On Wednesday night our community gathered at to pay tribute to the memory of  Naftali Fraenkel, Gilad Shaar and Eyal Yifrach, the three boys abducted and murdered in Israel.  The event was a powerful demonstration of our connection to the Jewish people in Israel and around the world.

For those of you unable to attend, I’ve attached a program from the evening: its focus was on the personal tragedy and its significance to us as members of this community.  The program focused on the lives of the three boys, included clergy from all denominations, and musicians from the St. Louis Symphony and Gesher Music Festival.  Patty Croughan, Federation Board Chair, shared Yair Lapid’s moving eulogy to Gilad Shaar, one of the slain boys; Phyllis Markus, JCRC Board Chair, spoke movingly of the significance of the loss; and Donn Rubin, chair of the JCRC Israel Committee and Federation Trustee, provided practical steps each of us could take in response.  In the end over 500 people came together in solidarity with Israel and the Jewish people.  It was a powerful moment for our community.

I have attached my opening remarks that put the evening in some context for the diverse representation of our community assembled.  Here’s the report from the Post-Dispatch: https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/service-at-jewish-community-center-honors-teens-killed-in-middle/article_db33df91-d142-5503-8e6b-9c466a84cca1.html

What can you do?  Following Donn’s suggestions, the JCRC has mobilized a condolence letter campaign to communicate directly with the families of the boys; you can sign a version following this link.  Additionally, the Federation has opened up a tribute fund in their memory.  Every dollar raised in this effort will be split between the Jewish Agency’s fund for terror relief and the Israel Trauma Coalition.  More information on these groups and to contribute to this fund, click here.

The memorial service was a result of the collaboration of the Jewish Federation with the Jewish Community Relations Council.  Batya Abramson-Goldstein, executive director of the JCRC deserves credit, along with Federation’s marketing team, for pulling together such a powerful program and communicating it so clearly to our community.  We also thank Lynn Wittels, CEO of the JCC, and the crew at the Jewish Community Center for so quickly transforming their space into a venue to seat 500 people and perhaps 200 more standing on the sides, and overflow in the hallways.

Federation leadership is headed to Israel this weekend on a 7 day mission to see the impact of our work overseas.  I wish it were not such an unsettled time for the region, but feel fortunate that we are able to go to show our support.  More on the trip will be posted to my blog in the upcoming week.

It is a hard time in Israel and it has been terribly important that communities around the world have stood together in mourning for the tragedy that unfolded.  I am proud of what we did in St. Louis to stand with them; and to understand the importance to us of coming together.  Thank you to so many of you that joined with us that evening.

I wish you a good and meaningful fourth of July.

Andrew