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Friends of Jewish Cemeteries
Completes Second Phase of
Restoration Project
Sasha Rogelberg | Staff Writer
F 6
Joe Ferrannini lifts a stone at Har Nebo
cemetery as part of Friends of Jewish
Cemeteries’ grave restoration pilot.

Friends of Jewish Cemeteries has
also enlisted the help of the Jewish
Genealogical and Archival Society of
Greater Philadelphia, an “allied orga-
nization.” According to JGASGP President
Felicia Alexander, the genealogical
society has conducted research on
the individuals buried at Har Nebo
and other neighboring cemeteries.

The archives were digitized and made
accessible on JGASGP’s website.

“Our society strongly believes that
when people’s names are honored and
respected after their death, that that’s
an important aspect of what we do.

... That’s not just taking care of the
physical aspects of the cemetery, but
also preserving the records,” Alexander
said. So far, JGASGP’s research on those
buried at Har Nebo has taken unex-
pected turns. At the height of the
pandemic, a history teacher in France
contacted Alexander asking about a
Jewish World War I soldier who was
buried in a French cemetery. After the
war, many deceased soldiers were dis-
interred and repatriated to America,
finding their final resting place in the
United States. This particular soldier
DECEMBER 1, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
A Har Nebo Cemetery plot before phase two of the Friends of Jewish Cemeteries
pilot project, which began in 2021
was buried in Har Nebo.

The genealogy project allows for
descendants of deceased family mem-
bers buried at the cemetery to locate
those graves. Upon visiting, Alexander
said, it’s important for those descen-
dants to see their family member’s
graves well-maintained.

In the future, Blumberg hopes
to expand the pilot to Har Yehuda
Cemetery in Upper Darby, though
he recognizes that Friends of Jewish
Cemeteries alone won’t be able to
restore entire sections of neglected
cemetery plots.

“We want to change the tide of
despair and build momentum,” he said.

Blumberg hopes that the Jewish
Federation of Greater Philadelphia,
which supports Friends of Jewish
Cemeteries as a special project, will
invest in the future of cemetery main-
tenance. Jewish Federation Senior Chief of
External Affairs Jeffrey Lasday said
that the Jewish Federation is in the
early stages of exploring options.

“Right now, we’re still in the process
of doing our due diligence, exploring:
What are the costs involved? What are
the different options?” Lasday said.

The Jewish Federation is looking
at models other organizations have
implemented to address similar issues.

For example, the Jewish Federation
of Greater Pittsburgh put together a
nonprofit to “look after” cemeteries
in western Pennsylvania, according to
Lasday. David Mink, who had a relative’s
stone restored through the pilot project,
said he felt disappointed and “helpless”
seeing his family’s graves in disarray.

He believes that the Jewish Federation
should be involved, as the restoration
work that needs to be done exceeds the
scope of Friends of Jewish Cemeteries.

“This is a community’s legacy,” Mink
said. “And [the Jewish] Federation,
which represents the Jewish commu-
nity, is the guardian.”
“Not only is it our legacy, but it’s
going to help define our future,” he
added. JE
srogelberg@midatlanticmedia.com Courtesy of Rich Blumberg
riends of Jewish Cemeteries
restored and repaired 27 grave-
stones at Har Nebo Cemetery in
Oxford Circle last month.

The effort is phase two of the organi-
zation’s restoration pilot project, which
began on Nov. 9, to raise awareness
of cemetery cleanup and restoration
efforts in Philadelphia.

“What we do is combine three areas:
cleanups; restoring, conserving of stones,
locations for the pilot; and also gene-
alogy, family group record research,”
Friends of Jewish Cemeteries founder
and chair Rich Blumberg said. “So with
this, we’re able to touch the descendants,
communities and neighbors.”
Over the two-week project, Blumberg
coordinated with conservator Joe
Ferrannini of Grave Stone Matters in
New York. Ferrannini spent hours at
Har Nebo working his way through
two rows of 16 graves, removing
stones, which can weigh between 500-
750 pounds, and leveling the ground
underneath it, which has grown uneven
over the decades due to the decomposi-
tion of the simple wood coffins used in
Jewish burial practices.

During this phase of the pilot,
Ferrannini encountered a few complex
cases, including a three-part cradle
grave that consists of a gravestone,
footstone and pieces of stone connect-
ing the two to form a bathtub-shaped
center. While some stones may take an
hour or two to lift and replace, more
complex structures can take most of
the day.

“A lot of the challenge is being careful
because it’s all part of the history, and
you don’t want to remove historic fabric
if you don’t have to,” Ferrannini said.

Restoring the stones requires pro-
fessional, hired work, but Friends of
Jewish Cemeteries has also hosted
three cemetery cleanups over the past
year — an opportunity for community
members to pull weeds and debris from
grave plots.