When Rabbi Abraham AvRutick took to the pulpit of Agudas Achim, the largest Orthodox synagogue in Connecticut, a new era in the evolution of Orthodox synagogue life and leadership in Hartford would truly begin. AvRutick received his undergraduate education at Yeshiva University and his rabbinic ordination from its Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, the flagship institution of what was then coming to be known as Modern Orthodox Judaism in America. Serving 39 years as the rabbi at Agudas Achim, from 1946 until his death in 1982, Rabbi AvRutick was also elected to the presidency of the Rabbinic Council of America, Orthodox Judaism's largest and most influential rabbinical organization. He is still the only Connecticut rabbi to have served in this position.

Rabbi AvRutick preached primarily in English with an occasional Yiddish sermon, to appease the fervent Yiddishists who remained within the congregation. Shortly after his arrival in Hartford in 1947, AvRutick was instrumental in founding the Va'ad Hakashruth, a communal rabbinic body established to supervise the sale of kosher food in Hartford. He was also instrumental in organizing a highly successful adult education program within Hartford's Orthodox community.