Background
The movement to establish a Jewish Community Center in Richmond began in 1941. At this time, Rimmon Lodge of B’nai B’rith was considering a centralized meeting place for its activities. In 1945, Mr. H. J. Bernstein made it possible for B’nai B’rith to acquire a building at 2908 Idlewood Avenue. In the fall of 1946, the Center was opened.
The future for the Center looked favorable, and plans were begun for an extensive membership. These plans came to a halt in 1948 when the building burned to the ground. Help came from many organizations, and for 16 months, the Center continued its services by operating from a room at the Beth Sholom Home and from the Temples in the city.
Because the Center was serving the total community, the Board of Directors applied to the Richmond Area Community Chest (forerunner of the United Way of Greater Richmond) for membership and was admitted in 1948. In June 1949, the Center moved into the building at 2100 Grove Avenue.
Membership in the Richmond Center became a cross section of the community, open to all Jews and non-Jews, regardless of age, sex, economic status, social affiliation, religious belief, political views or country of origin.
When the Center acquired its building on Grove Avenue, it was generally accepted that this would be a temporary home and, from the outset, a great deal of thought was given to a permanent home.
By 1952, the thinking had crystallized. A10-acre site of land was acquired in the western portion of the city (actually in Henrico County - 5403 Monument Avenue).
All this planning resulted in the ground-breaking ceremony in April 1957. The building opened in May 1959.
Several Capital Campaigns have been conducted over the years in order to raise funds and improve the building and site for the expanding community and to meet the needs of its constituents.
In April of 1995 the decision was made to move toward rebuilding and expanding the facilities of the Center to meet current and future needs. Nearly $20 million was raised. In the Spring of 2002, construction began and there was a grand re-opening in May of 2004.
During the 3 years following renovation, the membership grew from 1,650 units to over 3,000 units representing over 8,000 people and the Center’s budget grew from $3.5 million to $6.2 million and serves over 3,000 people every day.
Impact
Received over 15 national awards from Jewish Community Center (JCC) Association of North America for excellence in program and management, more awards than any of the other 200+ JCC's in North America.
Rated as one of the strongest JCC's in the country by thrid party bechmarking project reviewing financial, program, management and service excellence.
Hosted the JCC Maccabi Games, welcoming over 1,000 atheletes and coaches from over 30 cities accross the U.S. and Israel to participate in a sports and recreational program.
Served over 3,000 people per day and a million client impressions throughout the year.
Needs
Scholarships for families in need are at an all time high. Current demands exceed available funds by over $50,000 preventing some children from receiving needed day care and day camp services due to insufficient resources.
Children with special needs continue to be a signficant challenge. One in five children of the 350 children in our preschool and after school programs receive some level of intervention and the needs to increase intervention, family support and training is significant. One additional FTE is needed at a cost of $40,000 per year to fully meet this need.