Oral history interview with the Temple Sinai roundtable conducted by Barbara Tabach on April 26, 2016 for the Southern Nevada Jewish Heritage Project. In this interview, five congregation members of Temple Sinai in Las Vegas, Nevada talk about its formation in 2007 as a result of the merge between two struggling synagogues, Adat Ari El and Temple Beth Am. They discuss the struggles each synagogue had leading up to the merge and Temple Sinai's current Jewish community. Foremost, the members explain the personal connections they each have with Temple Sinai as well as the warm atmosphere they strive to uphold for all of the congregation.
In this interview, the Torjmans recall meeting at Temple Beth Sholom and their careers in Las Vegas. David Torjman was a Hebrew School teacher at Temple Beth Sholom, and later became a dealer at the Rainbow Club and Tropicana. Iris was a health aide for the Clark County School District.
In 1964, a young Hebrew school teacher was recruited to teach at Temple Beth Sholom. Soon he met Iris Schwartz who had moved to Las Vegas to live with her aunt. Less than two years later David proposed to Iris in Jack Entratter's suite at the Sands; had a New York wedding and then a local wedding thrown by the Sisterhood at Temple Beth Sholom. The couple came from distinctively different Jewish backgrounds. David was born and raised in Morocco and was educated in trades at the ORT Vocational School in Fez, Morocco. He then studied at Sunderland Talmudical College in England before immigrating to the United States. Iris was a native of Bronx, New York. And tells how before the couple met in Las Vegas that they actually lived within blocks of each other in New York. She moved to Las Vegas to live with relatives as a young woman. In 1964 destiny brought them together. David?s career as a Hebrew school teacher brought him to Temple Beth Sholom, a career that lasted for three years. He then worked for Jerry Hory?s Hock Shop and later became a dealer for the Rainbow Club and the Tropicana. Iris worked for the Clark County School District as a health aide. They have been successful investors in local property and enjoy their retirement. They tell the story of meeting and creating a life in Las Vegas where they raised their three children.