liberal, reform Jewish family moving west of Boston (Dover, Sherborn, Concord, Sudbury, Wayland, Weston) (Cambridge: houses, neighborhood)

[kmann-sherborn]

Congregation Beth El Open House

If Sudbury is of interest

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by sblumberg

Kids actually do care, when they are the only house without lights, or the only house where Santa doesn't come, or when people come up to them unsolicited and say if they are not good, Santa won't come etc. At least mine do. We just moved from a town with about 10 churches and maybe a handful of Jewish families - if that. Even though I am not overly religious I got tired of feeling like I was the only one.

I think Jewish people accept that they will the minority where-ever they go, but having some exposure to people who have the same beliefs or culture is important. It is also nice for religious school purposes to have a synagogue closeby and not have to cart your kid 20 minutes each way back and forth.

I just get really frustrated by the comments above. Wanting a town with a Jewish population (or other diversity - Indian, Asian, Black etc.) does not mean the poster does not want to assimilate or have non-jewish friends, it just means that it is nice to have some people close by with a similar upbringing / beliefs.

This is an unbelievably well written post. As a Jew who once lived briefly in a town where I felt like the only Jew, your post really strikes a chord with me. My experience in this town is a big reason why I'm now a real estate agent. The agent I worked with was only out for a commission and just wanted me to buy something. I was very unhappy there. My goal is to find people communities they will want to spend the rest of their lives being a part of.

Originally Posted by ogre

Lola116, pretty good suggestion in Lexington, which might be a possibility, except, except . . . for the OP's preference for "rural" with "open space." However it does depend on how the OP defines this. If that means lots of orchards and fields and ponds around, Lex. would probably not be the best fit. If it means being able to have a decent-sized yard in an area that would not feel at all cityish, Lexington would definitely be worth a good look.

Lexington, Wellesley, Needham, Newton, etc. all these sought after towns have some areas with a little more of a rural feel (i.e. larger lots not farms per se). However, the larger lots mean significantly larger prices as well. Often I find these towns the land itself is as valuable, nearly as valuable, or sometimes even more valuable than the house that sits on it. Weston which overall has a more rural feel than most of the towns in this area is quite pricey overall though. Budget will dictate a lot.

[SCW1997]

Thank you all SO much for all the info. I think I will probably keep Sherborn and Dover on my short list (especially hearing that there may be an increasing Jewish pressence)--but I think I get a sense of what that means. More rural really is important to us--not just suburban with larger lots (we're in Hunterdon Cty NJ now, if anyone's familiar with that, and we love the open spaces). I think our budget would be high enough to find an acre in Wellesley, but I don't think that's the kind of town we're looking for. But I'll definitely take a closer look at Sudbury too. That sounds really appealing. Thank you all again!

[SCW1997]

Originally Posted by kmann-sherborn

Congregation Beth El Open House

If Sudbury is of interest

So sweet of you to post this! I would have never found this on my own, and I WILL be in the area that day! Thanks!

[kmann-sherborn]

Thanks, I'm glad! Rabbi Thomas is really nice. I hope it's a good visit. :-)

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by SCW1997

So sweet of you to post this! I would have never found this on my own, and I WILL be in the area that day! Thanks!

My grandfather was a member of this temple in his later years. Personally, I grew up in a conservative temple and never really felt comfortable at Beth El. The fact that they went out in the woods to meditate in the middle of the service was a bit weird for me. It was just overall a little too touchy, feely, and smiley for me. I prefer my religion a little bit more serious. This being said, everyone I met there was extremely nice and very welcoming.

[SCW1997]

What do you all think of Lincoln in terms of the things I'm looking for?

[kmann-sherborn]

Actually Lincoln is where we were originally looking to move before we found our place because I loved the feel of it & thought it was one of the few places we could find the quiet I wanted. They seemed to care about things like protecting green spaces more than some other areas & I had heard that the community focused a lot on social responsibility & that appealed to me. My husband & I both were very keen on the area. I can't quite put my finger on why but when we drive through there I feel calm. It's funny, I was just talking with a friend of mine about that and she asked me if I'd ever consider moving to Carlisle because that has a somewhat rural feel & I said no but that we could easily have ended up in Lincoln and been happy. At least I think so.

I've never lived there though but hopefully someone on the forum does & can share more firsthand experience. Lincoln does share a high school with Sudbury & the school is consistently one of the highest rated. I have friends whose daughter attended there & they talked a lot about how well the school prepared her for college. You can also visit greatschools.org to see parent reviews of schools.

There's a temple in nearby Concord. Kerem Shalom - Home

There is a train in Lincoln but it goes into North Station instead of Back Bay. MBTA Commuter Rail > Fitchburg / South Acton Lines Schedules and Maps

I have clients who drive from the Wayland/Lincoln line into Boston & they say it's fine so I don't think the drive from there would be too bad but then again, hopefully someone who lives there will chime in and see if I'm right on that point. I will say that comparing taking the train vs driving that parking in Boston is very expensive. I used to take the train to Back Bay & even though sometimes it took longer than driving I ended up less stressed out, but I think that's more of a personal preference.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by kmann-sherborn

There is a train in Lincoln but it goes into North Station instead of Back Bay. MBTA Commuter Rail > Fitchburg / South Acton Lines Schedules and Maps

I have clients who drive from the Wayland/Lincoln line into Boston & they say it's fine so I don't think the drive from there would be too bad but then again, hopefully someone who lives there will chime in and see if I'm right on that point. I will say that comparing taking the train vs driving that parking in Boston is very expensive. I used to take the train to Back Bay & even though sometimes it took longer than driving I ended up less stressed out, but I think that's more of a personal preference.

Agreed. It's not the drive that gets you it's paying for the parking. In another life when I commuted into the city, I really enjoyed taking the train. It's a good opportunity to read, listen to some music, or just generally collect your thoughts and get ready for the work day.

[sblumberg]

Lincoln is not a great commute to Back Bay via train and does not have a significant Jewish population. It is pretty, sleepy and rural - and a nice commute to North Station or even locations along the red line if you drive to alewife. To get to Back Bay you would need to transfer to Subway after. It is not something I would knowingly sign up for.

If you are interested in the train - you will want to live toward South Sudbury and take the commuter rail from Framingham, or South Wayland and drive 15 minutes or so to Auburndale. Both Wayland and Sudbury (where I grew up), have significant jewish populations. Also, there is another reform synagogue (B'Nai Torah).

Other options are Westborough (reasonable Jewish population) and if you can get east in Westborough, the commuter rail from Southborough is very manageable and about 12 minutes shorter than the Westborough stop. Parts of Westborough have a very rural feel yet still within 15 minutes of restaurants, shopping etc.

Southborough itself has a very rural, sleepy feel and in fact may be a great fit for you. Southborough can be a little challenging because it is accessible the pike and 495 so you need to find housing that is not near these highways. The housing is very spread apart and it is very pretty town It is right on the commuter rail to back bay. I know of some jewish families who live there. B'nai shalom in Westborough may be able to give you more information on demographics. Same with Hopkinton.

All the towns above have great school systems.