Lawrence Man Dedicates
Jerusalem 9/11 Memorial
BY SAMUEL SOKOL,
JERUSALEM
A memorial to the over 3,000 victims
of Islamic terrorism who perished in the
9/11 attacks has been erected in the
Arazim forest outside of Jerusalem. This
show of solidarity between the people of
Israel and the city of New York was in
large part made possible by Carmi
Schwartz, a resident of Lawrence.
Schwartz, executor of the Bronka
Stavsky Rabin Weintraub estate, funded
the memorial’s vast plaza, which includes
the names of those fallen as well as
amphitheatre-style benches along the
periphery.
He explained in a prepared statement,
“This poignant memorial on behalf of
the victims of 9/11 helps demonstrate the
shared commitment of two great democ-
racies that battle terrorism—Israel and
24 November 20, 2009 5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES
the United States. This testament to the
solidarity shared by the U.S. and Israel
goes beyond lip service to unite these
nations and their allies in the global
fight against the destructive forces of
humanity.”
The memorial was commissioned and
built by the Jewish National Fund-USA
and features a central sculpture in the
shape of a waving American flag trans-
formed into a memorial flame. A small
piece of wreckage from the World Trade
Center is in a compartment in the granite
base. The sculpture itself was paid for
with a donation from Edward Blank, also
a resident of New York.
The 30-foot high bronze sculpture was
designed by award-winning Israeli artist
E. Weishoff.
The Jerusalem monument is one of the
first major international memorials to
the 9/11 attacks and the only site outside
At the dedication ceremony, Perl and Carmi Schwartz with their granddaughters.
of New York to recognize the names of
every victim. It can be seen from the
main Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway and is
located directly across from the Har
Hamenuchot cemetery.
Carmi Schwartz took a few minutes to
speak with the 5TJT before the dedication
ceremony began. “We are here to partici-
pate in the dedication of the Bronka
Stavsky Rabin Weintraub plaza and living
memorial for victims of 9/11 which in our
view constitute probably the most sym-
bolic bonding of the United States of
America and the State of Israel because
the terrorist act against the United States
of America which caused so much nation-
al pain in America and personal pain was
the culmination of the powerful bonding
that Israel and the United States so eager-
ly require, though the bonding has been
strong from the advent of the State of
Israel in 1948,” he stated.
Schwartz’s wife, Perl, added, “Carmi
and I brought three of our granddaugh-
ters with us. The oldest is Rachel, the next
Sarah, and [youngest] Tehilla for her bat
mitzvah, which was just in June, we treat-
ed her and her sisters to a trip here…so
she could see what the family was able to
accomplish… [It’s] a very special experi-
ence for us, and for them in understand-
ing the past, the present and the future.”
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert,
who was the mayor of Jerusalem at the
time of the attacks, made a surprise
appearance at the monument’s unveiling.
He used the opportunity to publicly blast
the United Nations’ Goldstone report,
which accused both Israel and Hamas of
war crimes during the Jewish state’s
defensive war in Gaza this past December
and January. Acknowledging the difficul-
ties inherent in asymmetric warfare, the
former prime minister explained there is
a fundamental difference between vic-
tims of terror and those hurt in the
course of anti-terror operations. “When
[terrorists] attack, when they commit sui-
cidal attacks, the main purpose is to kill
innocent civilians…to create chaos and
anarchy. When the fight is against ter-
ror…in the course of these actions, some-
times uninvolved people are affected. It is
against the desire and against the pur-
pose of these operations.”
Ret. IDF Brig. General Dov Shefi lost
his son in the 9/11 attacks. He stated that
the memorial dedication ceremony “sym-
bolizes the identification of the State of
Israel…with the thousands of families of
 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Continued from Page 23
follows Jewish law unless proved other-
wise. Rabbi Eckstein has devoted his life
to serving his fellow Jews. There is noth-
ing to indicate that he would transgress
laws that prohibit benefiting from idola-
try, G-d forbid.
The Fellowship’s primary intent is to
encourage Christians to donate to Jewish
causes, but of course others may also
donate. The IFCJ utilizes these critical
funds in several arenas. I will note just
two. The Isaiah 58 project, to which I
have given money, is unmatched in its
endeavors on behalf of destitute Jews
who live in the former Soviet Union. I
recently viewed a program about Isaiah
58 and came away stunned by the condi-
tions in which these Jews live, yet heart-
ened by the aid that the IFCJ provides
them. For a relatively small amount of
money, the Fellowship offers heat and
food to Jews who have been long forgot-
ten by other organizations. The food is
kosher, and the project is administered
on the ground by the Joint Distribution
Committee. In 2008, the Fellowship dis-
tributed almost 25 million dollars
through Isaiah 58.
In Israel, the Fellowship directs vital
funds to food kitchens and other aid
groups through its Guardians of Israel
program. Among the beneficiaries are
Orthodox organizations, including
Migdal Ohr and Colel Chabad. If these
groups are cut off from Fellowship
money, which alternate source will step
up, in these difficult times, to make up
the deficit? Who will promise to provide
life-saving assistance to the elderly, the
Holocaust survivors, and others who rely
upon the Fellowship?
I don’t know how the question about
IFCJ was presented to Rav Elyashiv. Was
he told that IFCJ engages in missionary
activity? I have a letter in my possession
from the Fellowship in which its anti-
missionary position is made crystal
clear. As a corollary, I asked whether any
Christian organizations were involved
in distributing aid, a situation that
could lead to missionary activity. The
answer given me was: “We do not use
Christian aid organizations in Russia, in
Israel, or any other part of the world to
distribute to needy Jews.” Unfortun-
ately, I believe that Rav Elyashiv was
wrongly informed about the nature of
the IFCJ and its mission.
I pray that those with access to Rav
Elyashiv will revisit the IFCJ issue. I am
confident that if he is properly informed,
Rav Elyashiv will revise his conclusion. In
the meantime, I urge your readers to do
their own research about IFCJ; I think
they will agree that this organization’s
life-saving work deserves our support.
Avi Goldstein,
Far Rockaway
Editor’s note: The pernicious aspects of
Rabbi Yechiel Epstein’s IFCJ organization,
including the Isaiah 58 project, were
exposed in an article by Mayaan Pase-
Jaffein, “Buying Jewish Souls,” in the
March 2005 issue of The Jewish Observer,
as well as in a follow-up to Rabbi
Eckstein’s response in the Summer 2005
issue. Readers may also be interested in a
July 24, 2005 New York Times Magazine
article by Zev Chafets, “The Rabbi Who
Loved Evangelicals (and Vice Versa).” ❖

the victims of September 11 throughout

the world, with the United States and
with the city of New York.”
Col. Rick Burgess, the American mili-
tary attaché in Israel, recalled his memo-
ries of the 9/11 attacks. Burgess told the
5TJT: “I was serving in Turkey on
September 11, 2001, and this [ceremony]
brought back a lot of memories, powerful
memories in my mind, and sitting here
with Jerusalem in the background, it’s
just an amazing experience... The United
States is always going to stand with Israel.
There’re lots of challenges around the
world and we’re going to work through
all these, and it’s just very meaningful to
me to have this opportunity to be here
today...Set against the magnificent back-
drop of Jerusalem, the living memorial
will be a moving place from which to
mourn the victims of 9/11 as well as con-
sider the thousands of victims of terror-
ism worldwide,” said Russell F. Robinson,
CEO of the JNF. “Jerusalem is a battle-
ground of civilization but also a place of
hope. The memorial is situated in
Jerusalem’s green belt; what better place
to show that civilization won?”
Both former President Bill Clinton and
current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu sent letters expressing their
solidarity with the victims of terrorism.
PM Netanyahu wrote, “As home to three of
the world’s major religions, Jerusalem is a
fitting home for this memorial—one that
not only commemorates the victims of
terror, but also reaffirms our commitment
to freedom, democracy, and tolerance.” ❖
5 TOWNS JEWISH TIMES November 20, 2009 25