RUNNING SPRINGS, CA, AUGUST 21, 2006 ? Driving up the winding mountain road, the desert terrain is gradually replaced by pine trees and fresh growth. At 6,000 feet above sea level, the air becomes cooler; each breath is refreshing and pure. And when you reach the mountaintop, you see a spectacular view of the S. Bernardino National Forest. You have arrived at Chabad?s new campus in Running Springs, California.
?This beautiful 70-acre campus will be a crowning achievement of Chabad?s operations on the West Coast,? said Rabbi Boruch Shlomo Cunin, director of West Coast Chabad-Lubavitch. The property was purchased by Chabad at an auction on August 10, and Rabbi Cunin was brimming with excitement about its possibilities. ?The West Coast has the largest concentration of Chabad?s programs in America, and this new facility will be a hub of our activities. It will be a magnificent location for educational programs, social services, overnight camps, Shabbaton retreats, Friendship Circle activities, and more.?
The spacious timberland previously housed the CEDU Mountain Schools, a boarding school program for at-risk youths. CEDU filed for bankruptcy in March, creating an opportunity for Chabad to buy the breathtaking property with all its classrooms, dormitories, and administrative offices intact. The site currently has 18 buildings plus outdoor sports facilities.
In addition to classrooms, the learning space features science laboratories, a computer room with fiber optic Internet links, a well-stocked library, and an ?art barn? with a darkroom and audiovisual studio. The central lodge contains a commercial kitchen and spacious dining hall. Outside, there is an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a tennis court, a hardtop basketball court, a soccer field, a volleyball pit, and squash courts.
"This beautiful new campus will be a crowning achievement of Chabad?s operations on the West Coast."
?This is going to be the finest Chabad campus in America, there?s no doubt about that,? said Don Braham, the newly appointed director and controller of the campus. Mr. Braham, who has experience in property development and recently helped restructure Chabad?s operations in Sydney, Australia, will take immediate residence on the site to supervise renovations. ?The first order of business will be to bring it up to 100% standard, so that everything is shiny and beautiful,? said Mr. Braham. ?We will go through each building and create a punch-list of tasks.?
?The potential here is incredible,? said Rebekah Braham, who will join her husband on the property. Mrs. Braham, a native of Poland and a Holocaust survivor, will serve as directress of the new project.
The campus will serve many functions for Chabad. Mr. Braham estimates that in three months the facility will be ready to play its first role as a winter skiing and snowboarding camp. In the longer-term, a priority will go to educational programs. The CEDU Mountain School was fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), and Chabad has been able to retain that important credential.
The property offers opportunities for a wide range of programs, and its future uses are still being explored. It is an ideal location for an overnight Gan Israel summer camp, and will host a variety of children?s activities. It will offer retreats for the Friendship Circle, Chabad?s program that enables young volunteers to provide companionship for children with special needs. And it will be a central location for Shabbaton retreats, regional conferences, and seminars.
The town of Running Springs is located on the edge of the S. Bernardino National Forest, 10 miles from Big Bear Lake and about 90 miles east of Los Angeles. It has a population of about 2,900. Some residents came here to escape city life, and the area?s natural serenity feels far removed from the pressures of Hollywood. But Chabad?s new campus does has a link to movie history: the main lodge was built in 1934 by actor Walter Huston, who received an Academy Award for his performance in 1948?s The Treasure of Sierra Madre -- and his son, John Huston, was the director of that film.
?This is the most exciting project that I?ve ever undertaken,? said Mr. Braham. ?A year from now, we will have had our winter camp, plus successful summer camps, seminars and retreats. This will soon be a fully-functioning organization catering to Jewish and other communities throughout America.?
While many aspects of the property?s role are still being finalized, a portrait of the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, already rests on a mantel above a fireplace -- and it is clear that his ideals will serve as guiding principles for the project. ?The West Coast has always been at the forefront of the Rebbe?s work,? said Rabbi Cunin. ?Now his mission of education, outreach, and nonsectarian community service will continue here on this beautiful mountaintop.?
