Rye Brook - what is the cultural mix? (Port Chester, Scarsdale: 2009, townhouses)

[LisaZ]

I read a lot on here about how Jewish Rye Brook is. I am not sure what that means. I lived in a townhouse there for 5 years and never felt it was that overwhelmingly Jewish. I never had children in the schools so I only knew a handful of neighbors there and never really felt out of place at all (I am Catholic). But I have had people tell me that "it is very Jewish" when I tell them that I am considering moving back and putting my daughter in the school system. Does anyone have first hand knowledge of the schools and the feel of them? How strong an influence is there?

[havoc315]

Considering that the Jewish population of the United States is only about 2%, Rye Brook is "very Jewish" in comparison. But even in a place like Rye Brook, I suspect the Jewish population is significantly under 50%, and I know there is also a significant Catholic population in Rye Brook.

According to this website:
Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitors sites is not allowed

70% of Rye Brook residents are religious, including:
50% Catholics, 10% Jewish, 7% Protestant.

I actually think the Jewish population is a bit over 10%, but perhaps many Jewish residents fell into the 30% non-religious category.

[rubygreta]

45% Jewish, 45% Italian, 10% Other.

[manyroads]

I grew up in Rye Brook, and went to school there from kindergarten at Ridge Street School through 12th grade at Blind Brook. I was one of the first classes to graduate from Blind Brook, so that was quite a long time ago.
I can't give you numbers or percentages of how many Jewish vs Catholic, etc., but when I was in school, there definitely did seem like there was a high number of Jewish attending the school; probably more so than other religions.
Back then, the only real "trouble", if you could call it that, was kids lighting fires in the fields behind the high school, where the Arbors townhouses now are. There was no overt drug use or people trying to sell me drugs. There was also no gang-related problems there, and I suspect that still holds true.
Rye Brook is not a very diverse community. In fact, when I attended school there, we only had one black family and one Asian family in school with me. I also suspect that persons of non-white backgrounds are still very much the minority in Rye Brook.

[Ekulu]

Originally Posted by LisaZ

I read a lot on here about how Jewish Rye Brook is. I am not sure what that means. I lived in a townhouse there for 5 years and never felt it was that overwhelmingly Jewish. I never had children in the schools so I only knew a handful of neighbors there and never really felt out of place at all (I am Catholic). But I have had people tell me that "it is very Jewish" when I tell them that I am considering moving back and putting my daughter in the school system. Does anyone have first hand knowledge of the schools and the feel of them? How strong an influence is there?

I don't live in Rye Brook but people that do live there consistently say that it is at least 95% jewish. I think this does not mean that people that live there are not welcoming to people of other religions, but if you want a more religously diverse school for your kids it may not the right place for you.

[Ekulu]

Originally Posted by havoc315

Considering that the Jewish population of the United States is only about 2%, Rye Brook is "very Jewish" in comparison. But even in a place like Rye Brook, I suspect the Jewish population is significantly under 50%, and I know there is also a significant Catholic population in Rye Brook.

According to this website:
Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitors sites is not allowed

70% of Rye Brook residents are religious, including:
50% Catholics, 10% Jewish, 7% Protestant.

I actually think the Jewish population is a bit over 10%, but perhaps many Jewish residents fell into the 30% non-religious category.

These stats are interesting and may be out of date, people that live there today (in 2009) and send their kids to school there say it is at least 95%.

[havoc315]

95%?? That is greatly greatly exaggerated. Rye Brook might be the most heavily Jewish school system in Westchester, and might possibly be higher than 50%, but certainly not much higher than that. There is also a very signficant Italian presence. There are numerous Christian churches in Rye Brook.

[manyroads]

Originally Posted by havoc315

95%?? That is greatly greatly exaggerated. Rye Brook might be the most heavily Jewish school system in Westchester, and might possibly be higher than 50%, but certainly not much higher than that. There is also a very signficant Italian presence. There are numerous Christian churches in Rye Brook.

Aren't you forgetting about Scarsdale? Scarsdale is known for its large Jewish population. It certainly has a higher percentage of Jewish students in its schools than Rye Brook.

Where exactly are these "numerous Christian churches" you are thinking of? I lived in Rye Brook for over 30 years, and I don't think there's more than 1 or 2 churches in the entire village! The Catholic and Episcopal churches on Westchester Avenue fall within the village of Port Chester, not Rye Brook. The Catholic church on S Regent St is also in Port Chester. The Catholic church on King St at Sherwood Ave is in Greenwich, not Rye Brook. Summerfield Methodist Church is in Port Chester. So where are these churches you're thinking of?

[havoc315]

There is the Lutheran Church, on King Street in Rye Brook.
There is the Baptist Church, on William Street, also in Rye Brook.

You are correct in that there are very few houses of worship in Rye Brook. Of course, it is a very small enclave. There is only 1 synagogue, and the churches I mentioned above. I'm pretty sure there are 1 or 2 other Churches. And of course, many people of all faiths from Rye Brook, worship in Port Chester and elsewhere.

And no, I haven't forgotten Scarsdale. As I said, Rye Brook "might" be the most heavily Jewish... It might be Scarsdale, but I actually think Rye Brook might have a slightly higher proportion.

[manyroads]

Originally Posted by havoc315

There is the Lutheran Church, on King Street in Rye Brook.
There is the Baptist Church, on William Street, also in Rye Brook.

You are correct in that there are very few houses of worship in Rye Brook. Of course, it is a very small enclave. There is only 1 synagogue, and the churches I mentioned above. I'm pretty sure there are 1 or 2 other Churches. And of course, many people of all faiths from Rye Brook, worship in Port Chester and elsewhere.

I know there was a church at the corner of King St & Comly Avenue; is that the Lutheran church you're talking about?
I'm not specifically familiar with the Baptist church you mentioned, but William St is located in Port Chester. Only the top end of W. William St, near Ridge St, is located in Rye Brook (I checked my Hagstrom Westchester County atlas to be sure).
When I was growing up there, we either had to go into Rye (City) or Greenwich if we wanted to go to services at an Episcopal church. Later on, a small Episcopal church was formed using an existing building at King St & Comly Ave. That and the other church at that intersection (Lutheran?) are the only churches in the entire village.
The synogogue you refer to (on King St) is also located in Port Chester, not Rye Brook. Anything south of Comly Ave on the east side of King St, and Beechwood Blvd on the west side of King St, falls within the boundaries of Port Chester.