MEET RABBI AGAR

Shalom! My name is Rabbi Leibel Agar, and I am the Rabbi of Beth Jacob Congregation. On behalf of my wife, Anita, our entire congregation, and myself, I would like to welcome you. We are a Modern Orthodox Shul located in the North section of Dayton, OH. Though the Dayton Metro Area is (geographically) rather large, our Shul has the small-town, “heimishe” feel of the Midwest. This “small-town feel” is one of the many things which makes this congregation a unique and special place.

My wife and I are both from New York. I lived in Upstate NY until I was almost 13, after which my family moved to Staten Island. After obtaining my degrees in History and Education, I taught History, Math, and English at several different Yeshivas throughout the City. Eventually, I started working as an Insurance Analyst for a small Home Health Care agency. After a brief foray into insurance sales, I obtained a position as a Patient Finance Rep for one of New York’s Jewish-owned Nursing Homes. My wife grew up in the Sheepshead Bay area of Brooklyn. She obtained both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Early Childhood Education and was teaching in a small Yeshiva Preschool when we met. As with many areas of New York City, my wife and I both lived in sizeable communities. Even when we moved to Westchester County NY (where I was the Baal Korey for a small Shul), we were close enough to New York City to still be part of the ‘hustle and bustle’ which is New York.

When we moved to Dayton, we knew things would be different. Upon arriving shortly before Sukkot in 2019, we were expecting a quiet, small-town aura which would be quite different from what we were used to. Much to our surprise and delight, the entire Congregation welcomed us with open arms. People were very kind, asking us if we needed any help settling into our new home. After so much time in NY, where “Can I help you?” means anything but, this was a really welcome change. We did not feel like strangers…more like people who were coming back home after a few years away. 

Since Sukkot of 2019, we have been part of this wonderful Congregation. Though we both still have (and will probably never lose) our New York accents, our warm, vibrant, and welcoming Congregation has helped us become ‘Daytonians’ in every sense of the word. We live in the community, work in the community (in addition to being the Rabbi and Rebbetzin, I work as a Billing Specialist for a Cardiology practice and my wife teaches at the JCC of Greater Dayton’s preschool) and have a circle of friends both in and out of the Congregation. Whether its getting together for services on Shabbat and Yom Tov, schmoozing at our Shabbat Mevarchim “Lunch-&-Learn” Oneg, teaching classes with the Rabbinic Council of Dayton’s “Introduction to Judaism” lecture series, or just getting together with the ‘chevre’ for a nice game of Dungeons & Dragons, this community and (especially) this Congregation is our home…we hope you make it your home, too!