By Jacob Kamaras
SAN DIEGO — Beth Jacob Congregation on Sunday bid farewell to its spiritual leader of 29 years, as the College-area Orthodox community held a gala filled with heartfelt and often-humorous tributes from congregants, public officials, and family members in honor of Rabbi Avram Bogopulsky and Rebbetzin Leah Bogopulsky.
The rabbi and his wife will now split their time between New Jersey and Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel. Rabbi Bogopulsky told San Diego Jewish World that the most meaningful aspect of his 29 years at Beth Jacob has been “to see people and families grow, in Torah, in Yiddishkeit and Judaism, and the continuity of the Jewish people — to see that we’re just a part of that in the entire history, to help continue that for everyone else.”
San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-Clerk Jordan Marks, one of the public officials who were on hand to honor the Bogopulskys, emphasized “the importance of what the rabbi and rebbetzin have done in these last 29 years to create a Jewish community here in the College area.”
“We have kosher restaurants here because of them, we have all these great leaders here because of them. If you’re going to judge a rabbi, do it based on their community and based on how it’s flourishing, and you’re going to know that he’s had an amazing career of these 29 years,” Marks, whose own father is an Orthodox rabbi, said in an interview.
While Marks presented the rabbi and rebbetzin with the county’s Lifetime Service Award during the gala’s formal program, Councilmember Raul Campillo (District 7) read a proclamation from the city declaring May 26 as “Rabbi Avram Bogopulsky Day.” Campillo described the invitation to speak at Beth Jacob’s gala as one of the most special honors he has ever been offered as a councilmember. He cited the biblical directive to “love the Lord with all your mind, heart, soul, and might” as emblematic of how the rabbi has served his community. He also infused a touch of humor into his presentation when recalling how as an 11-year-old San Diego Padres fan he “wept” while Rabbi Bogopulsky, a New York Yankees fan, celebrated joyously when the Yankees defeated the Padres in the 1998 World Series.
Beth Jacob President Gavriel Gleiberman recounted when he was driving in Brooklyn in the spring of 2005, and his wife, who grew up in the Beth Jacob community, easily recognized Rabbi Bogopulsky pacing up and down the street. “That’s how he walks — I’d recognize his gait anywhere,” she told him at the time.
No matter the time of day or night, or the complexity of the issue, Rabbi Bogopulsky has been committed to helping him succeed as president, Gleiberman shared.
Philip Silverman, a two-time past president of Beth Jacob, said the rabbi “leads with integrity, patience, and a deep sense of responsibility for every person in our community…He showed me and so many others that leadership is not about body, it’s about presence.” Silverman, who presented the Bogopulskys with a tribute book, added, “You stood with us, for us, and beside us.”
Rabbi Yoni Danzger, Beth Jacob’s former assistant rabbi, said he felt “an overwhelming feeling of coming home” when he landed in San Diego for the gala — even though he only lived here for three years. That is thanks to Rabbi Bogopulsky, as “home is where you’re formed and created. Everything I can do as a rabbi in New York is because of my mentor.”
Human nature is often to deny gratitude because “to thank someone means you owe them, and nobody likes to be in that position,” Rabbi Danzger explained. Yet “if we really accept that nothing is coming to us and for everything that comes to us, we do have an obligation to pay back, that’s what gratitude is,” he said. Rabbi Bogopulsky showed him “how to lead a community with love and passion, and to be there for every person in the community.”
The rabbi and rebbetzin’s sons — Sruly, Dovid, and Aryeh — all delivered remarks, reflecting on their parents’ legacy in San Diego and the sacrifices it took to build that legacy.
Sruly Bogopulsky noted that before they accepted the leadership role at Beth Jacob, the other city on the table was Omaha, Nebraska. But that did not mean living in America’s Finest City was free of challenges. For instance, Dovid joked that the family’s commitment to only using Cholov Yisroel dairy products (those supervised by a Jewish person) meant that he essentially grew up on spoiled milk. The Bogopulskys’ 29 years at Beth Jacob were about “sacrificing on conveniences and never compromising,” Dovid said.
According to Sruly, the Bogopulsky siblings are a “living testimony” to the nearly three decades their parents spent opening their homes to community members, taking phone calls around the clock, and teaching Torah.
Aryeh reflected that, “In order to separate from something, it first needs to be connected. In order to say ‘goodbye,’ you first have to say ‘hello.’ Tonight, we’re not here to be sad and we’re not here to lament, but rather we’re here to celebrate the connections my parents made and their accomplishments.”
Yisroel Weiser, director of school culture at Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School, said in an interview that the gala was “a testament to the rabbi’s individual focus and longevity. So many people have come back who felt touched by the rabbi wherever they went on to — anywhere in the country, anywhere in the state. When they knew it was time to honor Rabbi and Rebbetzin Bogopulsky, they were ready to come back again and fill up the shul.”
Now, as Rabbi Bogopulsky prepares to hand the mantle of leadership to Rabbi Baruch Frankel, Beth Jacob is simultaneously preparing to move the synagogue from the College area to San Carlos. In February, the congregation announced that it had purchased the Bank of America building at 7404 Jackson Drive and would relocate within an estimated 18 months, giving members sufficient time to move from their homes or rentals.
Regarding the community’s multifaceted transition, Rabbi Bogopulsky told San Diego Jewish World, “The future is very bright.
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Jacob Kamaras, a public relations executive, is a former publisher of San Diego Jewish World.