After 13 years of service, Rabbi Larry Schlesinger is saying goodbye to his duties at the synagogue.
Schlesinger has been a rabbi for 50 years and on Sunday family and friends came to celebrate his retirement at the Temple Beth Israel.
Mayor Robert Reichert presented the Rabbi with a proclamation naming June 4th -- Rabbi Larry Schlesinger Day.
Although Schlesinger won't hold an official role at the temple, he says he'll still be active there as well as continuing his duty as a Bibb County Commissioner, and teaching at Mercer University.
But he says before he gets back to all of that, he's taking a vacation.
"I'm going to join a group of bikers and we're going to ride out to Los Angeles along the old Route 66 corridor,” said Schlesinger.
He says he’s riding up to Chicago on his bike and then traveling to Los Angeles from there. The trip will last around 12 days.