Congregation Dor Tikvah (Generation of Hope)
Started in 2006 as the West Ashley Minyan (WAM), an independent Orthodox prayer group, Congregation Dor Tikvah was incorporated in 2012. For the first few years of its official existence, Dor Tikvah shared its space with Addlestone Hebrew Academy and the Charleston Jewish Federation, all as part of the Jewish Community Center (JCC) campus. When the JCC sold its building and shifted to a “without walls” model, the other institutions moved elsewhere, and the new owners allowed the congregation to retain its tenancy. In 2017, reports Rabbi Michael Davies, Dor Tikvah embarked on a significant renovation of its space “to make it look more like the synagogue it was meant to be.”
The newly remodeled and redecorated facility, including a sanctuary, chapel, and lobby, among other areas, was dedicated in August 2018. “As the youngest of Charleston’s Jewish congregations,” Davies says, “Dor Tikvah continues to grow and build on its successes, with particular focus on youth programming and family engagement.”
Dor Tikvah Synagogue, 2020
Photo by Jack Alterman.
Skyview of Dor Tikvah Synagogue, 2020
The synagogue, right foreground, is situated on the former Jewish Community Center campus. Photo by Jack Alterman.
Dedicating Congregation Dor Tikvah Cemetery, February 18, 2018
Mount Pleasant Memorial Gardens. Courtesy of Congregation Dor Tikvah.