When Richie Pearlstone’s father died, he wanted to honor his memory. His father was avid believer in the value of informal Jewish educational spaces, so he established the Jack Pearlstone Institute for Living Judaism.

Twenty-five years later, Pearlstone is celebrating its 25th anniversary in October.

“When we started, I had a dream that it would be successful,” Pearlstone said. “How successful? No one knew.”

When the Jack Pearlstone Institute for Living Judaism was first created, it was a program without walls. According to Pearlstone, the organization would sponsor communitywide events at different synagogues promoting informal Jewish education through holiday programs, books and speakers.

“[My father] thought informal Jewish education was the best way to bridge the [differences],” Pearlstone said. “Whether you’re Orthodox, Reform, or Conservative, that this would be the way to do it, an informal Jewish education where you can sit around and everybody’s the same.”

After a few years, Pearlstone brought on Josh Fidler, a close family friend who had a background in real estate, to help develop a physical location for the organization that would include camping, retreats and hospitality.

The organization continued to raise money and, with the help of Fidler, worked with The Associated: Jewish Federation of Greater Baltimore to open a retreat center on a nine-acre portion of the Jewish Community Center’s 160-acre Camp Milldale.
Fidler, who became the founding chair of Pearlstone, said on the day it opened they were sold out. “We had an Orthodox group, a Conservative group, and a Reform group. Literally, the first night that we opened.”

Today, Fidler said, “Pearlstone is a living laboratory for experiential Judaism.”

According to Fidler, Pearlstone was the first in, and leader of, the Jewish Outdoor Farm, Food and Environmental Education movement.

“The environmental programs, the farm, our trail system … Over time have come to appeal to many folks who otherwise are unaffiliated with the Jewish community and who find in that place and in those programs a powerful way to express Judaism in their lives,” Fidler explained.

In 2006, the organization launched its educational farm program with its first farmer-educator on staff, Jakir Manela. In 2012, the Jack Pearlstone Institute for Living Judaism completed a major strategic plan, becoming the Pearlstone Retreat Center, led by Manela.

In 2023, Pearlstone merged with Hazon, an organization focused on raising awareness about sustainability, climate change and environmental issues within the Jewish community, creating Adamah.

“[The 25th anniversary] is a very big deal for us and the Pearlstone family and The Associated,” said Manela, CEO of Adamah.
“It’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears,” Manela continued. “It’s really beautiful to see how far we’ve come, and also really amazing to see how much more there is to do … there really is no place like it anywhere.”

“You can ask almost anybody … the Jewish world knows about the Pearlstone and has used the facilities,” Pearlstone said. “That’s been the greatest thing, that we built an institution really on a hope, not knowing how successful we would be.”

To celebrate the Pearlstone’s 25th anniversary, the organization is inviting the public to enjoy music, hands-on activities, U-pick pumpkin and winter squash harvesting and more Oct. 18.

“Pearlstone is really about love, joy, and hope, choosing life, and creating beautiful experiences, immersive experiences, inclusive community of what kind of world we want to live in for our people and our planet,” Manela said. “For the Jewish people [and] for all people.”

Manela said the 25th anniversary of Pearlstone is just the beginning. “We think it’s just the tip of the iceberg of all the ways in which Baltimore Jewish life can be enhanced and inspired and strengthened by Pearlstone,” he said.

“There are so many institutions in our lives, many of which we take for granted,” he added. “America turning 250 years [is a] moment right now. The Associated a few years ago had its centennial … A 25th anniversary is the end of the beginning.”

mresnicow@midatlanticmedia.com