Rabbis
The community's first rabbi was Louis (or Laban) Rosenfield. He arrived in Cornwall from Russia with his wife Esther and their five oldest children around 1905. By 1911, the family was living at 118 Augustus Street with Louis' mother Etta and their seven children. He started off as a butcher or shochet and eventually took on the role of the local rabbi. It is unlikely that he was ordained, but he was respected for his knowledge and abilities. Unfortunately, in 1923 he passed away. After his passing, when a Hadassah chapter was inaugurated in 1925, it was named after him. The Rosenfields were very much a part of the Cornwall community. On Friday nights and holidays, Mrs. Rosenfield would prepare kosher meals for anyone who needed them. Among her specialties were wonderful pickles and matzah balls.
Another long-serving Rabbi was Rabbi Dr. Daniel Lewin, who arrived in Cornwall from Poland in 1948. He was involved with both the Jewish and the non-Jewish communities. He was an active member of B'nai Brith and also enjoyed introducing church groups to the synagogue. In addition, he was a chaplain for the Canadian Legion. In 1959, when Rabbi Lewin left Cornwall to take up teaching duties in Montreal, people were sad to see him go.
Rabbi Abraham Matts came to Cornwall from Timmins. He stayed from 1959 to 1969. Although no Rabbi can please everyone in a diverse community, Rabbi Matts did well. Like Rabbi Lewin, he was involved with the larger Cornwall community as well as with the synagogue and Hebrew school. Among other initiatives, he participated in the fundraising campaign to build St. Joseph's Villa, a long-term care home run by the Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph. Rabbi Matts' wife was also involved with the community. She was responsible for introducing a new community custom one year of having the community break the fast together in the synagogue's social hall after Yom Kippur. This became an opportunity for people to spend a little time talking to one another.
