ONLINE
NEWSLETTER
(No. 5/2007
November 2007)
Restoring
the
by
Celia Denov and Robert Bell In
September 2007 we undertook a project in Sharashova to restore the abandoned
Jewish cemetery. Our work included
erecting a perimeter metal fence of about 1500 meters in length, and a gate
to the cemetery in the original location.
We cleared the debris and underbrush which had accumulated over the
decades. A number of the headstones
were righted. The
project met with complete cooperation of the authorities of the We met
with and addressed senior students in the Sharashova high school, who wrote
essays on the past Jewish life in the region and the Holocaust, which they
had studied in school. Many of these
students volunteered to help with the work we were doing in the
cemetery. About 400 man-hours of work
were provided within the community, not including the fence fabrication, the
student volunteers, or the four of us who undertook this project. The
total funding of this project was privately paid for by the Siegerman family,
whose parents left Sharashova in 1905.
Members of the Siegerman family had visited Sharashova since the
1990’s and were concerned about the cemetery. A black
granite monument was erected (see photo below) and the inscription reads: “This cemetery is rededicated to the Jewish
community of Sharashova, in loving memory of the once vibrant Jewish
community, with fervent hopes for a peaceful and just world for all. “In memory of those who were deported to “Dedicated September 2007 by descendents of the
Jewish community.” The
project was coordinated by Dr. Michael Lozman of Restoration of Eastern
European Jewish Cemeteries Inc of It was evident to us that the town’s administration, the
Pruszhany District Administration, and, especially, the residents of
Sharashova valued the part Jews have played in their area’s history. We
saw no evidence of abuse to the cemetery or vandalism of headstones. There are in fact probably over 1,000
stones extant. Many of the stones had fallen due to subsidence and we reset
some of them. We hope that in the
future, with support from people who trace their roots back to Sharashova,
the rest can be reset.
Age-worn headstones
We righted a number of headstones The
maintenance of the cemetery is an ongoing concern. Financial assistance will be needed to
provide a fund for the ongoing upkeep of the cemetery. Below
is a picture of the monument installed at Sharashova, taken just after it was
set. Subsequently the surrounding area
was covered with gravel:
Part of the fence being set in place.
The gate we built
The completed fence Below are some of the students who helped with the cemetery clean up and attended the rededication ceremony:
Some of the townspeople who attended
Construction of the fence required a tractor from
the local community to weld the fence together
Sometimes we used a horse to transport parts of the fence (there were 177 sections) And sometimes we used
the horse for transport
The kids at the local high school were keenly interested as Celia told them about the project
Above is the winning student essay Finally, our meeting
with the Mayor and Regional Chairman
Copyright © 2007 |
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