Center Makor, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2005 as a vibrant secular, communal institution. We are not a religious organization and do not affiliate with any religious movements. Our mission is to foster community integration, cultural exchange, and mutual understanding among diverse ethnic and immigrant communities in Greater Boston.
We believe that providing accessible cultural and educational programs is vital for building strong, inclusive communities. Originally founded to address the need for quality cultural and educational programming among Russian-speaking immigrant communities following the closure of a local community center, Center Makor has evolved significantly. Today, our programs serve a broad and diverse public, extending well beyond our initial focus to benefit all residents, particularly low- and moderate-income families, new immigrants, and refugees, including those from Ukraine.
At its core, Center Makor acts as a centralized community hub. We empower numerous local community organizations by providing essential space, technical assistance, and expert help with event logistics. This collaborative approach amplifies community impact and strengthens the non-profit ecosystem in our region. Our presence at the Campus on Harvard St. in Brookline, MA, exemplifies this commitment, as we co-exist and partner with over ten different organizations, both religious and non-religious, under one roof, where each entity maintains its unique identity and is treated equally.
Since 2005, Center Makor has served as a cultural home for our broader community in multiple ways:
- Supporting Arts and Culture: We actively support local and international musicians, singers, authors, and other talents by providing concert space, auditoriums, meeting rooms, and an audio/video recording studio, often at significant discounts or for free. This ensures broad public access to diverse artistic expressions.
- Promoting Historical Awareness and Human Rights: We lead important Holocaust education and commemoration initiatives, with a particular focus on the Holocaust by Bullets in the former USSR. These programs offer critical universal lessons on combating prejudice, fostering tolerance, and the importance of remembrance for all generations and backgrounds.
- Facilitating Community Events and Integration: We offer professional support for organizing a wide array of public events, such as fundraisers, concerts, literature evenings, theater plays, and large-scale community arts and culture festivals. Our programs are designed to bring people together and bridge cultural divides.
- Empowering Families and Individuals:
- Our unique “Family to Family” exchange program between Boston and and Haifa, which continues since 2007.
- We host highly anticipated children’s programs and annual public festivals (including our Annual Artistic Hanukkah Festival, the longest-running Hanukkah festival in the USA for 24 years). These events are presented as vibrant community celebrations of culture, art, and universal themes of light and resilience, open to all families and serving as “must-attend” events on community calendars.
- We organize significant community-wide commemorations, such as the Annual Babi Yar commemoration, and host inclusive public gatherings like our Community Second Seder (since 2002) and the Yom Haatzmaut celebration. These events are now widely attended by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including Russian-speaking, English-speaking, Hebrew-speaking, and other ethnic communities.
Center Makor is proud to be supported by organizations like Combined Jewish Philanthropies and to partner with numerous community groups, all contributing to our shared goal of building a more cohesive, understanding, and opportunity-rich environment for all residents in Greater Boston.
Center Makor is a non-profit under IRS 501(c)(3) organization, Tax Exemption Number: 65-1251537.
Jewish Educational and Cultural Center Makor was established in 2005.
Center Makor is a secular organization, not a religious organization, and does not affiliate with any religious movements.
For years Jewish immigrant families from the former Soviet Union (FSU) in Greater Boston realized the existence of a tremendous need for quality Jewish educational and cultural programming. Young and elderly people alike believe that they are missing an integral part of their cultural heritage because there is no program solely dedicated to providing Jewish cultural and educational enrichment for them at a specific centralized community setting. With the closing of Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center in Brighton in December of 2004, this issue became even more pressing. In response to this need, several Boston area based FSU Jewish community groups got together and after an extensive planning and community consultations Jewish Cultural and Educational Center Makor was born.
The Mission of Center Makor is to stimulate and grow a strong Jewish identity through enthusiasm for the Jewish culture among the FSU Jews and integration with the mainstream Jewish community in Massachusetts.
Since FSU Jews are mostly unaffiliated with mainstream community institutions, this objective should be accomplished through their strong desire for Jewish culture and the need to educate their children about traditions of their ancestors, building pride for belonging to the Jewish nation in their identity.
Expanding upon the success of the FSU Jewish Community School 2001-2010, which is geared primarily for families with young (age 3-12) children, The Center is offering a plethora of new cultural opportunities and educational programs affecting nearly every segment of the FSU community. Center is open every day of the week except Shabbats and major Jewish holidays.
The Center Makor acts as a community center and provides space, technical assistance and help with organizing cultural events to numerous local FSU Jewish organizations that also participate in the development of programs for Center Makor. Center Makor is supported by Combined Jewish Philanthropies and partnering with numerous FSU organizations.
Right now Center Makor is operating at Campus on 384 Harvard St. Brookline, MA 02446; there Center Makor became a part of a very new formation and partnership opportunity with more than ten different organizations residing at this Campus. The major partners are Congregation Kehillath Israel, Congregation Mishkan Tefila, Washington Square Minyan, “Yachad” and others. The idea of the Campus is coexistence and close partnership of different religious and non-religious formations under the same roof there each partner is treated equally and could keep it is own identity.
Center Makor is a non-profit under IRS 501(c)(3) organization, Tax Exemption Number: 65-1251537.
The Center has been serving as a cultural home for our community since 2005 in a number of ways.
- Supports musicians, singers, authors, and other talents;
- Provides concert space, auditoriums, meeting rooms, and technical support, often at a significant discount, sometimes even for free;
- Provides an audio/video recording studio;
- Supports Holocaust education and commemoration initiatives, especially initiatives about the Holocaust by Bullets – on the territories of the former USSR occupied during WWII.
- Provides professional help to organize event: fundraiser, concert, literature evening, theater play, holiday celebration, community arts and culture festival, recital, etc.
- Runs programs for families, such as
- the unique “Family to Family” exchange program between Boston and Haifa, which continues since 2007;
- “Jewish Parents Academy Boston” startup program
- Children’s programs: Purim festival, Hanukkah, Tu B’Shevat, and other events became must-attend events on families’ calendars;
- Annual Artistic Hanukkah Festival is the longest-running Hanukkah festival in the USA for 24 years;
- Annual Babi Yar commemoration;
- Community Second Seder is celebrated since 2002;
- Center Makor is the only organization in our community that’s holding the Yom Haatzmaut celebration.
Our events are now attended by the FSU Jews as well as by English-speaking and Hebrew-speaking Jews.
