3405 Gulling Road, Reno, NV 89503
3405 Gulling Road, Reno, NV 89503
Temple Sinai Membership would be described as covenantal and characterized by the richness of the individual and communal relationships that result. As a member of the Temple Sinai community you are part of a Jewish community that learns together, cares for one another, and engages in Jewish practice and tikkun olam (healing the world).
We’re excited to welcome you into our community. This application is the first step in helping us get to know you so we can connect you with the people, programs, and opportunities that make Temple Sinai feel like home.
Please choose one of the options below to get started:
Whether you’re joining as an individual or a family, we ask that you complete a membership application online or submit a printed version in person or by mail — [CLICK HERE] to get started.
After we receive your application, a member of our Membership Committee will reach out to you. They’re here to answer your questions, grab coffee, or even accompany you to a Shabbat service or Temple event — whatever helps you feel at home. Once your application is approved by our Board of Trustees, we’ll officially welcome you as a member of Temple Sinai! Your Membership Committee contact will stay in touch throughout your first year to help you get connected and share your experiences as you become part of our community.
We’re so glad you’re considering making Temple Sinai your Jewish home and sacred community. Becoming a member is more than just signing up — it’s a heartfelt commitment to growing together, supporting one another, and helping our community thrive.
When you join, you enter into a meaningful partnership with the congregation — one rooted in shared values, learning, and connection. We think of membership as having five pillars: growing through Jewish learning, showing up for each other, building friendships through acts of kindness and hospitality, supporting the Temple financially, and giving your time through volunteer service. Together, these help us create a vibrant, welcoming, and spiritually rich community for all.
1. Showing up – Kehillah (“Community”):
We celebrate with one another throughout life cycle moments; we show up when others are in need and we reach out to sustain relationships in the community.
2. Learning – Torah (“Teachings”):
Learning can take many forms, as each of us moves forward in our own Jewish journeys. We have much to learn from one another and through pursuing a deeper knowledge of Jewish tradition, values, and history. Learning is part of growth, and helps us refine our own “Torah” to live in the world.
3. Engaging and Hosting One Another – Chavurah (“Friendship Circles”), Hachnasat Orchim (“Hospitality”), Gemilut Chasadim (“Deeds of Loving-Kindness”):
Promoting warm hospitality and forming relationships with individuals and groups within the synagogue builds genuine bonds of caring. This community is like extended family, people to whom we give and from whom to receive in times of joy or need. Acts of kindness within the community strengthen all of us to do our work in the world with full hearts.
4. Making a Financial Commitment – Terumah (“Contributions”):
We give financially to ensure that we can continue to serve the spiritual, communal and pastoral needs of our members and support a vibrant Jewish community in Reno. Like any non-profit, we have expenses, salaries and building costs to pay, and generous support from the community, at whatever level, helps us thrive.
5. Volunteering – Avodah (“Service”):
We are a community that values and encourages people to bring their talents to bear on who we are and what we do. Please indicate on this form and, in initial conversations with synagogue leaders, mention your unique gifts and interests so that you may be involved in a way that fulfills both our needs and yours. In a small community, gifts of time and acts of service are equal in importance to financial support, whether during prayer services, in organizing events, or sharing of your interests and professional expertise with others.
We sincerely hope you will help us get to know you better by filling out our contact form and making an appointment with the Chair of the Membership Committee, our rabbis, or the Temple president, or by calling the Temple office at 775-747-5508.
We hold services on Friday nights, holidays, and special celebrations.
We currently have approximately 180 member households.
Members are welcome to participate in worship services, including High Holy Days, in our education programs, in opportunities for Social Action within the larger community, and receive reduced burial rates for burial at the Jewish Cemetery. Our rabbis, staff, and Temple members will be there to support you through life’s challenges and joys. You will also be supporting our synagogue and the great programs we offer.
Click here to fill out an ONLINE application, click here to DOWNLOAD and mail one in, or call the Temple Office at (775)747-5508, and you will be guided through the process.
Your financial commitment may be met with payments on an annual, semi-annual, quarterly, or monthly basis.
We encourage your financial support at whatever level you choose. No one will be turned away because of an inability to pay. If you don’t feel you can pay dues at or above your level, please get in touch with Michael Cohen, Financial Officer, at [email protected] to arrange a time to confidentially discuss your situation.
Contact the committee chair to let them know you want to help.
In 1962, a handful of Jewish “pioneers” followed their vision of creating a religious community that would better fit Reno’s progressive Western culture. Seven families (Louis and Ruth Dickens, Leah and Bill Garell, Jake and Mary Garfinkle, Gene and Bea Brown, Milton and Becky Gumbert, Sam and Judy Cantor, and Stanley and Fran Fielding) approached Rabbi Joseph Glaser of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations to establish a Reform Congregation.
Temple Sinai’s first president was Louis Dickens, and other families soon joined the congregation. Among the earliest members were George and Ethel Jaffe, Paul and Lillian Rubin, Lucien and Louise Zentner, Rube and Nan Goldwater, Harry and Hannah Chernus, and Bert and Esther Goldwater.
On September 8th, 1962 “The Nevada State Journal” reported that Rabbi Joseph B. Glaser, the Regional Director of UAHC, would speak on the “Place, Purpose and Practices of Modern Judaism in our Community.” This marked the first official gathering of the congregation. Six days later Temple Sinai celebrated its first Shabbat with Rabbi Alfred Barnston, also of San Francisco, conducting. “Membership is open,” the Journal announced.
In the beginning, services were held on a regular basis in the Virginia Room of the Masonic Building at 40 W. First Street and were conducted by the members themselves, with Milton Gumbert leading the choir from the back of the room. Since there was no full-time rabbi, UAHC sent representatives to celebrate various life cycle events.
The temple needed a Torah, so Gene Brown, a local realtor, was dispatched to San Francisco to find one. Rabbi Julius Liebert, one of the earliest rabbis to conduct services at Temple Sinai, contributed his personal Torah to the congregation where it is used, to this day, as the Sefer Torah. The first portable ark was built by Louis Dickens and was eventually replaced with one crafted by artisan and member Harry Weinberg.
Our affiliation with the UAHC required providing religious instruction to our youth. Congregant Ethel Jaffe volunteered and taught not only son Stephen, who became Temple Sinai’s first Bar Mitzvah in 1964, but Jeffrey Zentner and Dan Garfinkle, beginning a 50-year career as a Hebrew teacher to students young and old.
B’nei Mitzvah were held on Friday nights in conjunction with Shabbat services. Once Temple Sinai had its own building, the ceremonies moved to Saturday morning. Among the first daytime B’nei Mitzvah at Temple Sinai was that of Mark Davis, son of Sammy Davis, Jr. The ceremony was held in 1973, attended by many well-known entertainers, with Rabbi Morris Hirschman of the San Francisco office of UAHC presiding.
Early Passover seders were held in the El Cortez Hotel, but once the building was completed on Gulling Road small mealtime celebrations could be held in the sanctuary. Growth within the congregation required more room for the seder and a return to commercial venues, including the Elks Lodge, Sparks Nugget, the Peppermill, and, later, the Atlantis.
The lack of building space affected High Holy day observances as well. Fire regulations restricted the occupancy of the sanctuary to 165 persons. By 1996 the congregation had grown beyond that number and the services were moved to Reed High School’s auditorium. For the next ten years, Temple Sinai celebrated the High Holy days as guests of Holy Cross Catholic Community.
In 1965 the Masonic Building had a fire, causing Temple Sinai to move from the Virginia Room to the Reno Musicians Hall at 124 W. Taylor St. Louis Dickens located and purchased a three-acre plot of land in Northwest Reno and sold it to the temple at cost for $8,000. This was to become the permanent home of Temple Sinai.
On February 26, 1970, a “Nevada State Journal” headline declared, “Temple Sinai Congregation Announces Plans for Building Its New Temple.” Described as “the first Jewish temple built in Reno in the past half century,” it was to be a “modern building of wood and brick…with considerable attention paid to the details of the Holy Ark.”
R.C. Johnson was the contractor for the new temple and the facility was planned with expansion in mind. The building committee consisted of Louis Dickens, Eugene Brown, Milton Gumbert and Sam Cantor. Several members contributed materially to the construction project. Louis Dickens provided material and George Jaffe provided labor for the plumbing installation. Sam Cantor procured the light figures and Wes Levin provided electrical contractors. George Sirott, a developer from Philadelphia, donated a set of bronze ten commandments to the project.
Several non-member businesses contributed as well. Osborne-Dermody provided cabinetry for the kitchen at a reduced rate. The cost of the entire project, land and building, was $53,000, and was paid off in 1975 with a celebratory mortgage-burning event.
While that was the first construction project for Temple Sinai, there were two major expansions and renovations to come. In 1990 construction began on a new addition to add four classrooms, a dividable library/multi-purpose room, and an outdoor patio. Through annexation, the temple was also able to connect to city sewer, which allowed for expanded restroom facilities. This project was completed at a cost of $250,000, and again, the loan was paid off in a relatively short amount of time.
In 1997 Harry Weinberg, a congregant and noted woodworker, completed a three- year project of designing and renovating Temple Sinai’s sanctuary. Beginning with the design and installation of the “Tree of Life,” Weinberg hand-tooled extensive paneling and new doors for the Ark, a new lectern and chairs for the bima, and created a unique Torah mantle holder to accommodate the Torah dressing.
In July of 2007 construction began on a $1.5 million project that would include a large social hall, two classrooms, a commercial quality kitchen, improved office space, a newly renovated library and an enlarged sanctuary, as well as a new entrance and lobby.
The general contractor was Moody-Weiske and the architect was George Trowbridge, Jr. Completed in March and dedicated on April 6, 2008, the new construction meant that Temple Sinai now had a facility to accommodate High Holy Day services and other large celebratory events.
In 2010, stained glass windows were installed in the social hall, a collaborative effort between member Heidi Loeb and local artist Cindy Oberlander. The windows, which are on the Eastern wall of the social hall, added a touch of beauty and sanctity to the room.
Before moving to its own building, Temple Sinai enjoyed the services of UAHC-affiliated Rabbis who would come to Reno for special occasions and lifecycle events. Among these were Rabbi Joseph Liebert, Rabbi Joseph Barston,
Rabbi Milton Gumbiner, and Rabbi Morris Hirschman. However, once the congregation had moved to Gulling Road it became apparent that there was a need for more consistent spiritual leadership. The membership could not support a full-time rabbi at that time, so the leadership made contact with the Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles to provide a student rabbi twice a month.
Fortunately, Rabbi Abraham Feinberg, recently retired from Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto, had moved to Reno to be near his son and generously agreed to provide rabbinic services as needed.
By 1982, Temple Sinai was in a financial position to hire a full-time rabbi. Their choice was Paul Tuchman, whose previous pulpit had been in Dothan, Alabama. Two years later Rabbi Tuchman returned to the South, and Temple Sinai hired Rabbi Myra Soifer, who was among the first women to be ordained by Hebrew Union College and had been an Assistant Rabbi at Temple Sinai in New Orleans. “Rabbi Myra” served as rabbi for 25 years, shepherding the congregation through periods of great growth, as well as tough economic times. She retired in 2009 and is currently doing hospice work.
When Rabbi Soifer retired, Rabbi Teri Appleby came to our congregation. Rabbi Appleby had been a Legal Aid attorney and an Assistant Rabbi in Newport Beach, California. With husband Jonathan Leo offering his services as cantor, Rabbi Teri served Temple Sinai for three years. Rabbi Soifer returned for a year as our interim Rabbi when Rabbi Appleby left for Canada.
In July of 2013, Temple Sinai welcomed Rabbi Ethan Bair. A graduate of Oberlin College and a former Fulbright scholar to Germany, Rabbi Bair was ordained at the Reform seminary, Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles, in 2011. Rabbi Bair served Temple Sinai as our rabbi for five years before moving on to an an Assistant Rabbi position at Temple Beth Shalom in Miami Beach, FL. Rabbi Bair is committed to creating a participatory and authentic Jewish prayer culture; promoting inter-faith social justice work; and integrating Jewish studies with traditional Jewish sources into his repertoire of teaching. He enjoys running, hiking, singing, and welcoming Shabbat guests into his home with his wife, Nadya who has a PhD in Art History.
In July of 2018, Temple Sinai was pleased to welcome TWO rabbis: Rabbi Benjamin Zober and Rabbi Sara Zober, a husband and wife rabbinic team, along with their three children. In the rabbis’ own words: “As a couple, the Rabbis Zober live and work together, make goals together, and care for each other when they fall short. This is what communities at their best do for all of their members. The rabbis’ hope is to help Temple Sinai nurture a Jewish community in touch with its values, a truly holy community united in its mission and vision for the future.” Temple Sinai looks forward to working many years with the Rabbis Zober.
While Temple Sinai’s Hebrew studies originally took place in Ethel Jaffe’s home, the temple’s first Religious School was located in the basement of the YMCA on Foster Drive. However, the facility, which was closed to the public on Sundays, was left unheated, and when winter came, the classes were moved to the homes of the Zentners and Garfinkles. Ethel Jaffe continued to teach Hebrew, Ruth Dickens and Mary Garfinkle taught Jewish observance and practices, and “supplies” consisted of blank newspaper stock and a few spare writing instruments.
Religious School expanded when Temple Sinai moved to its new building in 1970. By then, the congregation had grown, bringing in young families with children. With a larger student population, more teachers were added, classes were established by age group, and tuition allowed for books and materials. Martha Gould, then a recent transplant to Reno, was the first Religious School Administrator, followed by Eric Hobson, who was also a full-time teacher in the public schools. Since those early days, the congregation has had a series of dedicated educators who have served in administrative and classroom positions over the years.
It is now known as Sinai School, with Hebrew as part of every class. Our rabbis have sought to create a more experiential learning environment with many new programs introduced into the Sinai School program.
The Reform Jewish summer camp program has been available to the youth of Temple Sinai, with campers originally attending Camp Swig in Saratoga, California. A newer facility, Camp Newman, located outside Santa Rosa, California, has since replaced Camp Swig, serving Jewish youth well into their teens. Camp Newman has also become “the hub” for our Youth Group, SUNNY.
In 2000, a group of post-Bar/Bat Mitzvah students created a youth group called “Sinai’s United Northern Nevada Youth” (SUNNY) to seek ways to continue their Jewish journey. The group was affiliated with the California branches of the National Federation of Temple Youth, NFTY, and participated in regional as well as local activities.
Today, Temple Sinai Youth now participates in a Community-Wide Jewish Youth Group for the Reno/Sparks area. Click the link to sign up and get information about what our community youth are doing together.
Torah for Tots was first brought to Temple Sinai by Robin Fuhrman, a Religious School administrator, in 1990. When the Fuhrmans left the community, the program was disbanded for more than a decade. Judy Schumer has since revived and expanded the program. Today, the group meets monthly to learn lessons of Jewish life and celebrate holidays with music, cooking classes, and art projects.
Since the earliest days of Temple Sinai, the congregation has relied on the talents and time of its members to ensure that its Jewish mission has been well-served. Educational, social and religious programming have all benefited from the vast resources within the temple community.
The members of Temple Sinai, as well as our former Men’s Club and Sisterhood, have organized celebratory events, concerts, and dinners to bring together the Jewish Community and the wider community to raise funds for support of programs and activities.
Debbie Pomeranz, daughter of founders Louis and Ruth Dickens, remembers Congregational Picnics held at local parks that would include three-legged races, ball games and swimming.
Ethel Jaffe, whose husband, George, led his own dance band, recalled one musical revue held at the Masonic Hall where the men donned tutus and performed a ballet, which sent the audience into gales of laughter. The performance was a great success, and again, earned needed money for the building fund.
The Temple Sinai membership, in striving to fulfill our mission of Tikkun Olam (mending the world), has participated in numerous community-wide initiatives.
Family Promise, although closed now since December 2011, was a re-entry program for homeless families and was an annual commitment at our Temple. During the week of Christmas, when Temple Sinai became the home for these families, we provided food, shelter and supervision over the holiday. This project was held in concert with members of the local Muslim community, which also prepared food for the “guests”.
For decades, Temple Sinai has been involved with the Northern Nevada Food Bank, through our annual High Holiday Food Drive which has provided, literally, tons of non-perishable food to the Food Bank. Our former Sisterhood also used to volunteer at the warehouse on a regular basis. Rabbi Bair even served on the NNFB’s Board of Directors.
Each Thanksgiving Temple Sinai participates in the Interfaith Thanksgiving Service held at various meeting places throughout the city. The service is an outgrowth of the former National Conference of Christians and Jews, now known as the National Conference for Community Justice, which no longer has a chapter in Reno. When the organization was active, Temple Sinai played an instrumental part in the development of youth programming and was represented on their governing board.
Over the years the congregation has participated in any number of social service efforts, from marches for social justice and support for the Muslim community to refurbishing the Jewish Cemetery in Virginia City.
In the past, Temple Sinai also participated in a program to promote widespread social action opportunities for members of Temple Sinai through a group that was called ACTIONN (Acting in Community Together in Organizing Northern Nevada) which is a local outreach of the national PICO (People In Community Organizing) organization.
To learn more about Social Action at Temple Sinai today, please click here.
In memory of those who have died, memorial plaques are on the sanctuary’s north wall. The lights are lit on the yahrzeit of family and friends whom we are remembering.
To honor the living, Temple Sinai’s Tree of Life is on the south wall of the Sanctuary. Engraved leaves and stones honoring family and friends can be purchased.
Same-day split events (functions which have more than one distinct session) will be considered as one event. Use of the facility between the hours of sunset Friday evening and sunset Saturday evening must not include any commercial purpose and must not be contrary to traditional Jewish practices.
Our facility is not available for use during the two week period that encompasses the Jewish High Holy Days in the fall, and the use of the kitchen as well as outside food at events is not available during Passover in the spring.
Click the links below for complete details, to book us, or to get a quote.
Jewish organizations serving our community.
Nevada’s Jewish Federation, engaging the community to invest, enrich, and ensure the vibrancy and continuity of Jewish life in Nevada, Israel, and around the world.
An independent group of Jewish young professionals that hosts social events, Shabbat meals, and Jewish holiday celebrations throughout the city. Click above to contact the group leaders, Tori Sundheim and Daniel Farahi and get involved.
A pluralistic Jewish organization serving the college students of northern Nevada.
Serving the region with Jewish educational and social service programming.
The Oldest Jewish Cemetery In Nevada. YESTERDAY. TODAY. TOMORROW. Remembering The Past. Honoring The Present. Looking Towards The Future.
Additional non-Jewish organizations in our community that we partner with and support.
The Nevada Interfaith Association exists as a welcoming multi-faith network of religious and spiritual leaders in Nevada to bring diverse religious communities together with the aim of increasing mutual understanding and respect.
To inform, influence, and inspire the community to equally include LGBTQ persons and to support their pursuit of spiritual and religious rights and freedom.
Working with homeless and at-risk youth to develop life and job skills necessary for sustainable independence.
