Peabody Temple Votes Sunday on Consolidation With Malden Congregation

The congregation of Temple Tifereth Israel of Malden will vote Oct. 18 on whether to merge with Temple Beth Shalom in Peabody.

A congregation meeting will be held from 1 to 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18 at Temple Tifereth Israel in Malden.

The Peabody temple will also be holding a congregation meeting on that date to vote on the consolidation.

A two-thirds vote is needed to make the consolidation a reality, but congregation members will be able to vote by proxy.

“Participation by nearly every member is required to achieve the required two-thirds threshold,” stated Temple Beth Shalom Congregation President Laurie Hymanson in a letter to congregants. “The meeting may be adjourned to a later date to solicit additional votes. The proposed effective date is November 1, 2015.”

If the merger is approved, the temple building at 539 Salem St. in Malden will be sold and a new, consolidated congregation will be formed in Peabody.

On September 20th, the Board of Trustees of Temple Tifereth voted to recommend to its members that its congregation should consolidate with Temple Beth Shalom of Peabody, to form a congregation named Temple Tiferet Shalom of the North Shore.

Click here to view the proposed agreement.

Temple Beth Shalom of the North Shore was founded in 1959 by thirteen families to help fulfill the religious needs of unaffiliated Jewish families within the Greater Peabody area, according to its website.

Temple Beth Shalom is located at 489 Lowell Street.