"Wow!" was Martin Greenberg's first word when he walked into the new Kellman Brown Academy. The fifth grader saw the building for the first time on Oct. 16, the day the Jewish day school moved from Chapel Ave. in Cherry Hill to Laurel Oak Rd. in Voorhees. "It looks amazing. Everything is new," said Greenberg.

Rabbi Isaac Furman, rabbinic advisor at Kellman Brown Academy, and Dr. Fran Rebhun, Academy president, affix the mezuzah at the school's new location in Voorhees. A festive Torah procession and ribbon cutting also highlighted the Oct. 16 move from Cherry Hill to Voorhees. Jonah Bannett, also a fifth grader, observed that the new school is much bigger. He particularly likes how the gym no longer has to double as the school cafeteria as it did before.

Kellman Brown student Shanni Prutchi said that the new building is colorful with much to see. She said that she was excited as the bus approached the new building for the first time.

Prutchi, like many of the students, got her first glimpse of their new school during a festive procession from the Chapel Ave. location to Voorhees.

Rabbi Isaac Furman, rabbinic advisor to the Kellman Brown Academy and founding head of school, carries the Torah out of the school's previous location on Chapel Ave. in Cherry Hill. Looking on is Cherry Hill Mayor Bernie Platt and Sandy Brown, immediate past president of Kellman Brown. A police car with flashing lights and siren led the way, followed by a streamer-festooned convertible with Rabbi Isaac Furman holding the school's Torah. Furman was there in 1958 when the Harry B. Kellman Academy was founded in Camden.

After Furman came the buses with the 170 Academy students. As the procession passed the Katz JCC on Springdale Rd., several classes from the JCC preschool waved. The Kellman Brown students shouted and waved back.

The move also featured a closing ceremony at the Cherry Hill location conducted by area rabbis whose children attended Kellman, and Cherry Hill Mayor Bernie Platt, whose four grandchildren are either current students or graduates; the carrying of the Torah into the Voorhees building by Rabbi Jeffrey Arnowitz, president of the Tri-county Board of Rabbis; a ribbon cutting; and the affixing of a mezuzah at the new school by Furman and Academy President Dr. Fran Rebhun.

Daphna Varadi, a seventh grader, loves the new school, but felt a twinge of sadness that the building she had known was now a part of her past. "It's exciting, but it's sad to leave," said Varadi, whose mother Ayala is a third grade teacher.

"It's sentimental to me that we are closing this school. My kids all went here," said Sandy Brown, whose extended family donated the new building. "We're thrilled that we could help to create a great sense of Jewish continuity for decades to come," said Brown, who cut the ribbon on the new school together with Academy President Rebhun.

"I have mixed feelings about leaving," said Lea Arbely. Her daughter Ayelet is a current student and her son Ariel is a graduate. "It's sad on one hand, but the children will be going into something really special." She noted that the new building has a level of technology surpassing that of the public schools. It also has 22 classrooms, a computer lab, two science labs, and dedicated music and art rooms.

"I think the kids will thrive and have a wonderful time being in their own space," said Amy Clayman, the parent of two students, Garrett and Joshua. She said the school's future would change dramatically. "When you walk in the new building, it is overwhelming."

"It just makes you feel good," said Marcia Cohen, a sixth grade English and social studies teacher. She said that the new building is bright, airy, and conducive to learning. "I've been teaching here for 22 years. This is perfect. It's inspirational."

"This building is better suited to maximize learning," said Gail Cohen, Kellman executive director. She said that because the children have grown up in the computer age, the SMARTboards and other technological features are better suited to the way they learn.

Cohen said that the school is planning a full week of dedication activities in mid- November. There will be a formal dedication of the new building on Monday, Nov. 24 with Jewish Theological Seminary Chancellor Arnold Eisen doing the honors for the Solomon Schechter-affiliated school.

Rabbi Isaac Furman, the school's founding director, said that the future of the school is great. For years, it shared a building with Cong. Beth El, first in Camden then in Cherry Hill. Beth El's impending move to Voorhees necessitated Kellman Brown, now independent of Beth El, to find a new location.

Kellman Brown produces highly educated future leaders, according to Furman. "The school is one of the great institutions this community has." .