RAISE THE ROOF

New Mexico Jewish Journal

30 Sep 2026 — 3 min read

RSVP by OCT. 7 bnaiisrael-nm.org/calendar/events or call Synagogue office 505-266-0155

All NMJJ readers, friends, and family are invited to RAISE THE ROOF, a good old-fashioned HOEDOWN at Congregation B’nai Israel on Sunday, October 11, 2026. The lively community-oriented event, featuring square dancing and a barbecue, is a fund-raiser for B’nai Israel’s Engineering Survey project (more on that below!). Popular square-dance caller Greg Tillery is returning to B’nai Israel after the resoundingly successful square-dance havdalah evening of a few years back. Greg will lead a demonstration and he’ll provide easy-to-follow dance instruction. Then all will get to grab a partner, join a square, and do-si-do around the room.

The “roof” in RAISE THE ROOF is B’nai Israel’s 50-foot-high dome of polyurethane foam. Now over 50 years old, this groundbreaking architectural wonder is beginning to show its age. Several years ago, some of the dome’s clerestory windows began to fracture for no apparent reason. Careful detective work solved the mystery: Under the dome’s weight, the feet of some of the twelve laminated wood arches that support it have been gradually drifting apart. But why? And can it be stopped?

The Congregation decided to find out. They engaged David Grieves, a structural engineer and expert in historic renovations, to carry out the survey that would reveal exactly what is wrong and how to fix it. The Congregation received a grant of $5,000 from the National Trust for Historic Preservation of Sacred Places to help subsidize the cost of the survey. This grant, plus some very generous individual donations, will cover a little over half the cost of the survey. If, as expected, Raise the Roof is a big success, its proceeds will cover the rest.

Elynn Finston, the event organizer, says, “With Raise the Roof, we’re putting the FUN back in fundraising. You can count on lively entertainment for adults, children, and families. Come for the BBQ, Square Dancing and delectable deserts, and leave knowing that you have contributed to the responsible stewardship of an acclaimed and historically significant synagogue building.”

RSVP by OCT. 7th: RAISE THE ROOF

**bnaiisrael-nm.org/calendar/events** **or call Synagogue office 505-266-0155**

RSVP BY OCT. 7th: RAISE THE ROOF

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Shabbat with Friends: Recapturing Together the Joy of Shabbat
New Mexico Jewish Historical Society
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