Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key

Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key Temple Beth Israel is many things: a beautiful house of worship, a beehive of activity for educational, cultural and social programs and a place to share.

Truly an Extended Family for its members
Temple Beth Israel is many things: a beautiful house of worship, a beehive of activity for educational, cultural and social programs, a place to share, celebrate and pursue tikkun olam, a staunch supporter of the State of Israel, and an opportunity to experience our precious Jewish heritage through a range of stimulating dimensions. Though the Temple serves

as the Center of Jewish Life on Longboat Key, Beth Israel includes members from Sarasota and Bradenton. We are primarily an adult community with few families with school-age children. Sixty percent of our members are full-time residents who are either fully or semi-retired. We take pride that our members are leaders not only in local Jewish and secular organizations but in nationally and international ones as well. Tour our web site to learn more about just how much Temple Beth Israel has to offer. We think you’ll find our expressions of the Jewish spirit relevant and enriching.

Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key’s GREEN 💚TEAM has been impacting the environment for the better in big and small ways...
05/21/2026

Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key’s GREEN 💚TEAM has been impacting the environment for the better in big and small ways. This Friday they bring Florida Atlantic University professor Dr Andrew Furman whose inspiring writing informs our desire to make the planet better.
Jessica Spitalnic Mates

Friday Evening Shabbat Services
Where: Temple Beth Israel Sanctuary
Time: 5:30 pm
Livestream: https://youtube.com/live/C7JXdAILNyc?feature=share
UPCOMING SHABBAT GUEST SPEAKERS
Friday, May 22 - Dr. Andrew Furman
In honor of Shavuot

Furman is a professor of English at Florida Atlantic University and teaches in its MFA program in creative writing. His fiction and creative nonfiction frequently engage with the Florida outdoors, but he has also written about Maine, Jewish identity, basketball, lighthouses, swimming, and cast-iron cookware.

His essays and stories have appeared in a variety of publications, including Prairie Schooner, Oxford American, The Southern Review, Santa Monica Review, and Ecotone. He is the author, most recently, of the environmental memoir, Of Slash Pines and Manatees: A Highly Selective Field Guide to My Suburban Wilderness (University Press of Florida, 2025), which received a Florida Book Award Honorable Mention, and The World That We Are (Regal House Publishing, 2025), a novel about Thoreau which was just named a Finalist for a Foreword INDIE Award. Other books include Jewfish (Little Curlew Press, 2020), Goldens Are Here (Green Writers Press, 2018), and Bitten: My Unexpected Love Affair with Florida (University Press of Florida, 2014), which was named a finalist for the ASLE Environmental Book Award. He lives in South Florida with his family.

04/16/2026

SAVE THE DATE !

Stay informed and be prepared at the 2026 Disaster Preparedness Seminar on May 14, at the Longboat Key Club Harbourside Ballroom.

▶️Doors open at 3:15 PM | Event begins at 4:00 PM
▶️3000 Harbourside Dr.

Learn how to prepare with confidence:
✔️ Insurance tips for disaster protection
✔️ Weather insights & storm tracking
✔️ Evacuation and re-entry guidance
✔️ Resources from local vendors and experts

🎟️ FREE Admission
☕ Complimentary refreshments
🎁 Raffle prizes

For more information, contact the Longboat Key Chamber of Commerce at (941) 383-2466 or visit www.longboatkeychamber.com

Because of YOU, we’ve reached $44,084 of our $50,000 goal in our Donor Match Campaign.That means we’re just $5,916 away ...
04/13/2026

Because of YOU, we’ve reached $44,084 of our $50,000 goal in our Donor Match Campaign.

That means we’re just $5,916 away from the finish line.

In these final hours, this is where it happens - when our community comes together and pushes us across.

✨ Every gift is still being DOUBLED
✨ Every dollar brings us closer
✨ Every person makes a difference

Whether it’s $18, $36, $100 - or anything meaningful to you - this is your moment to be part of it.

Let’s finish strong, together.

👉 Donate now: longboatkeytemple.org/match

Planning a Qualified Charitable Donation (QCD)? Contact the Temple so your gift can be included before the deadline. 941-383-3428 or email [email protected].

Thanks to the generosity of our community, we are approaching 50% of our $50,000 Donor Match Campaign goal. We’re incred...
04/10/2026

Thanks to the generosity of our community, we are approaching 50% of our $50,000 Donor Match Campaign goal. We’re incredibly grateful and energized by the momentum so far!

Your support directly fuels the programs and experiences that define TBI today:

• Shabbat & Holiday Services with Rabbi Mates – meaningful, engaging services that continue to bring our community together in new and inspiring ways.

• Education Center Programming – expanding opportunities for lifelong learning through well-attended classes, thought-provoking speakers, and programs that engage both members and the broader community.

• Miniversity of Judaism – dynamic classes and conversations that are drawing record participation and deeper connections to our Jewish heritage.

• Scholar-in-Residence & Guest Speakers – programs like Dr. Robert Watson and Anita Wyzanski Robboy that educate, challenge, and inspire.

• Community Partnerships & Interfaith Programs – collaborations with organizations like Second Chance, Last Opportunity, All Angels Episcopal Church, Embracing Our Differences, and others that extend our reach and impact.

• Shabbat Dinners & Special Events – shared experiences that strengthen connection and community.

• Ongoing Safety & Security – ensuring our Temple remains a safe, welcoming place for all.

Whether you’re attending services, participating in a class, or joining us for a special event - your support makes these moments possible!

If you’ve already contributed, thank you for being part of this effort. If you’ve been considering a gift, now is a meaningful time to participate and help us continue this incredible momentum!

www.longboatkeytemple.org/match

Next Friday April 10 5:30pm we will mark Yom Hashoah with our congregant sharing the gut wrenching letter of all the fam...
04/04/2026

Next Friday April 10 5:30pm we will mark Yom Hashoah with our congregant sharing the gut wrenching letter of all the family they lost during the holocaust. And we welcome our incredible guest speaker, author Anita Robboy with the new book about her family and the Holocaust A FORCE FOR GOOD. Please join us.

03/22/2026

It was great to see you at the last Mort Skirboll Jewish Film Series screening of the season with "The Property" by Dana Modan! Thank everyone for coming and to the beautiful Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key for hosting us.

See what's happening next at jfedsrq.org/events

03/20/2026

Members of Temple Beth Israel of Longboat Key took a guided tour of the downtown Sarasota exhibit, 'Embracing Our Differences.'

03/19/2026

COME SEE...

We have exciting news! A generous congregant has offered to match up to $50,000 in donations to the Temple.From March 1...
03/15/2026

We have exciting news! A generous congregant has offered to match up to $50,000 in donations to the Temple.

From March 15 through April 15, every contribution - no matter the amount—made to the Donor Match Campaign will be matched dollar for dollar, up to a total of $50,000 - that’s a possible $100,000 going to our programming!

Your support helps sustain many meaningful parts of Temple life, including our ritual programs, such as the Rabbi’s programs and Choir, educational and speaker programs like Scholar-in-Residence and Miniversity, and the care and upkeep of our beautiful building and grounds.

We hope you will join in and help us take full advantage of this generous opportunity by contributing during the matching period.

Visit longboatkeytemple.org/match for more info!

We thank you for your generosity and support of Temple Beth Israel.

“My heart is in the East, and I in the uttermost West.”In moments like these - when war has erupted with Iran, and our f...
03/01/2026

“My heart is in the East, and I in the uttermost West.”

In moments like these - when war has erupted with Iran, and our friends and family in Israel are running to bomb shelters day and night - the words of Judah HaLevi, written centuries ago, feel painfully immediate. Our hearts are in the Middle East. So are our prayers.

Monday night, we celebrate Purim. On the surface, it is a strange and even silly story - a world turned upside down, hidden identities, reversals of fortune. God’s name never appears. And yet, beneath the costumes and laughter lies something far more serious: the survival of the Jewish people through courage, moral clarity, and decisive action. It was Esther and Mordechai - human beings, stepping forward at great personal risk - who altered the course of history.

That is not only ancient history. It is our reality.

As we watch events unfold in Israel, we are reminded that Jewish destiny has always required both faith and action - prayer and resolve.

Yesterday morning, the first text I received was not from family or colleagues in Israel, but from Reverend Ken Blyth of St. Armands Church, just down the road from us, who was in Jerusalem. He wrote:

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. They shall prosper that love thee.
Prayers of the Association are coveted. We’re sheltering in a bomb shelter in Jerusalem. Spirits are high, and we are safe. - Pastor Blyth.”

Later in the day, he shared that he and his group were making their way to the city of Eilat in the south and then on to Cairo. His presence there - and his message - are a powerful reminder: even in frightening and uncertain times, we are not alone.

Israel does not stand alone. The Jewish people do not stand alone.
And neither does our community.

As Purim approaches, may we draw strength from our history, courage from one another, and hope from the knowledge that even in moments when God seems hidden, the Jewish story continues - through faith, through action, and solidarity.

We continue to pray for the safety of Israel,
for wisdom among leaders,
and for peace.

- Rabbi Jessica Spitalnic Mates

Address

567 Bay Isles Road
Longboat Key, FL
34228

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 9am - 4pm
Thursday 9am - 4pm
Friday 9am - 4pm

Telephone

+19413833428

Website

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