Our History
From humble beginnings to a realization of a dream.
This is the history of Temple Beth Emet (House of Truth). In the fall of 1976, fifteen families seeking a link to Judaism gathered to discuss their dreams and goals. We began holding Shabbat services in our homes and held our first Chanukah service at Hollywood Hills Private School. All of the teachers and staff were volunteers who generously gave of their time. The congregation's first High Holiday services were held at Pines Middle School. In the summer of 1978, Rabbi Bennett Greenspon joined the congregation as its spiritual leader and has been guiding Temple Beth Emet ever since. Cantor Jan Sheer soon joined and added depth and warmth to Shabbat and holiday services, mentored Bar and Bat Mitzvah students and conducted the choir. In 2011, Rabbi Frank DeWoskin joined the congregation to enable us to better serve all our members and to partner with our staff to offer more opportunities for service and relationships.
Over the next several years, services were held at Pines Middle School, Pembroke Pines Hospital Annex and at Miramar High School. The office in the Rabbi’s home and members' offices relocated to a storefront space on Taft Street in Pembroke Pines, and it soon became clear that it was time for a permanent home. The congregation began to raise funds for a building of our own, and in 1986, after several years in portables, Temple Beth Emet opened its doors in Pembroke Pines. This enabled the expansion of many programs, the Religious School continued to grow and an Early Childhood Center started as well as a Summer Camp.
A few years later, it became evident that the congregation had outgrown the building and we remedied the situation temporarily with portables. Before long, we outgrew the portables and decided to move our entire site to Cooper City, to be closer to more of our members.
Our new home on Flamingo Road opened in late 2000 and allowed further growth of our Early Childhood Center, our Religious School and enabled the opening of our Elementary School. We have an innovative and creative Religious School, a nationally accredited, award winning Early Childhood Center and our Elementary School is accredited through AISF and has received acknowledgement and recognition from the Central Agency for Jewish Education. Our outstanding education programs, especially our Family Education programs, are exemplary in the Jewish community.
You can feel the warmth of our congregation from our leaders and members to the staff. Under the guidance of Rabbi Greenspon, our congregation is open and caring and provides a variety of enriching programs and services for the Jewish community. Religious services include traditional congregational singing and are modern in their outlook. Services may include a baby being welcomed into the covenant, Religious School students leading the Service, a teenager or an adult becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, a guest speaker or even a performance by an Israeli dance troupe.
Temple Beth Emet also provides a dynamic environment for Jewish social life through its many varied activities. We offer Shabbat and Holiday dinners, Adult Education, Torah study groups, golf tournaments, our renowned annual Mitzvah Day, Israel trips, art exhibitions, comedy nights, Purim carnivals, Summer Camp (Day and Teen Travel) and much more. We have a new Aquatic center, a beautiful Social Hall, Reception Room and in-house catering company to offer the perfect facility to hold Bar and Bat Mitzvah celebrations, weddings or any other function for up to 500 people.
We invite all of our members to participate in our Youth Group Programs (K to 12), Sisterhood, Menschim (Men’s club). Temple Beth Emet is now one of Broward’s most exciting Reform Temples and our future looks brighter than ever!
Whether you are single, a young couple, a family, empty-nesters, senior adults, or an interfaith family, there is something for everyone at Temple Beth Emet. As we grow, we will continue to add new programs and events, and we invite you to be part of our extended family.