A Jewish Temple on Cayman Brac

The pale blue, circular Temple Beth Shalom nestles incongruously in the serene garden of the now-shuttered Walton's Mango Manor in Stake Bay, replete with the only consecrated Jewish cemetery in the Cayman Islands. A plaque by the imposing carved mahogany door reads "House of Welcome, May All Who Enter Here Find Peace." Rabbis and cantors sometimes fly in for special occasions and holidays.

Swiss architect Fredy Schulteiss designed the building, but George and Lynne Walton practically built it by themselves. It includes stained glass, Italian marble accents from Italy, and polished gray Minnesota granite floors they laid themselves. Lynne carved everything from the marble to the Honduran mahogany doors and inlaid scrolling fashioned from dead limbs of wild plum, cedar, mahogany, ironwood, and candlewood trees. Her father created a menorah in the shape of a shofar; another was a family heirloom brought by Lynne's grandmother from Odessa. The synagogue is actually one structure encased within another, "one for the Torah, the other to reach toward the heavens, in a small way making a statement to God that we're trying to get there." The 28-foot ceiling fittingly depicts a starry sky, with the 12 lights representing the 12 tribes of Israel. As a bonus, the space has splendid acoustics and a piano. Members of the Cayman National Orchestra, including flutists, pianists, and cellists, occasionally perform memorable classical concerts.