Volume 101, Number 21 www.kcjc.com May 27, 2021 16 Sivan 5781
jewish chronicle The KANSAS
CITY
Rally at the JCC supports Israel after recent rocket barrage from Gaza
By Mike Sherry Editor
Approximately 250 attendees rallied Sunday afternoon at the Jewish Community Campus in Overland Park to stand behind Israel after the country endured days of rocket fire from Gaza during the recent conflict with Hamas. “We gather today to express and demonstrate our support and unity with our brothers and sisters in Eretz Yisrael — those who over the last few weeks bore the onslaught of more than 4,000 missiles fired from Gaza and endured civil unrest and violence in their streets,” said Michael Abrams, immediate past board chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City. “Many of us in the Jewish community have felt under attack and isolated this week — but as we can see here today, we are not alone,” said Gary Wolf, board president of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee (JCRB|AJC). “We stand united, together, as a people who desperately desire peace for Israel and her neighbors, yet who remain crystal clear about the realities on the ground.” The roughly 45-minute rally included songs and prayers — and several minutes of the hora at the end — mixed in with the remarks. The persistent rain that had drenched the region during the past week largely held off, save for a few
Attendees at Sunday’s pro-Israel rally at the Jewish Community Campus in Overland Park dance the hora after the 45-minute program wrapped up. (Mike Sherry) sprinkles. Jewish Federation organized the event in partnership with the JCRB|AJC and the Rabbinical Association of Greater Kansas City. Israelis living in the local community participated in the event, including Gil Nevat, a veteran of the Israel Defense Forces. He offered a prayer for the IDF. In addition, another Israeli, Nissim Mina, led the musical accompaniment for the rally. Joining him were brothers Yoni and Daniel Israeli. The show of support for Israel came as a fragile ceasefire took hold May 20, with clashes between Palestinians and
Israeli police reported just hours after announcement of the agreement. About 230 Gazans and 12 Israelis died in the exchange of fire that began on May 9 with Hamas launching rockets into Israel, toward Jerusalem. The fighting in Gaza and Israel, and the unrest, followed weeks of protests in eastern Jerusalem and Jerusalem’s Old City. Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli police multiple times on the Temple Mount, Judaism’s holiest site, which Muslims revere as the Noble Sanctuary, and which is the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. There were also protests in the east-
Gary Wolf, board president of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee, addresses the crowd at the Sunday rally demonstrating support and unity with Israel following the recent hostilities with Hamas. (Drew Coleman/Bring it on Productions) ern Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, which some Jews refer to as Shimon Hatzaddik, over the pending eviction of Palestinian families from homes owned by Jews. Jewish leaders, both in Kansas City and nationally, have decried a spike in antisemitic incidents in the U.S. in the wake of the hostilities. See RALLY, PAGE 8
Living history
Jewish youth with KC ties helps tell stories of Holocaust survivors in ‘Witness Project 2021’ By Jerry LaMartina Contributing Writer Memories captured in stories are part of history. Preserving those memories for future generations helps keep history’s lessons alive. In that spirit, the documentary film “Witness Project 2021,” in which the stories of five Holocaust survivors are told with the help of nearly 50 students, will premier June 9 on Zoom. The film has a Kansas City connection through Jared Chapman, 17, one of the project’s participants. Jared’s father, Mark Chapman, is from here. Mark’s father, Paul Chapman, lives in Leawood, and Mark also has extended family living in the area. Mark and his family live in
Roslyn, New York. The UJA-Federation of New York sponsors the film, which is part of a Long Island Witness Project fundraiser for Holocaust survivor services. An anonymous donor pledged to match all donations dollar for dollar up to $100,000 through June 30. “The program keeps the memory of the Holocaust alive in the hearts and minds of the next generation and helps the survivors come to terms with their past,” organizers said in promotional material for the film. The project began in 2018. It was held again in 2019 as a stage performance and art exhibit, and in 2020 as a film, said Nancy Powers, a project coordinator. Jared learned of the Witness Project
soon after returning home from having his bar mitzvah in Israel. A friend who had taken part in the project told him about it, and Jared became interested in participating. A trip to Yad Vashem during his bar mitzvah trip spurred an interest in the stories of Holocaust survivors. At the museum, he was given a “twin.” That was a person who shared a birthday with Jared, but who died in the Holocaust. Jared learned about the person. “It’s kind of sad to see the parallel between my life and someone who had to live such a tragic life and die so young,” he said. Jared said he knew his generation was one of the last ones who could learn Holocaust survivors’ stories from firsthand accounts. Students in the project also get to know “what they’re like as a person, what they do in their free time, how they were able to overcome such a tough challenge in their life and become successful.” Although many people have suffered during the coronavirus pandemic, he said, “it really doesn’t even compare to what some of these people went through.” In applying for the project, Jared was
The camera is rolling on Jared Chapman, 17, as he recites the story of a Holocaust survivor his group met as part of “Witness Project 2021,” which premiers on Zoom June 9. (Courtesy Jared Chapman) asked what made him right for the program, why he deserved to take part and why it was important to him. See STUDENTS, PAGE 2