5787 Calendar
The JCA's beloved annual Abacus Calendar is back! Designed in-house each year with a unique theme, the 2026–2027 edition celebrates Historic Jewish Places in Maine, highlighting the rich history and lasting impact of Jewish communities across our state.
This beautiful 12-month poster calendar follows the Jewish calendar year (September–August) and includes Hebrew months, major Jewish holidays, and other important dates to help keep your year organized. Best of all, every purchase supports the work of the JCA, helping us continue to build a vibrant, connected, and thriving Jewish community throughout Maine.
Take a peek at the places that inspired this year's images and the stories behind them.
Zeitman's Grocery Store | 336 Fore St. Portland
See that faded sign up there on Fore Street? The one that still says Zeitman's Grocery Store if you squint just right? Most people walk right past it. But not me. I remember when that wasn't just a sign—it was the beating heart of the neighborhood.
Jewish Community Center | 341 Cumberland Ave, Portland
Today, people might drive right past it without a second thought. But once upon a time? Oh, that wasn't just a building. That was our second home.
North School | 248 Congress St. Portland
See that big brick building on Congress Street with the clock tower? That's the North School. To most people, it's just another beautiful old building. But to hundreds of Jewish children growing up in Portland's East End, it was where two worlds met.
Hub Furniture | 291 Fore St. Portland
You see that big old brick building on Fore Street? The one that looks more like a warehouse than a fancy furniture store? That's Hub Furniture. And if these walls could talk—oy—they'd never stop.
Shaarey Tphiloh | 151 Newbury St. Portland
I want to tell you about a building that wasn't just made of bricks and stone. It was made of prayers.
Levine's Department Store | 9 Main St. Waterville
If you had walked down Main Street in Waterville a hundred years ago, you couldn't have missed Levine's. The windows were always dressed just so. The front door was forever swinging open.
Goldberg's Tailoring & Dressmaking Shop | 7 Valley St. Portland
See that old photograph? The one with the words Goldberg's Ladies Tailoring and Dressmaking Shop painted proudly across the window? To some people, it's just an old storefront. To me, it's the sound of a sewing machine humming from sunrise until supper. Now, don't think dressmaking was only about fancy clothes. Oh no.
S. Zulofsky Bakery | 22 Hampshire St. Portland
Can you smell it? Fresh rye bread. Still warm challah. Maybe a little cinnamon from a batch of rugelach cooling by the window. That's the smell of Zulofsky's Bakery.
Regal Kosher Restaurant & Delicatessen | 181 Middle St. Portland
Who's hungry? That's the first question every Jewish grandmother asks, isn't it? Before she asks how you're doing, whether you're warm enough, or if you've met anyone nice.
Rogers Jewlery | 549 Congress St. Portland
Before it was G.M. Pollack & Sons—the name many Mainers remember—it was Rogers Jewelers at 549 Congress Street, right in downtown Portland. And if you look at that old black-and-white image, you might just see a storefront.
New England Tea & Coffee | Waterville
This story, this one is about the smell of mornings. Not just any mornings—Portland mornings. The kind where the whole city felt like it was waking up together. You’d walk down the street, and before you even saw the store, you knew it was nearby
Sam's Place | 148 Main St. Biddeford
I want to tell you about a place where nobody ever really stayed a stranger for long. Sam’s Place.
