It’s February, and I’m basking in sunny Century Village Deerfield Beach. Welcome to Florida! Century Village is a senior (55 and older) gated community, a nine-minute drive to a beautiful sandy beach. Approximately 16,000 residents reside in 8,500 condos. Fifty-five percent of them are Jewish, eight percent of whom are frum. Most of the Orthodox residents live near the shul.
In the winter months, over 1,200 persons attend the Young Israel on Shabbos morning, making YIDB (Young Israel of Deerfield Beach) the second largest Young Israel in America. Three minyanim are held: a hashkama minyan, followed by a Sephard minyan, and then regular Shabbos Ashkenaz minyan, where the Rav delivers an inspiring drasha. With almost 120 men attending, the Daf Yomi class is America’s largest. Led by Rabbi Yisroel Edelman, the shul hosts many shiurim for both men and women, Torah lectures on all levels, and outstanding scholars-in-residence for its 1,000 members, making this community a true makom Torah.
Yom Tov in Deerfield is special, with beautiful tefila and Yom Tov celebration. There are communal sukkas built next to many buildings, and the shul has a large sukka with catering options. Many people come to celebrate Pesach as the Deerfield small kitchens are easier to kasher than their larger kitchens up North. The weather and activities of Chol Hamoed make for fun adventurous outings. Meal plans sponsored by the shul are also available for everyone as well as sedarim for Pesach.
The Boca Raton Synagogue, under Rabbi Efram Goldberg, is another major center of Yiddishkeit, with hundreds from the mentioned communities attending its shiurim and Torah classes. Two other shuls, which serve the other Orthodox neighborhoods of Boca Raton, are Rabbi Yaakov Gibber’s shul and Rabbi Rabovsky’s Young Israel.
Heimishe Communities
There are four gated Century Village communities with a large frum presence. West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, and Deerfield are flourishing Yiddishe communities within an hour-and-a-half of Miami Beach. I am not acquainted with Pembrooke Pines. They feature spacious, well-manicured grounds, and many buildings are equipped with halachically-approved Shabbos elevators. Scooters outfitted with electronics that work on principle of grama allow the infirm to go to shul. All the gated communities have an eruv.
Boca Raton is close to Boynton Beach, Deerfield, and Hollywood, home to large enclaves of frum families. The kosher restaurants in Boca attract hungry clientele from all these communities. During yeshiva week, when all the kids invade and visit grandparents, the restaurants and pizza shops are packed. Boca also has two wonderful, all-kosher supermarkets, the Grove and Aroma, and the Winn Dixie of Boca has a kosher “store within a store.” Kosher pizza shops, yogurt and ice cream shops, a bagel shop, plus a multitude of milchig and gourmet fleishig restaurants make Boca a culinary Mecca.
I am interested in food. My entire business career was in the non-kosher culinary arts, and I serviced some of the finest restaurants in our nation’s capital as well as some of the finest chefs in America. After I sold my import and distribution company, I became a consultant to the kosher trade. But I generally do not comment on the quality of kosher restaurants. Having traveled a great deal all over the world, I am just grateful when I find a place to get a kosher meal.
Having said that, there is a small new restaurant right near Boca Century Village that I must recommend for its outstanding milchig offerings. Ramona is run by Ramona and Sam Levine (www.ramonaskosher.com). While its ambiance is not fancy, it is “heimishe” and very clean, with friendly customer service, great value, and delicious food. Generous servings of fish, pasta, soups, pizza, and other excellent and tasty dairy delicacies delight its customers. Fish dinners are presented beautifully, and the restaurant offers a scrumptious breakfast that includes omelets or other eggs, French toast, and pancakes. It’s worth the 18-minute drive from Deerfield Beach.
Looking for a great hamburger, try Ditmas, the new trendy fleishig spot. The sloppy Joe onion ring Bedford hamburger is awesome. Ditmas is a bit pricy but really yummy, having many fine dinner options. In a rush, try Chill and Grill Pita for fast delicious food. Jon’s Pizza Shop, a Boca staple, has excellent pizza, eggplant parmesan, a good tuna melt, and great pea soup. These restaurants join Asia, Mozart (dairy), Butcher Block, and Orchid Gardens (try the lamb chops), all solid tasty eateries with wonderful menus.
While many residents frequent Boca’s eateries during the week, on Shabbos, people are constantly invited to neighbor’s homes in the village. The shul often hosts Friday night meals and other program activities. The pleasant weather and relaxed ambience can add years to one’s life.
How Much Does It Cost?
You can buy a condo or home in South Florida within a wide range of pricing. The real estate rule of “location, location, location” determines where on the price scale a property will be. Starting with Miami Beach, in the heimishe neighborhood around 41st Street, the condos in Tower 41 (a bedroom and den) go for over $550,000. A studio apartment is less. There are less expensive properties available in the many smaller buildings in that area. Along the beach at 47th Street, the Blue and Green Diamond Towers offer very upscale residences costing well over a million-and-a-half dollars. Older buildings along the beach cost less. Condo fees and insurance are high for all properties near the ocean.
North of Miami Beach, Surfside and Bal Harbor are both classy upscale communities, where condos sell for well over a million-and-a-half dollars, and condo fees, taxes, and insurance can run over $40,000 a year. Proceeding further north on I-95, you will find Hollywood, another frum community. Being off the beach, both condos and homes are more reasonably priced. Boca Raton homes are pricy, and, even further north, in Boynton Beach, both condos and homes are a good value and now quite popular among Orthodox property purchasers.
Century Village condos, where we live, are a real value for seniors as both West Palm Beach and Deerfield condos sell in a range of $60,000 to $140,000 range, with the Boca complex running a little more. In Deerfield you can purchase a condo and remodel it with a new tile floor, a modern kitchen with granite counter, and two updated bathrooms. The purchase and remodel expenses will still be under $220,000. Condo fees, including all utilities, taxes, maintenance, and insurance, is under $10,000 a year. That’s a bargain considering it includes membership to the Club House, free cable (though not internet), and all the inexpensive but quality entertainment that is offered within a safe, gated community.
Summer Camp Year Round
Besides the incredible property values and beautiful weather most of the year (albeit very hot in the summer) the Century Villages offer spectacular entertainment and a peaceful living ambiance. Las Vegas-quality shows and concerts are available to residents at incredibly low ticket prices. The Club House in Deerfield has 1,600 seats and many shows are absolute sellouts. It also houses a movie theater as well as art and exercise classes. Art offerings include painting, stained glass, and jewelry making. Exercise comes in the form of aerobics, swimming, pool tables, ping pong, shuffle board, tennis courts, and pickleball courts.
Recreational spots galore are located minutes away. There is the Sample Road Festival Flea Market, Butterfly World, Quiet Waters, many golf courses and beaches, making for a wonderland of entertainment. Three hours north is Orlando and Disneyworld, one hour south is Miami, and the Everglades are less than an hour away. Close by, in Ft. Lauderdale, one can take an afternoon excursion jungle-boat ride to see the magnificent homes and yachts along the Ft. Lauderdale waterways. You will stop on a manmade bird and alligator island during the two-hour cruise. Groupon often offers coupons for a real bargain.
In Deerfield itself, you can find tennis, biking, and a well-equipped gym. There are water aerobics, and exercise classes for all athletic levels. If you are into continued and higher education, you can register for a wide variety of college courses at FAU University. The university also has a movie theatre where many quality Jewish-oriented films are shown.
So for the retired – both year-round residents, snowbirds (winter-season residents) and even snowflakes (short-term visitors), Deerfield and the other Century Villages are like being in summer camp any time of the year. Some people live here all year. Some go up North to visit family during the very hot summer months. About 30 percent of YIDB members are now permanent residents, and that number is increasing each year. My wife and I spend six to eight weeks a year in Deerfield, which makes us something between snowbirds and snowflakes. (By the way, the “state bird” of Deerfield is the “early bird.” This describes the widespread practice of going to eat out before 5 p.m. to take advantage of the discount at some eateries.)
A Potpourri of Jews
In Deerfield, you’ll find retirees from communities from all over the U.S. New Yorkers are there from the Five Towns, Monsey, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Staten Island. They come from New Jersey, Baltimore, Chicago, Canada, and even Los Angeles. We have black hats, straw hats, kippot srugot, velvet yarmulkes, Borsalinos, Lubavitch bent brims, and even a few streimels.
Century Village of West Palm Beach is a little more chasidish, while Boca and Deerfield are Young Israel-and OU-type communities. In Deerfield, we have over 60 retired rabbis who learned in YU, Torah Voda’as, RJJ, Chaim Berlin, Telz, Ner Yisrael, and the Mir. Under our Rav, Rabbi Yisroel Edelman, who is Lubavitch, we have a community of achdus, where everyone is accepted regardless of what they wear on their head. Much more important is what they have in their heads and hearts.
The community here does not lack for organizations. Activities of the brotherhood, sisterhood, Israel Bonds, a chevra kaddisha, Amit Women, and Emunah Women, as well as all sorts of chesed projects from bikur cholim to hachnasas orchim take place each and every day. When Deerfield shul attendees say the prayer for the medina (Israel) and for Tzahal (IDF), it really hits home as so many of the residents have mishpacha (family) that made aliya or grandsons and granddaughters who serve in Tzahal. In the shul, we proudly display the American and Israeli flags near the aron hakodesh. The red-white-and-blue is a symbol of hakaras hatov (appreciation) to Hashem and to America for allowing us all freedom of religion and worship and a democratic country that has been good to our people and to Israel. The Israeli flag, the white-and-blue, symbolizes hakaras hatov to Hashem for giving us the precious gift of the State of Israel. Proud we are, but with all that bracha, we still long for the real geula and Mashiach – bimehayra beyameinu, one day soon, im yirtzeh Hashem.
Who Is Rich?
Who is an ashir, a wealthy person? Pirkei Avos gives us an answer. In Deerfield, wealth has little to do with your financial portfolio or real estate holdings. We are a modest shtetl! If you have gezundt (health), and you support the shul as well as chesed and tzedaka projects (and you have extra tickets to a great show at the Club House!), then you are mamash (truly) wealthy. Many great talmidei chachamim live in this village as well as many people who never spent a day in a yeshiva gedola or Bais Yaakov, yet all of us get along wonderfully and have great respect for each other.
Here, in Deerfield, everyone lives in the same modest condo, and most dress casually during the week. It’s just like camp, but this camp is for seniors. Our camp song is a shira (song) of achdus, our grand-sing is the beautiful tefilos, our color-war themes are the constant gemilas chasadim practiced by those in our community. Finally, our campfire is the warmkeit of friendship in this special place. Our visiting day is the children and grandchildren who come to visit their parents and grandparents. The visiting day tips we get are the tremendous nachas we have from our families.
My wife and I are among the younger “campers” of the Deerfield shtetl. The staff and leadership of Machane Deerfield are the Rav, our da’as Torah, and the elder wise individuals many in their 80s and 90s who have gone through meaningful Yiddishe life experiences. Those experiences, good or bad, might have been in Poland, Hungary, Germany, or Russia – before the war or, possibly, in the concentration camps. Through memorable happy childhood experiences, along with the tragedy, these precious Holocaust individuals learned the great lessons of life.
For other seniors, these life experiences may have happened in the Bronx, Lower East Side, Long Island, Lakewood, Monsey, Baltimore, Cleveland, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Canada, or other traditional centers of Yiddishkeit across Europe and America. These North American Jews from the late 1930s and ’40s were moser nefesh to be shomer Shabbos in those inhospitable days when it was hard for a frum person to get a job. Facing work and financial challenges, they were the ones who built the shuls, yeshivas, and day schools throughout America, establishing chinuch (Jewish education) for generations to come. The fruits of their labors have accrued to our present younger generation, who now build and enjoy life on the solid foundation these pioneers built.
In Deerfield, while most people are retired and a few are still working, all are continuing their beautiful family minhagim and their own hashkafa taught by their parents. United by Torah and chesed, all the unimportant differences melt away in the intense heat. The kehila of Deerfield is a vibrant diamond in American Yiddishkeit.
Come to the shtetl of Deerfield!
