On Tuesday, September 27, young and old gathered to commemorate the bravery of the Jewish soldiers in Russia who put their lives on the line to fight the Nazi regime. Many of those who attended this event had survived the war and emigrated to the United States, and they proudly displayed their war medals. Other survivors, mostly still living in the former Soviet Union, supplied their own medals and personal stories for display in the exhibit, “The Jewish Soldier's Red Star.” It was evident that the soldiers’ efforts were well worth it when a group of young Russian Jewish children, members of the JCCSF’s Tikvah Music & Dance Program, honored the audience with two Hebrew songs.

To see how Jewish organizations pull together to meet the needs of their fellow Jews worldwide is a pleasure and an honor, and everyone present seemed to share that satisfaction. Speeches from our own Genrikh Sivorinovsky, Director of JCF's Russian Division, Bethany Hornthal, President of the Board of Directors of the JCCSF, Ellen Heller, President of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and Ed Serotta, Director of Centropa, exemplified the idea of one Jewish community.

For more information on the exhibit, visit www.centropa.org.