local
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.




local
Philadelphia City Council Voting on
Resolution to Condemn Antisemitism
Jarrad Saff ren | Staff Writer
tive director of the Greater
Philadelphia chapter of the
Zionist Organization of America,
speaking out is not enough. Th e
city needs to act. Feldman would
like to see Mayor Jim Kenney’s
offi ce or the council explain “the
Jewish people’s history and its
connection to the land of Israel.”
On Nov. 29, Kenney’s Offi ce of
Immigrant Aff airs sponsored an
“International Day of Solidarity
with the Palestinian People” at
the Municipal Services Building
on John F. Kennedy Boulevard.

Th e rally was a local version of
a United Nations-organized
event. Its promotional poster
featured the fl ags of the Palestine
Liberation Organization, a group
that opposed the Jewish state of
Israel upon its founding in 1964.

Courtesy of the Philadelphia City Council
I n 2021, the Anti-Defamation League
recorded 2,717 antisemitic incidents
of harassment, vandalism or violence.

Th at was the highest number since the
ADL started releasing its annual tally in
1979. Th is year, the number of incidents
is at a similar pace, according to ADL
CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.

Also in 2022, a Republican, Doug
Mastriano, ran for governor of
Pennsylvania in part by joining the same
social media site, Gab, which provided a
safe space for the Tree of Life synagogue
shooter four years ago. Later in 2022,
rapper and fashion designer Ye (Kanye
West) and NBA star Kyrie Irving became
the latest celebrities to make antisemitic
comments in public. Ye said he wanted
to go “death con 3” on Jewish people, and
Irving tweeted a link to a fi lm that denied
the Holocaust and quoted Adolf Hitler.

In response, the Philadelphia City
Council is considering a show of support
for its Jewish residents.

Ten council members, or more than
half of the 17-person body, are introducing
a resolution that would “unequivocally”
condemn “the rise in antisemitism and all
forms of hate in the City of Philadelphia,”
according to its title. Th ose other forms
of hate include racism and homophobia.

Councilman Mike Driscoll, who rep-
resents the Sixth District, which includes
Northeast Philadelphia and river wards
like Port Richmond, introduced the resolu-
tion. Councilmembers Katherine Gilmore-
Richardson, Brian J. O’Neill, Mark Squilla,
Helen Gym, Cindy Bass, Kenyatta Johnson,
Kendra Brooks, David Oh and Isaiah
Th omas have signed on as co-sponsors.

With the recent resignation of Allan
Domb from the city council to run for
mayor, none of the remaining members
are Jewish. Nonetheless, Driscoll expects
unanimous approval on Dec. 1 when the
resolution comes up for a vote. He has not
heard any opinions to the contrary, he said.

“I believe that the Jewish people are
being singled out once again,” Driscoll
added. “In 2021, we had more incidents
since the ADL started tracking harass-
ment and vandalism and violence. It’s
getting worse.”
Th e council did not host the rally.

Either way, to Feldman it showed that the
resolution was not enough.

“At best, it’s meaningless and, at worst,
it’s hypocrisy,” he said.

Gilmore-Richardson, the fi rst coun-
cilmember to sign on as a co-sponsor, did
not see it that way. She said the resolution
counted as policy because it would be
voted on by the council and become part
of Philadelphia’s historical record. She also
said it’s vital to call out antisemitism and
hate whenever and wherever you see it.

Th e councilwoman is Black and a
descendant of slaves and sharecroppers.

She said she looked at the resolution from
that perspective.

“If it’s happening to them, it can hap-
pen to you, too,” Gilmore Richardson
concluded. “Silence means you agree.” JE
jsaff ren@midatlanticmedia.com
Councilman Mike Driscoll introduced the
resolution condemning antisemitism.

Th e councilman was a state repre-
sentative for his Philadelphia district in
the Pennsylvania General Assembly four
years ago when the Tree of Life shoot-
ing happened. Aft er 11 Jews were killed
in Pittsburgh in the deadliest antise-
mitic attack in American history, one
of Driscoll’s colleagues from western
Pennsylvania brought survivors to the
state house in Harrisburg. As Driscoll
remembered it, “We prayed together, we
worshipped together and we did reso-
lutions condemning antisemitism and
applauding people of all faiths who came
together to support one faith.”
Th e day stuck with him. He thought
about it in October when the anniver-
sary of the shooting arrived and when
Mastriano campaigned for Pennsylvania’s
executive seat. Around the same time, Ye
had his Instagram and Twitter accounts
locked for alluding to the conspiracy the-
ory that Jews control powerful institu-
tions, while Irving was suspended for fi ve
games by his NBA team, the Brooklyn
Nets, for promoting a Holocaust denial
movie and refusing to apologize.

“It became fresh in my mind, and I said,
‘I want to speak out,’” Driscoll recalled.

But for Steve Feldman, the execu-
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM 7