Rabbi Arnold I. Sher

Rabbi Arnold I. Sher
September 15, 2024
Rabbi Arnold I. Sher, 89, of Fairfield, CT, and Stockbridge, MA, died on Sunday, September 15, 2024.
Arnie Sher, who was born in Boston, Massachusetts, received his B.A. from Williams College in 1958. After Williams, Arnie moved to Cincinnati, Ohio to continue his studies at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, where he was ordained Rabbi in 1963. It was in Cincinnati that Arnie met Judith Brav (who predeceased Arnie), married, and welcomed their first child, Michael. He then moved his growing family to Buffalo, New York, to serve as Associate Rabbi at Temple Beth Zion for five years and to welcome Jeffrey and Jennifer to the family.
In 1968, Arnie was given the opportunity to become the spiritual leader of Congregation B'nai Israel in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where he served for twenty-two years (and thereafter as Rabbi Emeritus). A lifelong learner, Arnie received his Juris Doctor from the Bridgeport University School of Law in 1980 and was awarded a Doctor of Divinity degree from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1988.
With experience as a congregational rabbi and a law degree, Arnie was named the Director of Placement of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) in 1990, a position he held until his retirement in 2008 (in addition to serving as Interim Executive Director of CCAR in 2005). Arnie was the longest-serving Director of Placement for the Reform Movement. At the CCAR's 119th Convention, the organization passed a resolution honoring Arnie as fulfilling Mishna's admonition "Get yourself a rabbi and acquire for yourself a friend." Arnie also played a leading role in the publication of Mishkan T'filah, the Reform Movement's siddur or prayerbook.
Arnie was active in the community, including as former Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Jewish Federation of Greater Bridgeport, former Chairman of the Town of Fairfield Housing Commission, former Commissioner of the Greater Bridgeport Transit District, former President of the Bridgeport Rotary Club, and as a Police Chaplin in the Town of Fairfield.
An avid Boston Red Sox and Bruins fan since childhood, Arnie, on occasion, provided real-time scores from the pulpit and was incredulous when, after the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series, one of his grandsons informed him that, as a 11 year-old, he had "been waiting for this moment his whole life."
Arnie is survived by his wife Serena, his sister Isobel Palson of Medfield, MA, and his former wife Eve Rubin Sher of Fairfield, CT.
Arnie is also survived by his children Michael (and Julia) Sher of Hartland, VT, Jeffrey (and Robin) Sher of Williamstown, MA, Jennifer (and Salvatore) Birrittella of Telluride, CO, and his stepdaughters Marci (and David) Bloch of Silver Spring, MD, Elizabeth Russell of Fairfield, CT, and Rebekah Zincavage of Watertown, MA. Arnie and Serena's blended family includes 12 grandchildren, Olivia Sher (Matthew Haas) of Dallas, TX, Daniel Sher of Brooklyn, NY, Schuyler Sher of Kansas City, MO, Annie Sher of New York, NY, Lily Sher of Lowman, ID, Stanley Birrittella of Telluride, CO, Joshua Bloch of Washington, DC, Daniella Bloch of New York, NY, Naomi Bloch, of College Park, MD, and Caroline Russell and Andrew Russell of Fairfield, CT.
Arnie is also survived by countless friends, some lifelong.
Funeral Services will be held at Congregation B'nai Israel, 2710 Park Ave., Bridgeport, CT 06604, on Sunday, September 22, 2024, at 1:30 p.m., with burial to follow at the Congregation's cemetery located at 245 Kings Highway East in Fairfield. A reception following the burial will be held at Congregation B'nai Israel at 3:15 p.m. Shiva will be held at the home of Serena Sher, in Fairfield, CT, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, September 23-25, from 6 to 8 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Rabbi Arnold I. Sher Social Action Fund, Congregation B'nai Israel, Bridgeport, CT, or to World Central Kitchen.