Which town for a Jewish family of Arlington, Lexington, Winchester, Belmont? (Boston: buy, middle school)

[littleimp]

Hi all,

Anyone have any information about the Jewish communities in any of these towns? I already know there is a temple in Winchester which I have been to a few times. I am aware there is also a large temple in Lexington and a smaller temple in Belmont which I have not been to. I am interested in people's opinions about which of these town might have the largest and/or most vibrant Jewish community.

[Beantown_mama]

Try Swampscott or the North Shore towns nearby. Also, Brookline has a large Jewish community, so I would think that Newton would too.

[ogre]

I can't help you with much inside detail about the Jewish communities in the towns you're asking about. I can tell you that friends of mine are members of the temple in Lexington (Temple Beth El, I believe is the name, something close to that). They describe it as a "liberal" temple. I mentioned this once to another Jewish friend who lives in another town in the Boston area but had heard of the Lexington temple. "Yeah, that's a pretty hip place," was his observation. From what I hear from my friends who are members in Lexington, there seems to be a very active community feel surrounding that temple, some social activities outside of Saturday services and the like.

If you're interested in considering other towns, of those Beantown_Mama suggested I know nothing about the strength of Jewish communities in the North Shore towns. Newton and Brookline are known to have substantial Jewish populations.

[holden125]

In terms of a vibrant Jewish community among those towns, hands down it's Lexington.

[littleimp]

Thanks for the info. I know about some of the other towns (I am from Sharon myself), but I am actually interested in those 4 towns specifically for commuting reasons.

[Citizen08]

Hi littleimp,

I'm Jewish and grew up in Newton, and I have two close Jewish friends who grew up in Lexington. Lexington's Jewish community is active and vibrant, but not on par with Newton, Brookline or Sharon. I'd recommend Lexington out of those four towns for Jewish life; Winchester might be OK. Arlington and Belmont have never had substantial Jewish populations, and Arlington had a racist rep during the '80s. I'm curious as to where you are commuting to. Lexington is right next to Newton, so if Lexington works for you, why not look at Newton? I would avoid Brookline as it's a nightmare to get from there to the towns you're talking about.

Another thing is which branch of Judaism you follow and if you want to give your kids a Jewish education. Belmont and Winchester each only have one reform synagogue and that's it; I did some research and Arlington actually does not even have a synagogue. Lexington has a reform and conservative synagogue as well as a Chabad house, so out of those four towns Lexington wins hands down for Jewish life. However, if you want to get Kosher food, buy Judaica stuff or send your kids to a Jewish school all of your options are in Newton and Brookline. Check out Synagogue Council of Massachusetts (http://www.synagoguecouncil.org/shuls.asp - broken link) and look around. You can get a good idea of the Jewish community by looking at the number of synagogues per town there, the variety of denominations and whether the synagogues are led by rabbis or laypeople.

Hope this helps.

[sblumberg]

We are Jewish and are looking to improve our commute to Boston. We are considering Winchester, Belmont, Lexington and Needham. I know that Lexington and Needham have the most vibrant Jewish communities of the four, but I adore Winchester and the commute is a dream. The Jewish population is a big concern for me. Winchester and Belmont do not have the Jewish holidays off, whereas Lexington and Needham do (this is telling). I wish that I could find out the exact percentage of Jewish people by town, but that information does not seem to be available anywhere.

[thisiswater]

Before deciding, check out Kerem Shalom - Home in Concord. Wonderful, wonderful community!

[winnewbie]

Hi, We relocated to Winchester this past August. I have yet to meet too many people--I have been so busy getting my children established. However, it has occurred to me that I have not yet met a Jewish family. We moved from a much more diverse environment (in all ways--race, religion and socio-economic). I have been surprised by the number of Italian and Irish families I have met. I have since read that Irish and Italian descendents make up about 50% of Winchester's population. There is a large Catholic community.

I have found Winchester people to be extremely warm and the town to be very child centered in general. The children at my son's middle school have welcomed him. Also, the commute is a breeze. We were choosing between Lexington and Winchester. My husband preferred Winchester and I preferred Lexington by just a bit. I find Winchester to be someone staid and insular but lovely nonetheless.

[sblumberg]

Thank you for the response. I think that my head is leaning toward Lexington and Needham, although for some reason I just gravitate toward Winchester. There is a temple in town, so there must be some Jewish population. I need to call them. I am not extremely religious and I don't feel like I need to be in a towns with a very high population like Newton, Brookline, or Sharon, but I would like our children to have other Jewish friends without it being a huge effort for us or them.

I am happy the kids have been welcoming with your son and I hope you enjoy Winchester!