WELCOME TO TEMPLE EMANUEL LAKELAND FLORIDA
JOIN US FOR SHABBAT SERVICES
FRIDAY EVENINGS AND SATURDAY MORNINGS
Fridays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 10:00 AM
Shalom!
Welcome to Temple Emanuel Lakeland – The Center of Jewish Life in Polk County
Beyond religious services and holiday celebrations, we offer fun social events, intellectually stimulating adult education programs, and a youth religious school. Join us today! Connect with Judaism and new friends in an inclusive environment. Learn more about our history, membership, and future plans inside our website pages and on our social media pages. We hope to see you soon!
When you are here, You Belong.
Upcoming Events
Shabbat Service – Friday Night
Location
- Temple Emanuel Lakeland
- 600 Lake Hollingsworth Dr. Lakeland, FL 33803
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Website
https://templeemanuellakeland.com/
Category
Welcome! We look forward to seeing you and your family at services. Friday night Shabbat services are followed by an Oneg Shabbat, and Saturday morning Shabbat services are followed by a Kiddush luncheon. We frequently hold special services, such as Tot Shabbat, holiday services, and Holocaust memorial services. See our event listings, or call us for times. (calendar or Facebook) Temple Office Phone: (863) 682–8616. The public is welcome to attend, and no reservations are required. Come join us! Services for the High Holidays are open to all, with no tickets required. Please join us!
Shabbat Guest Speaker – Joe Probasco
Come learn about the relationship between the Black and Jewish communities with Joe Probasco at Shabbat Services of Friday, April 10th.
His talk is titled: “What Happened to Us? Rekindling Our Shared Black-Jewish Heritage”
Bio for Joe Probasco:
Having served as the President of the Tampa Jewish Community Centers and Federation from 2017 to
2021 and currently serving as the Immediate Past President of the organization, Joe Probasco is an
active advocate for the Jewish community and Israel on the legislative, media and inter-group relations
fronts and regularly speaks on antisemitism and other topics relevant to the Jewish community.
Joe is passionate about the community also serving on the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Federations of
North America, the Board of Advisors of the Saint Leo University Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies, the
Tampa Jewish Community Relations Council, and the Black Jewish Community Cooperative.
Joe also serves as the Managing Partner of Bush Ross, P.A. law firm in Tampa.
Shabbat Service – Saturday Morning
Location
- Temple Emanuel Lakeland
- 600 Lake Hollingsworth Dr. Lakeland, FL 33803
-
Website
https://templeemanuellakeland.com/
Category
Welcome! We look forward to seeing you and your family at services. Friday night Shabbat services are followed by an Oneg Shabbat, and Saturday morning Shabbat services are followed by a Kiddush luncheon. We frequently hold special services, such as Tot Shabbat, holiday services, and Holocaust memorial services. See our event listings, or call us for times. (calendar or Facebook) Temple Office Phone: (863) 682–8616. The public is welcome to attend, and no reservations are required. Come join us! Services for the High Holidays are open to all, with no tickets required. Please join us!
RELIGIOUS SCHOOL
YOM HASHOAH PROGRAM
Artist’s Statement
The scapes you will see are quiet now—grass has grown, the paint of interior walls has faded or marked with graffiti, buildings have crumbled, and the world has moved forward. But listen closely: a voice remains.
This photojournalism exhibit invites you to witness the enduring presence of memory in the aftermath of atrocity. Through images captured at concentration camps, Hartheim Castle, and remnants of the Jewish Ghettos, we confront the places where humanity unraveled—and where the Jewish people endured unimaginable suffering. Yet they were not alone in their pain, as Romani, individuals with mental and physical disabilities, homosexuals, Slavic peoples, religious leaders, people of faith, political dissidents, and prisoners of war also faced relentless persecution and death.
The images are rendered primarily in black and white, lending the series both historical presence and emotional weight. In contrast, memorials appear in color, emphasizing their ongoing role in contemporary memory and linking past trauma to present acknowledgment. Many of the images capture only a portion of the subject, urging the viewer toward contemplation rather than completion—quickening the soul to the sensitivity of the subject while inviting a deeper awareness of place. In absence and fragment, the viewer is called to listen, to fill the silence with remembrance.
What endures in these frames is more than documentary trace; they are echoes of cries never answered, prayers never completed, and lives—both children and adults—never lived. But within that echo is a voice: of dignity, of warning, and of hope.
May we arouse the thematic mitzvah of Zakhor, the Jewish tradition and commandment to remember—not only to mourn, but to carry that voice forward. For it is through our collective memory and exercise of our spiritual and moral compasses, that we honor those that died or suffered through the atrocities of the Holocaust and safeguard our future.
Craig S. Collins, EdD
Dr. Collins has over forty-three years of experience in the arts, with a career rooted in arts administration and music education and has concentrated his interests in recent years to include photography. His work reflects a deep commitment to organizations that elevate the arts and advance social justice. Over his career, he has contributed his expertise to seventeen nonprofit boards, helping to strengthen missions, expand opportunities, and support creative communities.
His service includes roles as President of the Arts Schools Network, President of the Florida School Music Association, Chair of the Florida Alliance for Arts Education, Chair of the Lakeland Mayor’s Council on the Arts, and Chair of the Florida Bandmasters Association. In partnership with the Florida Alliance for Arts Education and the Florida Department of Education, Dr. Collins has also evaluated schools for the Florida Arts Model Schools program, recognizing exemplary arts instruction and performance statewide.
In addition, he has served as an adjudicator for a wide range of instrumental and vocal events, supporting high standards of artistic achievement across multiple disciplines.
His consulting work in functional facilities design has supported schools across Florida and Georgia, ensuring that learning and performance spaces are crafted to meet the needs of developing young artists.
With a lifelong dedication to creative expression, Dr. Collins continues to champion excellence across artistic mediums. His work invites communities to reflect, connect, and share the powerful stories that the arts can inspire.

