Thursday, October 1, 2026
Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia has been awarded a $175,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation through its National Fund for Sacred Places Program.
The National Fund for Sacred Places is the only nationwide program that provides financial and professional resources to help congregations remain strong faith communities, while stewarding some of the nation’s most important and architecturally significant houses of worship.
Since its founding in 2016, the national fund has awarded or pledged more than $33 million to 168 community-serving congregations representing 28 faith traditions across 45 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
This year, out of 319 congregations that applied, 29 churches and one synagogue were selected to receive grants of up to $500,000, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
Temple Beth Hatfiloh is among 30 historic congregations nationwide sharing $8.73 million in grants, the largest amount distributed in the program’s history.
The funding will support extensive preservation work on the synagogue’s building exterior, including repairs to the roof, gutters, chimney, siding and masonry to ensure the long-term integrity of the architectural and cultural landmark.
Temple Beth Hatfiloh was founded in 1937. The congregation traces its roots to the Hebrew Benevolent Society of Puget Sound, established in the 19th century as the first Jewish organization in Washington and the founder of the state’s first Jewish cemetery, which remains in use today.
The Hebrew Benevolent Society was later absorbed into Temple Beth Hatfiloh, making the synagogue a living link to Olympia’s earliest Jewish history.
“Each of the congregations welcomed into the (national fund) this year represents a unique story of resilience, history, and service,” said President of Partners for Sacred Places Bob Jaeger in a statement.
“These sacred places are not only architectural treasures — they are vital centers of congregational life and community anchors offering meals, education, cultural enrichment, and refuge."
The initiative is a partnership between the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Partners of Sacred Places, designed to help faith communities undertake significant projects that extend the life of their historic buildings.
“Sacred places hold a profound role in the American landscape, embodying both heritage and hope. Through the National Fund for Sacred Places, we are ensuring these spaces remain vibrant hubs of community life, sustaining connection, creativity, and service for generations to come,” said National Trust Historic Preservation President and CEO Carol Quillen in a statement.
The program supports projects, such as roof replacement, waterproofing, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) upgrades and structural repairs. It aims to help congregations sustain both their buildings and their community service missions.
The selected congregations also receive tailored technical assistance to support historic preservation efforts, community engagement and fundraising efforts.
Other Washington state recipients in the past years include Urban Grace Church in Tacoma (2016) and West Central Abbey in Spokane (2024).
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JnNwmn
This place of worship was originally the First Christian Science Church of Olympia. The Temple moved to this location from a few blocks away. The old Temple became K Records owned by Calvin Johnson.
Saturday, October 25, 2025 Report this
northbeachcomm
Thank you for remembering that this church was built by the members of the First Christian Science Church of Olympia. An elderly member told that as a teenager here in Olympia, he and his father put the roof on the building by themselves, around the time of WWII. His father worked at the Wa State buildings, near Capitol Way, Olympia. He told of being used to guard the State Capital building in the 1940's.
Saturday, October 25, 2025 Report this
Scooop
There's a bit of history of the building and a newspaper article from 1925 about its construction on this webiste: https://csolympia.com/a-brief-history-of-the-church/
Saturday, October 25, 2025 Report this
Jamama
I'm curious who this religious organization is in our community....as Jewish people of conscience, are they clearly, publicly and vociferously against Israel's unconscionable and murderous Genocide in Palestine, or does it lean more Zionist? I thought I would have heard by now what their position is on this. Research into where the monies for the National Fund for Sacred Places comes from lists the major donors as the Gerry Charitable Trust and the Lilly Endowment. The Gerry Trust is noted for its significant financial support for Republican political committees, and the Lilly Endowment is funded by the corporate Pharmaceutical giant and its monies are mostly associated with the perpetuation of Christian religiosity. It's interesting that this grant for Temple Beth Hatfiloh is part of a pool of money which is the largest this funder has ever distributed. I wonder if the other churches are mostly fundamentalist Christian/Zionist entities.
I would welcome a deeper background into Temple Beth Hatfiloh's position on the Genocide in Palestine and whether they have actively spoken against it, and a deeper understanding of exactly where the money for this grant arises from.
Sunday, October 26, 2025 Report this
CPWINOLY
It took a bit longer than I thought it would for the antisemitic bigots, who know nothing about Temple Beth Hatfiloh to crawl out from beneath their rocks to criticize the article. Thank you Jamama for outing yourself. You probably consider yourself part of the "progressive" left but you have more common with the American nazi party. They would be proud of you.
Sunday, October 26, 2025 Report this
OlyPlease
I'm not so sure I would call the comment antisemitism. It seemed to be worded neutral enough. I think they want more information. There wasn't any mention of wanting any harm of financial or otherwise to the temple. The questions are a good opportunity to teach and help build and rebuild relationships with people in the community.
Monday, October 27, 2025 Report this
CPWINOLY
@Olyplease, I don't think you're antisemitic, but just profoundly ignorant. Jews have been defending themselves against libelous statements from the ilk of Jamana for thousands of years. You all seem to think that that the Jewish people have a unified opinion about Israel and Palestine. To raise a critique about a grant to help preserve a building is nonsense, and yes, antisemitic. Take the time to learn something about Judaism before giving credence to an ignoramus.
Monday, October 27, 2025 Report this
OlyPlease
@cp you might just help turn some hearts and break down some old barriers if you spoke to people in a mor dignified manner. I see the difference between being a Jewish person VS a citizen of Isreal. I still see no problem in asking questions in a respectful manner.
Wednesday, October 29, 2025 Report this
Boatyarddog
@CPWINOLY
Really Crude and unthoughtful. Did you think everyone that is Jewish feels the same about Politics...? Oh, I guess you do..
.Just like Americans Left or Right don't feel the same about Israel as the Savior of Americas soul, therefore we Should let them defend themselves. Espically since BiBi is A Warmonger against Poor Peoples. Defending Religious Dogma is BARBARIC. Being A Progressive is NOT Radical.
Monday, March 9 Report this