Community Connection: Jewish in Utah
The Jewish community of Salt Lake City is one that may go unnoticed to many travelers and locals of Utah. The Jewish community has been residents in Utah for many years, according to the Utah History Encyclopedia, the first Yom Kippur event was held in 1864 and the first synagogue was formed in 1881.
Though Utah is known to be a highly concentrated state of Latter-Day Saints, it holds many welcoming spaces for the Jewish community. Within Salt Lake City there are multiple congregations such as the Chabad Lubavitch of Utah as well as a Jewish Community Center. The center notes that its mission is to, “Enrich the life of the Jewish community and the community at large by offering educational, cultural and recreational opportunities in a place where people of all backgrounds, cultures, and beliefs gather in peace and understanding.” They do so by holding a multitude of events such as fitness classes, child care, Shalon on the Range, and a book club all of which carry notes of important Jewish culture.
Utah’s higher education also has formed a welcome to this religious community by joining together to make Hillel for Utah, their mission is, “As the only center for Jewish campus life in the state, Hillel for Utah strives to foster a safe and vibrant community for students to connect and learn from each other while exploring Jewish life, culture, and learning. We support students at all colleges and universities in Utah.” Hillel strives to incorporate modern techniques to get the younger generation involved and feel welcome by their religion. Currently they are working on amplifying the voices of Holocaust survivors; in order to dismantle the growing idea that the Jewish interment camps and the Holocaust itself didn’t take place, a common theory amongst many Utah locals.
One member of Utah Hillel Kayla Dworsky had this to say about the group, “When I came out to Utah, from Los Angeles, for college I was not expecting to find such a great Jewish community as I have. It might be a small community, but it is a very close and supportive one. I thought I would drift away from my Jewish identity in college, but I could not be more wrong. I am now the VP of Hillel for Utah, and I am a Judaic studies teacher at a local synagogue. Also, this community brought me so many of my closest friends. Judaism in Utah has helped me find a home away from home”
Though this community may be small and at times dismissed and stereotypes, it has been proven to be strong and resilient these past few years. According to the Jewish Library, The Project of Aice the population of the Jewish community has nearly doubled since the 2002 post-winter Olympics. There are roughly over six thousand Jewish families that belong to the multitude of congregations here in Utah.
