Sandals in Lakewood

Chayalle

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:19 am

amother wrote:

You're missing a significant part of history. When R. Kotler came to Lakewood, he came to a thriving community of Jews, but not Orthodox Jews. He came to the land of Jewish egg farmers. He and his followers are the ones who changed Lakewood, driving out those who were not in his image, and making the community insular.

Its ironic to complain that there are people who are now doing to the Lakewood yeshiva community what they did to the pre-existing Jewish community so many years ago.

When I bought my house, my neighbor was an elderly widow who had had one of those egg farms. Her SIL still lives in the neighborhood, though sadly she's becoming rather senile. Amazing wonderful women, both of them.

So I wonder what you mean by them being driven out....

Last edited by Chayalle on Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:51 am; edited 2 times in total

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:19 am

amother wrote:

Since when do non-orthodox Jews live in thriving Jewish communities?

amother

Apricot

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:29 am

amother wrote:

I don't think amother Azure grew up an egg farm...I also can't imagine a "thriving Jewish community" of non religious egg farmers but I wasn't born at the time to really know...

amother

Slateblue

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:47 am

amother wrote:

Since when do non-orthodox Jews live in thriving Jewish communities?

Really? You're not familiar with Conservative or Reform Judaism?

amother

Slateblue

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 10:50 am

amother wrote:

I don't think amother Azure grew up an egg farm...I also can't imagine a "thriving Jewish community" of non religious egg farmers but I wasn't born at the time to really know...

I'm sorry that you cannot imagine it, but do a little research before trying to give a history lesson.

I have family that were Jewish chicken farmers in Lakewood. It was a "thing." Everyone knew about it.

watergirl

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:00 am

amother wrote:

Since when do non-orthodox Jews live in thriving Jewish communities?

Look around the country. Look past your daled amos. Goodness.

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:01 am

amother wrote:

Really? You're not familiar with Conservative or Reform Judaism?

I stand to be corrected if she meant that, but I don't think she was referring to that.

Pinkfridge - I'm not sure what's there to not understand with my post. Non orthodox Jews don't usually live in special 'Jewish communities'. So to say that there were thriving Jewish communities in Lakewood that were driven out just sounds a bit of a stretch...

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:03 am

watergirl wrote:

Look around the country. Look past your daled amos. Goodness.

Your responses are all so cute.
Fact is that secular Jews don't usually live specifically among themselves.
Of course there are those who affiliate with reform and conservative, but I don't think she was referring to that in Lakewood.

I've yet to see a non-affiliated thriving Jewish community - please tell me where to visit?

amother

Denim

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:13 am

amother wrote:

I don't think amother Azure grew up an egg farm...I also can't imagine a "thriving Jewish community" of non religious egg farmers but I wasn't born at the time to really know...

My whole family was chicken farmers in Lakewood. They went to school with the kotlers.
The older crowd (70, 80 years old) talks about prices in terms of eggs (that costs one case of eggs), and they all reminisce about the old Lakewood years.

amother

Denim

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:15 am

In fact, if I remember correctly, my grandmother used to sell (or give, not sure) eggs to the Yeshiva when it first started!

amother

Denim

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:16 am

I would not call my family "non religious" but they are certainly not yeshivish. Some davened in conservative shul back in the day, others were part of sons of Israel.

MagentaYenta

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:20 am

amother wrote:

On weekends when we were going down the shore there would be trucks on different corners, one fellow was selling cases of eggs, another corn etc.
Lakewood was a lovely sleepy town in those days.

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:21 am

amother wrote:

The Kotlers attended a non-orthodox school? (Or this wasn't a non-orthodox community like the other poster was referring to?)

amother

Denim

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:26 am

amother wrote:

The Kotlers attended a non-orthodox school? (Or this wasn't a non-orthodox community like the other poster was referring to?)

It was a day school.
But the people who attended were not all religious; some were, but some were traditional. And many (like my relatives) did not continue on to Jewish high school- they went to public school. My relatives went to public school for high school and were hardly religious. They were shomer shabbos to the extent that they knew (no driving, but plenty of other things) but not kashrus. They never ate pork etc but did not keep kashrus until much later, when they sent their kids to school.

MagentaYenta

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:34 am

Most folks don't realize that BMG started with only 14 students, the population of students didn't swell until the 70's. During the 40's to the early 60's frum Jews from the metro area would often vacation in Lakewood. There were a number of Jewish boarding houses until the late 60s.

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:34 am

amother wrote:

Thanks for explaining.

amother

cornflower

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:35 am

amother wrote:

Really? You're not familiar with Conservative or Reform Judaism?

In addition to my last reply, you can hardly label the reform movement as thriving at all. If there would have been such a community in Lakewood that died out, it wouldn't specially have to do with the new community at all, but with the alarmingly high intermarriage and assimilation rates.

amother

Apricot

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:41 am

MagentaYenta wrote:

Thanks for clarifying- this is what I remember being told by my grandparents. That it was a resort town. I missed the part about the large egg farming community

amother

Apricot

Thu, Jul 13 2017, 11:42 am

amother wrote:

I believe the Kotler and the families that they brought with them co-existed peacefully with the Day School families. No one was chased anyone out of anywhere.