Happy to be of Service

 We are regularly asked to create custom commission pieces such as Tzedakah boxes for Synagogues, or Mezuzot for sanctuary doors.  We're always glad to hear back from the recipients of these special items, especially when they are as positive as this:

I just wanted to let you know that I received the box and it is just AMAZING!!!  Absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!  We are so happy with the finished product! I am so excited for the kids to see it this Friday when we are going to have them present it to the Temple Brith Achim congregation during the Religious School Welcome Back service!  Your work is absolutely beautiful and we are proud to be giving this gift to the congregation from our confirmation class.  We have a terrific, visible place picked out for it in a niche next to the sanctuary doors.  Thanks for everything and it was a pleasure working with you!!

Do you need any custom artwork?  Check out a few of the things we have done in the past and let us know what we can do for you!

Our Guarantee

We stand by our work and will repair or replace any damaged item for life.  Simply send in the broken piece with this form and we'll take care of it.  We  know that our items often become important heirlooms and we're glad to help keep them around for generations to come.  Here's a nice note we just got from someone whose mezuzah we were able to fix for her:

We have just received the mezzuzah that I sent to you to be repaired.  Thank you so much.  I can't wait to give it back to my son and daughter-in-law because it meant so much to them. 
With best wishes for your continued success. 
Helene Chinowsky

A Hanukkah Letter from the Netherlands

While most of our work is sold in the US, we do have fans and customers all over the world.  Here's a great letter from someone in the Netherlands:

Dear Gary,

Wow it arrived and on the last evening of Chanukah ! We have just received the parcel and I have just returned from presenting it to my daughters teacher who is thrilled with your dreidel and just adored your work .What a lovely gift you also included for my daughter she was very touched by your generous gift, there are two very happy people in the Netherlands thank you!!!!!!!

With very good wishes and a happy Chanukah.

Raquel Drukarch

Lighting Candles in Moscow

Anna writes to us from Hillel in Moscow, Russia:

"Hi, Gary!

It was my great pleasure to visit with students and participate in your Hiddur Mitzvah project!

Thank you one more time for having us.

Attached see our pics of having our Shabbat at the Hillel Office last Friday.

Take care,

Anna"

A Braille Mezuzah

We may be a business, but as artists we love to give people joy through our work. This letter is a great example of that and we are very glad that this special mezuzah brought such happiness.

"Dear Mr. Rosenthal,
Sherry Davidowitz, a friend and our local JCC Judaica coordinator contacted you when I asked her about a Braille Mezuzzah. I was asked to do a blessing at the naming of a new facility for our local Association for the Blind here in northeastern Pennsylvania. The Mezuzzah you sent with the raised Shin and the word Shalom spelled out in Braille was beyond my wildest dreams. The family that donated the building is very modest about their philanthropy and had to have their arms twisted to agree to having their name on the building. They were uncomfortable about the publicity, but when they saw the Mezuzzah and heard the artist’s name they were moved to tears and knew they had made the right decision. Before the event I was a bit nervous about the Braille on the Mezuzzah. When I looked at it I checked the dots with a web page that seemed to show the letters differently than I had originally seen. But when I presented it to the president of the association, who is a blind attorney, and asked him to read the word on the Mezuzzah, he said “Shalom” loud and clear. He couldn’t quite make out the Shin on top (he’s not Jewish), but the letters were perfect.

The folks from the Association for the Blind will be contacting you separately, but I want to thank you for making this event so special and meaningful. An artisan such as yourself probably assumes that the vast majority of people who enjoy his work do so visually. But you will now have a steady flow of blind and visually impaired folks in northeastern PA that will enjoy your art every day just by touching it. Thank you for making this possible.

All the best,
Rabbi Larry Kaplan
TempleIsrael, Wilkes-Barre, PA"

A Special Repair

We stand behind our work at the Gary Rosenthal Collection and will repair or replace any broken item. Shoshana Kroll writes to tell us how much she appreciated us repairing her special Yad.

"Dear Mr. Rosenthal:
When I became an adult Bat Mitzvah in 1995, my mother-in-law gave me a beautiful left-handed Rosenthal yad. I was in awe of the fact that, not only did I have my own yad and it was so exquisite, but that it was for a lefty!!! I used it on that special day; it gave me courage and brought me peace. I read with it every time I was blessed with a Torah reading. Then part of the glass broke off and I put it away, vowing to fix it somehow.
When I read from the Torah without my special yad, the experience did not feel as fulfilling; I was definitely missing my yad. It was such a special gift and held so much meaning for me. One day, I mentioned it to my friends, Mike and Sue Shapiro, who own Shapiro Gallery in St. Petersburg, Florida and Sautee, Georgia. They offered to take care of it. They sent it back to you and you fixed it for me. This is a belated "Todah rabah." I love it; the blue piece you attached is beautiful. It feels so wonderful to have my yad with me once again as I am reading from Torah. My mother-in-law has since passed on but when my yad is with me, Jule is with me. I actually collect Judaica and have several other pieces of yours in my home. Thank you for sharing your wonderful creativity with us in such a meaningful way.....Shoshana Kroll."

A Mezuzah for Every Jewish Door in Cuba

An ongoing program started in 2002, Gary has worked with a number of organizations to help provide Judaica to those in Cuba without.

Stan Cohen of the B'nai B'rith Cuban Jewish Relief Project describes his and Gary's involvement:

"As International Chairman of the B’nai B’rith Cuban Jewish Relief Project, it has been a great honor to work with Gary Rosenthal, who is not only the leader in design of Judaica but a true humanitarian.

Attorney Richard Popkin, who has worked with the Jewish Community of Cuba and myself came up with the ambitious idea of seeing that every Jew in Cuba should have a piece of Judaica and a mezuzah for their home.

There are 1500 Jews in Cuba with little or no Jewish relics. We approached Gary Rosenthal with our idea and he said “There is no problem. I will supply you with anything that you need for the Jewish community.”

Gary and others came up with an idea to make the project even more meaningful by enlisting the Jewish Youth Philanthropy to help make the mezuzahs with the materials Gary would supply.

Over 100 sixth and 8th graders would complete these under Gary’s auspices. The rest is history.
The mezuzahs were taken to Cuba and distributed with great love to the families.

We and the Jewish community will forever be grateful to the wonderful tzedaka which was made possible by the Collections of Gary Rosenthal."

Stan is doing great work for the Jewish community of Cuba that extends well beyond Judaica and into community and individual support. We are proud to be a part of his work. If you are interested in a mitzvah project to help the Cuban Jewish community contact bbrelief@earthlink.net.

The True Meaning of Mensch

S. Grossman writes in with this poignant story:

"Gary-

It was wonderful seeing you again today. Attached is the picture of the sculpture you created for me and the story behind it:

My father passed away in 1976. When my mother opened his wallet, she found two $10 bills. She gave one bill to my brother and one to myself, asking us to find something meaningful to purchase in remembrance of my father. I carried that $10 bill for many months, looking for something special in his memory.

As I was walking through a local mall, I saw an arts and crafts show, and met Gary Rosenthal. I asked if a sculpture could be made of my father, sitting in his wheelchair, reading a book, under a tree, which is the image that I remembered most of my father in his later years. Gary said he could make the sculpture and he completed it in about a month's time. I went to his home to pick up the piece, and was brought to tears with the realistic image that had been created. I told Gary the story of the $10 bill that I had kept in my wallet and when I asked about the price of the sculpture, I planned to apply the $10 towards the purchase. To my astonishment Gary took the $10 bill and said the purchase was complete!

This piece is my most meaningful possession and Gary's good deed has never been forgotten. He is the true meaning of a mensch."

A Behind The Scenes Story

Gayle Nadler writes in about her recent visit to the GRC.

"My Private Invitation:

I called the Gary Rosenthal Collection to ask if Gary could sign the two tzedakah boxes I purchased from Beth Sholom Congregation and Talmud Torah. Not certain who was more excited: me for having my request honored, or Gary for honoring my request! Gary invited me in to the studio where I met his mom, dog, and craftspeople. If you've never had the opportunity to catch a glimpse of what goes on "behind the scenes" at GRC, then all you need to do is take one of Gary's pieces, place it in front of you and gaze at it closely.

You will see that his beautiful designs reflect the aura of his office/studio/showroom. There is so much to marvel: these tzedakah boxes, as well as all of the other splendid pieces, exude creativity in unexpected ways. There are light areas and dark, as well as surprising shapes, colors and sizes. The metal appears to capture the sunlight and use it knowingly to enhance itself.

Each piece is unique, created with the help of everyone I met. I know they were in the studio to work, but that hardly seems to be the correct term to use because all employees appeared to be having too much fun. They were enjoying themselves while creating extraordinary works of art. Gary has also enabled others (fundraisers, breast cancer survivors, those wishing to create personal projects) to be a part of this process in very meaningful ways. After spending about an hour with Gary touring the building, I now have a greater understanding of why each piece is so special, just like the home and craftspeople of GRC."

A Tzedakah Box to Remember

Merle Honey Porter of The Rosen Group in Baltimore writes:

"I purchased a tzedakah box made by Gary Rosenthal as a baby gift for my niece and her new son. She received tons of clothing , toys and plenty of receiving blankets. I knew that I wanted to give her something that was important and that would be meaningful throughout her life and the life of the baby. I knew that this piece would become a "family heirloom". It would commemorate Colby's birth and it would symbolize a life's lesson worth learning that no matter how much money we do or do not have, charity is an important value to keep for a lifetime. She cried when she opened the gift. She knew that when Colby grew up and had children, he could teach that life's lesson to them and remember how much I loved him when he was born and forever. That would get passed on to his grandchildren and so on. The baby clothes would have a short life as he grew and would be stained and given away as would the toys and blankets but my love for him and an important life's lesson would continue on. Gary's tzedakah box would always provide that memory. Thanks Gary!"

Gary Rosenthal Seder Plate Part of Fundraiser Auction

Suzye Doblin of Texas writes in to tell us about a fundraising auction that includes one of Gary's seder plates, the uniquely vertical SP16.

"As co-chair for the fundraising arm of Temple Emanuel in Beaumont, Texas, I borrowed an idea that had been successful at my previous temple in Hattiesburg, MS. We will have a silent as well as a live auction. My husband, Steve, who is president of the temple, and I like to donate Judaica for the fundraiser. Our fundraiser is called the Fabulous Fall Fun Raiser (FFFR). Last year we made about $8000. I love the pieces of art that we have from Gary Rosenthal's collection and so I decided to donate the Vertical Seder Plate. I thought that would be a fun item. It is going to be a part of the live auction. We put minimum bids on all items...usually half of retail and then hope the bidding will soar. Our fundraiser is November 1st and I will let you know how we do."

Though she didn't mention it in the letter, Suzye liked the seder plate so much that not only did she buy one to donate for the auction, but bought one for herself as well! We wish Suzye good luck with her fundraising efforts and can't wait to hear back from her in November. It's always great to hear that our work is appreciated and put to good use.