The Lawrence Jewish Community Congregation (LJCC) has a new look thanks to the work of the Lawrence-based muralist Dave Loewenstein. 

Where previously a plain beige exterior greeted the passers-by on 9th Street, there is now a vibrant, multicolored mural of Etz Chayim, the Tree of Life.

This new artwork came about when Dave Loewenstein approached LJCC Executive Director, Lara Giordano, about helping the community by creating a mural that could communicate its story and beautify its building. Although Loewenstein was not raised Jewish, he discovered as an adult his family’s “crypto” Jewish roots — his grandfather had disavowed his Jewishness in favor of assimilation and never looked back.

Loewenstein was interested in working with the LJCC as a way of honoring his own connection to the Jewish people. Volunteering his talent and time, Loewenstein spent a year working with community members to help them reach consensus on an image that could capture the diversity and depth of the Lawrence Jewish community, its struggles and aspirations — and be plausibly painted on the corrugated metal exterior of the building, a true challenge even for a seasoned muralist.

Muralist Dave Loewenstein during the painting of the mural.

The LJCC, which has been in existence for more than 70 years, is lay-led and unaffiliated, as well as the only egalitarian synagogue in all of Douglas County.  

“Our community really prides itself on its ‘big tent’ Judaism,” LJCC Executive Director Lara Giordano said. “Serving a diverse constituency of religious and secular Jews as well as their Jewish-adjacent loved ones is fundamental to our mission. We have strong ties to KU, and we’ve rendered both intellectual enrichment and social engagement central to who we are and what we do. Moreover, our members care — not just about being Jewish, but about bettering the community in which we live. 

“LJCC members believe that this pursuit of mutual enrichment is part of what defines their Judaism,” Giordano said. “Accordingly, we’ve cultivated partnerships and connections with other institutions central to the social and intellectual vibrancy of Lawrence — places like the Lawrence Interdenominational Nutritional Kitchen, the Watkins Museum of History, the Lawrence Interfaith Network, the Douglas County Community Foundation and other civic organizations, religious and secular.”

According to Giordano, representing this diversity, depth and the place-based Judaism that the LJCC has cultivated over the years was a fundamental structuring element of the mural. 

Objectively, the mural depicts a sprawling tree, an elder, whose wisdom and experience are gathered in colorful facets between its branches. The image invokes the Tree of Life, a central figure within Jewish tradition, appearing in the Torah and moreover serving as an emblem of it — the Torah said to be the “Tree of Life to all who grasp her.”

“The tree is an emblem of intergenerational relation and succession,” Giordano said, “signalling what, in Judaism, we refer to as ‘L’dor V’dor,’ from generation to generation, signalling our indebtedness to the past and our hopes to thrive into the future, continuing to provide a shelter of peace for all who wish to worship within our synagogue.”

On Friday, Aug. 21, at 5:30 p.m., the community plans to honor Loewenstein for enriching the community and the 9th Street corridor with his talents and to celebrate the communal achievement. There will be bubbles and sidewalk chalk for children — as well as adults — wanting to make their own temporary murals on the sidewalk; a potluck and refreshments; and a brief talk from community members and Loewenstein about the process of creating the Etz Chayim mural and its importance to the community. After the celebration, all who wish to observe Shabbat are welcome to stay for a brief, family-friendly service of prayers and songs.