The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation is pleased to announce the establishment of the Temple B'nai Israel Jewish Community Charitable Fund. This new field of interest fund is dedicated to supporting Wood and Washington counties by providing funding for hunger and food initiatives and projects and programs that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within these communities.

The Temple’s formation dates to the 1850s. Around that time nearly 1,000,000 immigrants came to the United States from Germany. The first Jewish families arrived in Parkersburg in the early 1850s. The Young Men’s Hebrew Association was organized in 1869, the first known record of any Jewish organization. The earliest organized Sunday school was started in the late 1800s. In 1875 the Ladies Temple Society and the Ladies Sewing Circle were formed to further the children's religious education and assist the poor. The Progress Club was organized in 1888, and court records show that a charter was granted in 1891.

Originally a small group of German Jews formed the nucleus of the Jewish community. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, the second immigration came to the US and Parkersburg from Eastern Europe. In 1909 a meeting was called in the Jewish community assembled to form a congregation. This became the B’nai Israel Congregation. In 1949 the temple was built on 20th Street. Since its beginnings, Temple B’nai Israel was an important Jewish presence in Parkersburg and the surrounding communities.

Due to a decrease in the Jewish population, the temple building was sold in 2013. The congregation continued to meet for services and holidays through September 2024. It was then that the small congregation dissolved. The last members of the congregation wanted to keep their resources in our community supporting important community projects and to maintain the name of the Temple in our area and go back to the roots of assisting those in need.

Myla and Doug Kreinik, both members of the B’nai Israel congregation shared, “The Jewish community helped to build Parkersburg; this fund will leave a living legacy of our Jewish community.”

For more information email info@pacfwv.com or call 304-428-4438.