While still searching for a location to build its own space, Maayanot Community Mikveh announced that it has agreed with the St. Paul Mikvah to facilitate the ritual bath immersions for the next year. Starting on Feb. 18, Maayanot began taking on the scheduling and attendant duties for immersions during the daytime.
“This new arrangement is a stepping stone for Maayanot as we continue to pursue our vision of building a new mikveh that will be welcoming, accessible, and inclusive,” said Cantor Rachel Stock Spilker, Maayanot founder and board president. “Maayanot’s agreement with the St. Paul Mikvah is an exciting interim step for us and our many organizational and individual supporters.”
Maayanot, meaning “wellsprings” in Hebrew, is a member of the Rising Tide Open Waters Mikveh Network, an association that supports and promotes open mikveh projects in cities across the world.
(Editor’s note: Like many traditional mikva’ot, the St. Paul Mikvah spells with an “a,” while many contemporary mikva’ot spell with an “e.” Spilker said that is the more direct pronunciation from the Hebrew word, however both spellings are correct.)
Rabbi Gershon Grossbaum, the head of the St. Paul Mikvah Association, said the arrangement will allow the association to focus on the core use during the evenings of taharat hamishpacha, or family purity.
“It’s just an alternative way of providing the same service that was provided all these years, just with a different way of making it happen,” Grossbaum said. As a bonus, Grossbaum doesn’t have to worry about being available when the call comes in during the day. “I think it’ll be easier for everybody involved: Maayanot, the rabbis in town, and managing the structure.”
Previously, the St. Paul Mikvah scheduled all daytime appointments for Minnesota clergy of all denominations. Under the new arrangement, Maayanot will offer the clergy a new online appointment scheduling platform, and educational resources for those immersing. There is also a new financial model that shares costs across the community.
Previously, the majority of clergy-led immersions to date have been for conversions, and each conversion candidate was asked to pay a fee directly to the St. Paul Mikvah to defray operating costs. In the new model, costs to run daytime operations will now be shared among the St. Paul and Minneapolis Jewish Federations, Minnesota synagogues, and Maayanot.
“Welcoming new Jews into our community is a profound and joyous responsibility, and this partnership reflects the strength of collaboration across our Jewish institutions,” said David Kaplan, CEO of the St. Paul Jewish Federation. “We are proud to support an initiative that deepens Jewish connection and inclusivity in the Twin Cities.”
“Supporting Maayanot in this fashion falls in line with our commitment to help Jews in our community live proud, productive, and proactive Jewish lives,” added Jim Cohen, CEO of the Minneapolis Jewish Federation. “I’m so impressed with Maayanot’s dedication to its mission.”
Once its own facility is completed Maayanot is planning to have a fully accessible building and pool; expanded hours; the ability to accept individual appointments without clergy required, vetted and trained mikveh guides who will help facilitate immersions, space for celebrations, educational classes, and programs; and a library and artwork reflecting diversity and progressive Jewish values.
“We continue to make progress on our site exploration for building our permanent home, and we look forward to sharing more about that in the near future,” Spilker said.
