Hebrew School
Harry Levine served the Cornwall community well in the early years, both as Hebrew teacher and as shochet. Community members remembered him riding around town on his bicycle, stopping off at the different places where people had chickens for him to kill. Some kept chickens in their basements. In addition to his duties as shochet, Mr. Levine gave the children Hebrew lessons. Mark Goldhamer remembered dashing quickly from school to the synagogue so that he could get his lesson from Mr. Levine before the other children in order to finish early. He also remembered that he and his classmates coveted the job of walking around town delivering lulavs and etrogs in preparation for Succot. The deliveries were accomplished in a couple of hours before the start of the school day. They were paid for this job after the holiday. The children learned the basics well from Mr. Levine and many of them continued to be able to lead prayers when they grew up.
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Lewin arrived in Cornwall in the late 1940s and was described as a friendly man who got along well with the community. He helped to structure the Hebrew School by dividing instruction among several grade levels. He also set up a Sunday school in which his wife taught, along with other volunteers from the community.
