She died a year and a half ago. Their 50th anniversary album, which Freund lovingly assembled night after night as his wife slept, chronicles a commitment that only deepened with time. The rabbi proudly points out a box containing 1,000 pages of love letters that he wrote to her over the years. On the walls are many fine works of art. The Freunds owned an antique shop several blocks from their home.
Every work has an astonishing history, which the rabbi enjoys recounting.
But everywhere I found a Jew, I tried to start a congregation. The original San Jose temple, first called Bickur Cholim, later became Temple Emanu-El, named by Freund after the San Francisco congregation. He served the San Jose congregation for 11 years, much of that time in other facilities. In 1939, the temple burned down, and due to wartime restrictions could not be rebuilt until 1947. So, the congregation met in a local church.