Temple Judea offers two locations for worship

Temple Judea, a warm and vibrant Reform synagogue in the San Fernando Valley, is one of the few temples in the country to offer its congregants a choice of two locations for study, worship and community, with campuses in Tarzana and West Hills.

The goal is for Temple Judea to serve as a spiritual beacon, welcoming the public to celebrations, consoling them at times of sadness, and allowing people to pause in their hectic lives for the moments of reflection that Shabbat and holidays can bring, said Rabbi Don Goor.

While Temple Judea serves many communities among its own

congregation, a significant portion of its members comprise young families with school-age children. The Religious School has more than 2,200 students from kindergarten through 12th grade and the Early Childhood Center serves 300

children in parenting classes and nursery school.

In addition to regular 8 p.m. Friday services, the temple recognizes the importance of the young families with special early services for children in specific grades, as well as a Tot Shabbot program.

Throughout the upcoming year, Temple Judea will expand its emphasis on tikkun olam, or repairing the world. The temple currently feeds and houses homeless famlies every Sunday evening, offers free English as a Second Language classes, sponsors a Boy Scout troop, holds AA meetings and is the only Early Childhood Center in the Valley that works with disabled infants and preschoolers.

"From our youth groups to our active Havurot and senior programs, we reach inward to ensure that we are meeting the social, spiritual and communal needs of our members. As members of the larger community, we turn outward and are involved with the issues of our city, our nation and our world," Goor said.