Oceanside Chabad moves in

The Chabad of Oceanside has a home and it opens immediately. Purchased on June 30, the 17,000-square-foot building will serve a variety of programs for the 11-year-old Chabad outpost.

Until now, Chabad had been using a space indefinitely, funded by a benefactor, but recently, due to the financial crisis, the donor was unable to continue subsidizing the space.

“We found ourselves in the position that the building was on the open market,” Rabbi Levi Gurkov said. “With the help of the community, we were able to make a deal with the bank and buy it.”

Rabbi Gurkov said that the only reason the Chabad was able to purchase the building was because the community rallied behind the organization and donated to the cause.

“Ever since we started here at the Chabad of Oceanside, we’ve always been giving to the community,” Rabbi Gurkov explained. “We relied on numerous benefactors in the past that let us help people in any way, fashion or form — whether it be monetary, emotional or religious services or anything of that sort. And we did this for all these years. And then when it came time for the community to actually give back to Chabad, they responded tremendously.”

Now that Chabad owns the building, Rabbi Gurkov said that the organization is already going to expand its popular preschool program, sacrificing space formerly used for worship to accommodate more children. But with that trade off, Rabbi Gurkov expects ceremonies for the High Holy Days — which usually draw more worshipers, to get crowded and based on advance reservation.

“Our doors are not closed, we’re not changing any of our policies,” Rabbi Gurkov said. “But due to the fact that there is limited space, it would be prudent for people to reserve a seat, otherwise there will be a severe lack of space for people.”

In addition to religious services and the preschool program, the Oceanside Chabad also runs a Hebrew school, a Torah class, Bar and Bat Mitzvah clubs, youth clubs and women’s groups. Rabbi Gurkov said that the Chabad will continue to expand all of its programs and add new ones.

“We want to open up something for children with special needs,” Gurkov said. “Now that we have the space and know that we can open up another chapter here, we’re looking to expand the community-based services.”

Rabbi Gurkov said that the programs are his expression of gratitude to the community for its effort in securing the building purchase. “The community came together,” Rabbi Gurkov said. “It wasn’t just a single effort. It was a community-wide effort, and everybody came together. That’s the only way it would have happened.”