via the Kansas City Jewish Chronicle
Robert Cutler speaks at the grand opening.
Nearly 20 years after its founding, KU Chabad has opened a new building in Lawrence, Kansas, designed from the ground-up to serve Jewish students at the University of Kansas.
Co-directors Rabbi Zalman and Nechama Tiechtel established KU Chabad in 2006, running the organization from a converted duplex until last year, when it was demolished to make room for the new building.
The 10,000-square-foot Cutler Family Chabad House was opened on Nov. 2. New assets that the previous Chabad building did not have include a 700-square-foot mural painted by muralist Solomon Souza, a dedicated student lounge, dining hall, and sanctuary, an industrial-size kosher kitchen, a hospitality wing, a courtyard and more.
A portion of 19th Street in front of the building was closed to traffic so more than 400 students, alumni, donors, leaders, friends and family could gather for the dedication.
“If anybody here doesn’t believe in miracles, you should have been here 12 months ago when I stood in this same space, surrounded by soil and with a tractor behind me, and I said that in 12 months, we’d be here again to celebrate the grand opening… believe it or not, we finished ahead of schedule and under budget,” Rabbi Tiechtel said at the event.
“We put our heart and souls into every detail for two main goals,” Nechama Tiechtel said. “Firstly, to create a space where every single person who walks into these doors feels welcome, embraced and inspired to become a better version of themselves. Our second goal was to create a place where Judaism is joyful, it's alive and it's proud.”
The event was a celebration of not only the completion of the building, but of the achievements of KU Chabad and the work of the Tiechtels.
“Since I moved to Lawrence when I was just six weeks old, I have welcomed thousands of students into my life,” said Mina Tiechtel, the family’s oldest daughter, at the event. “…We’ve come a long way since our original cramped Chabad house, and I’m so excited to see the growth that this new building brings.”
Levi Tiechtel, the family’s oldest son, led the crowd in reading a passage from Psalms before a series of speakers addressed attendees on the importance of KU Chabad and the new building.
Among the speakers was KU Chancellor Dr. Douglas Girod, who has been recognized as an ally to the local Jewish community by various local organizations, including Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, Jewish Community Relations Bureau | American Jewish Committee and KU Chabad itself.
KU Chancellor Dr. Douglas Girod speaking with Rabbi Zalman Tiechtel before the KU Chabad building grand opening.
“We have more students on campus than we’ve ever had in the history of the university, and we know that many of our students are going to benefit from [the new Chabad building],” Chancellor Girod said at the event. “...This is so important for us as a university as we think about creating a university that’s welcoming to all, that creates a space for everyone, that creates an opportunity and a place where we can have conversations… and that’s really what Rabbi [Tiechtel] and his entire family have created here.”
Part of the lounge, sanctuary and Torah ark at the new KU Chabad building.
In addition to university leadership, Chabad leadership was present. Chabad leaders from the Kansas City area and other cities, as well as those related to the Tiechtels, were joined by Chabad on Campus International Chief Operating Officer Rabbi Avi Weinstein.
“It's clear that [Rabbi and Nechama Tiechtel] recognize that the students at KU, our beloved ‘Jewhawks,’ are so very precious and deserve a place that is spacious and beautiful; a place they will love; a place they want to spend time in, celebrating our rich, joyful heritage,” Rabbi Weinstein said. “The result is… this glorious edifice, a vibrant center where hundreds of students celebrate Judaism every single day.”
Chabad on Campus International works with more than 370 Chabads at schools around the world. Rabbi Weinstein said, “KU Chabad is indeed a model for what can be accomplished on campuses across the globe.”
Speakers who shared how KU Chabad affected them included current students Adina Thompson, Brenna Gross and Charles Lachman; alumnus and benefactor Jacob Walters; and Susan Gutovitz, mother of four KU alumni who were deeply affected by KU Chabad’s work: Cory, Hillary, Jeremy and Joel.
A stream and serenity garden is dedicated to alumna Sarah Milgrim (z”l).
Lachman introduced Bob Cutler, a mentor of his and the major benefactor for whom the building is named.
“At 10,000 square feet, this building is not only a remarkable achievement in scale, but more importantly, a symbol of strength and vibrance and the enduring presence of Jewish life here at KU,” Cutler said at the event. “As one of the many donors of this project, I feel deeply honored to help dedicate a space that will nurture and inspire and uplift generations of KU students. But let me be clear, this is not just about a building. These walls will have something far greater: a living, breathing community of our future, the future where students of KU will do like so many before them, making the world a better place.”
“The beautiful thing about Chabad is there's no board of directors, there's no committees,” he told The Chronicle. “It's all about the kids, so you don't have a bunch of adults proxying for power… It's a very entrepreneurial approach to a very simple premise: being a Jewish resource to anyone and everyone that has a need in our community.”
Bob Cutler and Rabbi Berel Sosover complete the final letter for the new KU Chabad building’s entryway mezuzah.
Cutler said the new building project had been in the works for multiple years. He had worked to buy the lot next to the old duplex to allow the new building to be much larger, and then made a $650,000 gift — which later increased to a $1 million donation — in honor of the Tiechtel family to help fund the construction.
At the event, Cutler was honored with writing the last letter on the building’s mezuzah scroll (with the help of local scribe Rabbi Berel Sosover) and cutting the ribbon alongside the Tiechtels, the chancellor and major donors as confetti cannons were fired.
“As we cut this ribbon today, we are not simply opening a building. We are opening pathways to faith, to community and to lifelong friendships and to leadership. The center will give students the courage to live boldly, the wisdom to live faithfully and the inspiration to live generously,” Cutler said. “It will root us all in the enduring principles of all traditions to embrace the future with hope and vision.”
The ribbon cutting for KU Chabad’s new building was celebrated with confetti cannons.
“We are witnessing not just a grand opening,” Rabbi Tiechtel said. “We are witnessing a revolution, a new horizon for the future of Jewish life at KU.”
KU Chabad is still working to raise an additional $500,000 to complete its original $6 million campaign launched last year. More information about donating is available at homeforkuchabad.com.