Houses of worship in and near Buffalo Grove and Lake Zurich are evolving to meet the growing needs of families. Two new congregations are poised to join their communities, and others are adding space and social action programs.
Good Shepherd Bible Church has just broken ground on a Lake Zurich facility. The church, which is more than 60 years old, closed its Chicago facility on Belmont Avenue in May to move to Lake Zurich.
“We wanted to expand our operations on Belmont, but we were landlocked and couldn’t do it,” said Rev. Steve Harmantas, associate pastor. “We started looking all over the city in the early 1980s and then expanded our search to the suburbs.”
The new building will be able to seat 800 and will have a gymnasium, classrooms, meeting rooms and a library. The church is holding services in Kits Sports Center, 325 Surryse Rd., Lake Zurich. Though many of the congregation’s younger families live in and near Lake Zurich, the church will continue to bus in seniors from the city who want to attend services, Harmantas said.
Synagogue forming
In Buffalo Grove, Adas Klal Yisrael, a Traditional/Orthodox synagogue, is being formed, and those leading the effort hope to begin services soon. The synagogue will provide mixed seating (men and women together) and separate seating (men and women apart) for the same service in the same sanctuary.
“A number of us have been involved in the community in the Traditional and Orthodox sector, and we didn’t see this available anywhere,” said Mark Silverberg, one of the synagogue’s founders. “It’s an opportunity to provide a unique sanctuary setting for those who have not found themselves comfortable in other settings.”
Last year more than 200 people participated in High Holy Day services that the group’s founders organized in the Jewish Council for Youth Services in Buffalo Grove.
“This, along with the fact that Buffalo Grove’s Jewish population continues to grow, gave us the idea that this could really take off as a potential synagogue,” Silverberg said.
St. Mary Parish in Buffalo Grove has bought the Eul property at the northwest corner of Buffalo Grove and Lake-Cook Roads so it can build a rectory there. The rectory will be built by Avis Investments, Chicago, which will demolish the existing rectory across the street to make way for a condo development. Rev. Mark Reszel said he expects to be in the new building by next summer.
Church expansion begins
St. Francis de Sales in Lake Zurich also is planning to build facilities. “We are currently in Phase I of a master plan to expand the parish,” said Rev. Ron Gollatz, pastor. The parish bought the former site of the Ela Area Public Library adjacent to the church and plans to convert it to additional offices and educational space. The Chicago archdiocese gave the parish a loan to buy the property; the loan is to be repaid by pledges from parish members.
The plan also calls for 200 parking spaces on vacant land adjoining the property. “Farther down the line, we also hope to add space for educational use and expand the church seating,” Gollatz said.
Temple Chai in Long Grove will dedicate a building addition in December. The new facility includes a social hall/chapel, library, youth lounge, classroom space and kitchen.
The area’s houses of worship also have made changes in programming and leadership.
Beth Am Synagogue in Buffalo Grove, which has been in its 37,000-square-foot facility at 225 N. McHenry Rd. for three years, is paying attention to the needs of both its young and older worshipers.
“We are trying to keep the kids happy and expand into other areas as well,” said Richard Kushner, president. “Friday Night Live services that are for and about teens are very popular, and so is Tot Shabbat,” which is Sabbath services for young children. The congregation has more than 700 families, including 800 children in religious school.
The synagogue also is looking into ways to expand programming for adults, empty-nesters and seniors as the demand increases, Kushner said. Two such programs are Yiddish classes and a seniors chavurah (a group of friends at a similar station in life who socialize) and Yiddish classes. “We have experienced tremendous growth because of the growth of the Jewish population in the area,” Kushner said.
At Temple Shir Shalom in Buffalo Grove, Rabbi Sharon Hoberman joined the 14-year-old congregation in July. “The temple has also expanded its programming to include more hands-on curriculum,” said Ros Wolfe, administrator/program director. “We try to make our curriculum a part of everyday life because we believe that a family learns together. Therefore we have lots of opportunities for social action.”
The congregation also has monthly food drives and holds services for residents at Brentwood North Health Care Center in Riverwoods.
Outreach programs multiply
St. Francis de Sales recently hired Linda Engel as director of care ministries to help the homebound and hospitalized. The parish also welcomed newly ordained Rev. Roger Corrales-Diaz, who will take over as associate pastor. He replaces Rev. Jim Schmaus, who moved to St. Theresa Catholic Church in Palatine.
“We have been around for 53 years, and we continue to see growth and involvement,” Gollatz, the pastor, said. “People around here will do anything; they would sweep the floors if they had to. We have a large base of very active and involved people.”
Gollatz cited two programs in particular. “The parish maintains a jubilee garden, on a field a mile away, where parishioners do organic gardening and donate the produce to the poor,” he said. Another program provides weekly dinners for seniors who have no one to eat with, homeless people and families who might be having a hard time making ends meet.
“A group of people started the program because they were concerned that when PADS [Public Action to Deliver Shelter] closed for the summer, the people would have no place to go,” Gollatz said. “It’s really a wonderful thing. No one knows who is homeless; it’s just 70 or 80 people eating dinner together every Sunday.”
Temple Chai also has developed social action programs.
“Serving the needs of the community surrounding Temple Chai is an important component to our programming,” said Ellen Kaufman, program director. “A favorite social action program is our annual Dreidel-Do-Gooder’s event, which takes place during the Hanukkah/Christmas season. The Jewish Children’s Bureau provides the names of many children within their foster/day care program who are in need of gifts at holiday time. The Temple Chai schoolchildren and their families pick a child’s name and gift request to make a wish come true.”
Although all the houses of worship are thriving, many say that the increase in attendance after Sept. 11 has tapered off, and now the focus is on security. Many religious officials say they have increased security on their premises.
“People need spirituality, and because of security changes it has made people aware of vulnerability,” Temple Shir Shalom’s Wolfe said.
“Immediately there were some who sought out the comfort of ritual,” St. Mary Parish’s Reszel said. “Now, it has created a focus to our prayer, and it has shown that our freedom to worship is something we don’t take for granted.”
Where we worship
Following are some of the houses of worship serving Buffalo Grove and Lake Zurich.
Adas Klal Yisrael, PMB 226, 318 Half Day Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-913-0404.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 15 Port Clinton Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-913-5387.
Congregation Beth Am, 225 N. McHenry Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-459-1677.
Congregation B’nai Shalom, 701 W. Aptakisic Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-541-1460.
Congregation Mishpaha, P.O. Box 7811, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-459-3279.
Kingswood United Methodist Church, 401 W. Dundee Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-398-0770.
Project Seed, 158 McHenry Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-215-7664.
St. Mary Parish, 75 N. Buffalo Grove Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-541-1450.
Temple Shir Shalom, 352 Lexington Drive, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-465-0101.
Village Baptist Church, 385 Buffalo Grove Rd., Buffalo Grove, IL 60089, 847-537-7172.
Peace Lutheran Church, 1050 S. Old Rand Rd., Lake Zurich, IL 60047, 847-438-4400.
Quentin Road Bible Baptist Church, 60 Quentin Rd., Lake Zurich, IL 60047, 847-438-4494.
St. Francis de Sales, 277 E. Main St., Lake Zurich, IL 60047, 847-438-6622.
St. Peter United Church of Christ, 47 Church St., Lake Zurich, IL 60047, 847-438-6441.
–Compiled by Arlene Schusteff
