A school and a youth center. An adult education institute, a synagogue, and a community center. A chesed for children with special needs, a Sunshine Club for seniors, a social service center for the needy and the troubled. To many people, Chabad of Venice means many things — and its doors are open to all.
A man once came to the Lubavitcher Rebbe to thank him for dispatching an emissary to bring the joy of Judaism to a “little Jew in a wayward community.” The Rebbe responded:
“There is no such thing as a 'little Jew' or a 'wayward community.' In the scope of G‑d's master-plan, the fate of a single soul holds the same cosmic significance as that of the entire world.”
That outlook is the guiding principle behind everything Chabad of Venice does — every program, every class, every open door.
Born in Zurich, Switzerland to a caring and generous Chabad family, Rabbi Schmerling studied in Paris, Israel, and New York. As a young boy he met the Lubavitcher Rebbe — an interaction that “continues to inspire the work that I do today.” Drawn to Jewish outreach as a student, he received his Rabbinic Ordination from the Chief Rabbi of Chabad in Israel, with a dream of building a Chabad Center and continuing the Rebbe's work.
Raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn in a large, loving family whose home was always full of guests, Chaya Rivka lived in the Rebbe's presence until her Bat Mitzvah year. Inspired by his teachings, she committed her gifts to Jewish education — seminary in Israel, a teaching degree from Beth Rivkah, and years of Hebrew School leadership across New York and Connecticut, from head counselor to Youth Director.
Rabbi Sholom and Chaya Rivka Schmerling arrive in South Sarasota County with their baby daughter, Nechama, and a vision: a warm Jewish community where every Jew feels at home. Chabad begins in their living room, with Hebrew School starting for four children gathered around the lanai.
It doesn't take long to outgrow the living room. Chabad moves into its first storefront on Tamiami Trail in Venice — a dedicated home for prayer, learning, celebrations and community. Hebrew School of the Arts, Camp Gan Israel, teen programming and adult education all begin taking root.
With the generous support of the Tabicinic family, Chabad acquires 4.5 acres on Jacaranda Boulevard and begins planning a permanent campus — one built to serve the Jewish community for generations.
More than 1,100 people fill the Venice Community Center to hear Holocaust survivor Eva Schloss, step-sister of Anne Frank. That gathering becomes Venice Holocaust Education Week, drawing sold-out crowds year after year. The same year, Chabad dedicates its first Torah, carried in procession down Tamiami Trail — and each Chanukah, families begin gathering at Centennial Park around a 16-foot menorah.
Phase I becomes a reality with the opening of the 3,600-square-foot Dr. Judith Kestenberg Jewish Education Center. Made possible by the extraordinary generosity of many families, it gives Chabad a permanent home for education, prayer, youth programs and community life.
Chabad establishes Jerusalem Gardens, its own dedicated Jewish cemetery section at Venice Memorial Gardens on Center Road — along with a local Chevrah Kadisha of dedicated volunteers, ensuring that members of the community can be laid to rest according to Jewish tradition, with dignity and care.
About Jerusalem GardensWhen COVID-19 disrupted daily life and left many people isolated, Chabad remained a steady source of connection. Hot meals and holiday packages went out, seniors and those living alone were checked on, and people who couldn't come to Chabad still felt cared for.
Chabad immediately became a hub of relief for the entire community. More than 100 volunteers mobilized to prepare and deliver over 2,000 meals, along with water, emergency supplies and essentials. The response reached far beyond the Jewish community — neighbors of every background, and the first responders working the front lines.
As Chabad continues to grow, Rabbi Yosef and Hadassa Buchman join the team together with their children, expanding the personal care, learning and relationships at the heart of the community.
Meet Rabbi Yosef & HadassaSouth Sarasota County experiences tremendous growth — and Chabad grows along with it. Today more than 2,000 families are connected with Chabad of Venice, yet the mission remains exactly as it was in that living room in 2005: to be there for every Jew, at every stage of life, with an open door and a place to belong.
As Wellen Park emerges as one of the fastest-growing communities in the region, Chabad brings Chanukah there for the first time. More than 500 people come together for its first community Chanukah celebration.
Rabbi Srolik and Nechama Sputz join the team to lead the next chapter of Chabad's youth programs — Camp Gan Israel, Hebrew School of the Arts and CTeen. At the same time they open a new Chabad branch in North Port, bringing Jewish life closer to a growing number of families.
Meet Rabbi Srolik & NechamaPhase II will bring to life a new 25,000-square-foot Center for Jewish Life: a larger synagogue, social hall, kosher café, commercial kitchen, mikvah, Jewish library, preschool, senior activity spaces and dedicated areas for education and youth. More than a building, it will be a home for Jewish life for generations to come.
Rabbi Yosef grew up in an affectionate but unaffiliated home in New York's Hudson Valley, the son of parents from the former Soviet Union — Russian was the language of his childhood. He attended Baruch College while working in technology for New York real estate until, two years in, a spark was ignited to pursue his roots in Judaism. Five years of study at the Rabbinical College of America followed, where he received his rabbinic ordination. Alongside his love for every Jew, he puts his technology background to work for the community — always finding new and creative ways to serve.
Hadassa was raised in Donetsk, Ukraine. When war reached the region, her family left for Kiev — and there they grew close to Chabad. Together with her mother, father, brother, and sister, her entire family returned to Judaism and became part of Kiev's lively Jewish life; the hour-and-a-half walk to shul was made with joy. She came to New York to study for two years at a Jewish seminary in Brooklyn. With a deep passion for helping people, Hadassa coordinates the volunteer circle — matching every need with a willing pair of hands.
Chabad of Venice's youth programs — Hebrew School of the Arts, Camp Gan Israel and CTeen — are led by Rabbi Srolik and Nechama Sputz. They run as one regional program, drawing children from Venice, Englewood and North Port together.
Nechama grew up inside all of it. She is the baby who arrived in North Port in the back seat in 2005, and she was raised through everything that grew out of that living room: the Hebrew School that began with four children on a lanai, the summer camp, the teen club. Twenty-one years later she is back, leading the programs that raised her.
Together with their son Levi Yitzchok, Rabbi Srolik and Nechama are also establishing Chabad of North Port — a second front door for the families of South Sarasota County.
What began as four children on a lanai is now a full calendar of Jewish life — services and classes, camps and clubs, holiday celebrations and quiet cups of coffee. The address changed; the open door never did.
None of it runs on staff alone. More than 60 volunteers cook and set up, drive and deliver, greet at the door and check in on neighbors — throughout the year, at nearly every program on the calendar.
Chabad opens its doors to people of all walks of life — and never asks anyone to pay to pray within its walls. There's a seat at the table for you.
