AJCC CELEBRATING 75 YEARS.(Living Today)

Byline: Paul Grondahl Staff writer

A generation ago, the parents of Lori Levine, and her husband, Michael, used to take their families to the Albany Jewish Community Center (AJCC) to talk, to play, to sing, to laugh, to learn of their heritage.

"We were here just about every day," Lori Levine recalls. "We grew up in this building. It is a very comfortable place for us. It's just like a second home."

The AJCC is inseparable from the Levine family history.

When they first met, in the late 1960s, Lori was a camper and Michael, a few years older, was a counselor at the summer day camp. Lori and Michael became friends. Later, she became a cheerleader and rooted for him and his team on the basketball court. They began to date. They were married. They had two children, who now go to day care at the AJCC, the third generation of Levines who are members there.

As the AJCC celebrates its 75th anniversary next year, there are countless stories like the Levines that will be remembered and celebrated.

The AJCC is more than a long, low building on Whitehall Road complete with a gymnasium, weight room, steam room, swimming pool, classrooms, stage and cafeteria. It is, as its name implies, a hub from which the spokes of Jewish culture in the Capital District radiates, and a gathering place for the community at-large - regardless of religion, race or age.

Even more than that, though, AJCC seems to have a distinct personality, maybe even a soul. And it wears its heart on its sleeve.

On a recent afternoon, the unique character of the place and the broad range of programs it provides was obvious even to a casual observer.

Where …