ to let them know that this is not just some building that they walk in and out of to have a service performed, but rather, there's a piece of their soul attached to it. I want people to feel that way about their shul. I think they do, for the most part, but I'd like to help them to not just continue to feel that way, but to feel even stronger about this place.
Graber, 46, arrives at Temple Hillel after spending 14 years as rabbi at the Whitestone Hebrew Center in Queens, where he lived with his wife of 16 years, Linda, and three children, Daniel, 15, Jennifer, 12, and Leora, 9.
Graber helped the membership at Whitestone grow from seven children in the Hebrew school to 97, but he said he left because of what Temple Hillel offers. The reason why I left Whitestone was because I saw a great opportunity for me and my family here at Temple Hillel, he said.
After earning a degree in Judaic Studies and secondary education from Rutgers, Graber received his master's in Hebrew letters from the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York and in Jerusalem.
Graber said he was very impressed with the members of Temple Hillel when he visited for the first time last winter. I found the people extremely friendly, he said. There was such a warmth, a feeling of open arms. People were working so hard to try and make us happy and comfortable. I developed friendships right then and there. I also enjoyed the Jewish intellect that I found. I believe that most of the active membership here has a high level of Judaic background, in comparison to that which you see in many other synagogues.
Graber also said he is impressed with the beauty and size of the temple. It was like Texas! Everything was big, he said. The building was big, the daily chapel was big, the committee was big. It is a beautiful facility and everything is done with class.
Graber sees nothing but better things for Temple Hillel's future. We are going to increase programming and education, he said. We are going to find more ways to get closer to each other and closer to God. I want to help my congregation find warmth and beauty and even fun in our tradition. I believe that Temple Hillel has a promising future, and I am very happy to be part of that future.
The new rabbi's first day on the job also featured his first Shabbat service, which Kline considered a tremendous success. His first Shabbat was very successful, Kline said. People I spoke with were very pleased with him. They felt his warmth and his energy.
The search for a new rabbi was carried out by the Rabbinical Assembly, a group of 800 members of conservative congregations across the country.
