Lake Park Synagogue Gifts Historic Building to Lubavitch of Wisconsin to Strengthen Jewish Life on Milwaukee’s East Side
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Lake Park Synagogue has gifted its synagogue building to Lubavitch of Wisconsin, supporting its continued use for Jewish communal purposes and the growth of Jewish life on Milwaukee’s East Side.
The transfer brings the relationship between Lake Park Synagogue and Lubavitch of Wisconsin full circle.
Lake Park Synagogue was founded in 1983 by a group that included people who had been attending services at Lubavitch House and wished to establish a formal, independent synagogue. Rabbi Yisroel Shmotkin, executive director of Lubavitch of Wisconsin, encouraged their efforts and helped the new congregation get started by lending a Torah, furniture, and other material support. In its early years, Lubavitch also assisted from time to time with assembling a minyan and providing a Torah reader.
Lake Park Synagogue went on to establish its own identity and serve the community with warmth and distinction for more than four decades. Now, through this gift, a building with a long history of Jewish prayer, learning, and community will continue in that same spirit—strengthening Jewish life and connection on Milwaukee’s East Side.
The announcement comes as the Jewish community prepares to celebrate Rosh Hashanah and the beginning of a new Jewish year. It is a particularly fitting time for the building to begin its own new chapter—one that honors its past while renewing its purpose as a place of Torah learning, tefillah, and Jewish growth.
“There is something profoundly meaningful about seeing this relationship come full circle, particularly as we approach Rosh Hashanah,” said Rabbi Yisroel Shmotkin. “Lubavitch was privileged to assist Lake Park Synagogue at its beginning. After more than 40 years in which the synagogue served its community with real purpose and impact, its building will begin a new chapter—continuing to be filled with Torah study, tefillah, and Jewish life for a new generation.”
Lubavitch of Wisconsin has maintained an active presence on Milwaukee’s East Side since 1971. Following extensive internal discussions among its schools, programs, and divisions, the organization has designated the building’s initial use as a dedicated space for learning, tefillah, and homework for residential students in the boys’ program of Bader Hillel High School.
In the coming weeks, the students will begin using the building daily after school for structured study, homework, and tefillah. The sanctuary will also serve as a designated Bader Hillel High School space for Shabbat and Jewish holiday services and programming.
As the building begins this new chapter, Lubavitch of Wisconsin plans to retain many of its familiar synagogue elements, including the ark, pews, selected Jewish books, and other features, as part of its initial use. Their continued presence will help connect the new activity in the building with the history of the congregation that called it home.
“We are deeply grateful to Lake Park Synagogue for entrusting Lubavitch of Wisconsin with this building and its legacy, and to Larry Pachefsky for his leadership in shepherding the transfer,” said Rabbi Mendel Shmotkin, chief executive officer of Lubavitch of Wisconsin. “This was never simply a real estate transaction. It is a sacred trust: to honor the building’s Jewish history and ensure that the property continues to support and build Jewish life on Milwaukee’s East Side.”
Bader Hillel High School’s residential program welcomes students who come to Milwaukee from communities across the country and beyond to receive an intensive Jewish and general education. Living away from their families during their high school years, these students need more than classrooms and a dormitory. They need a home away from home—a place where they can learn, pray, spend Shabbat and Jewish holidays together, build lasting friendships, and develop a genuine sense of belonging.
The Lake Park Synagogue building will provide the students with a dedicated setting for these important parts of their daily lives. At the same time, their presence will bring renewed energy to the building through the sounds of Torah learning and tefillah.
“At Bader Hillel High School, we are doing more than educating individual students,” Rabbi Mendel Shmotkin added. “We are helping prepare the next generation of Jewish leaders, educators, rabbis, communal professionals, and engaged Jewish adults. Giving these young men a place where Jewish life can be lived fully—during the school week, on Shabbat, and on Jewish holidays—is an essential part of that mission.”
The building’s use by Bader Hillel High School represents the first stage of Lubavitch of Wisconsin’s stewardship of the property. Consistent with the purpose of the gift, the organization will continue exploring ways for the building to support Jewish life and community on Milwaukee’s East Side.
What began more than four decades ago with Lubavitch helping a new congregation open its doors now continues with Lake Park Synagogue entrusting those doors to Lubavitch for the next chapter. As a new Jewish year begins, so too does a new chapter for this historic Jewish building.
Through this gift, Lake Park Synagogue’s legacy will continue through the Torah studied, prayers offered, and Jewish lives shaped within its walls.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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