Torah ark for synagogue.

Hi all,

My family, the Solomons, were Hamburg Jews. My great grandfather, Solly Solomon, emigrated to the U.S. at the turn of the century and settled in Houston. He left behind siblings, most of whom were murdered in the Shoah. There are plaques, called "stolpersteines," literally translated as "stumbling blocks" outside of the places from where they were deported to camps, notably Riga in Latvia.

Last summer, my son, Daniel, his wife Kala, and my cousins' children, Sophie and Miriam traveled to Hamburg to learn more about and pay our respects to the Solomons who were murdered. We saw the stolpersteines in front of the remaining buildings, and walked the streets in our family's footsteps. We were helped by a wonderful group called The American Women of Hamburg, a club that has sponsored several stopersteines. As part of our pilgrimage we went to a synagogue to say Kaddish. We were welcomed with open arms and we felt that we were "milschpulcha" (family). We would like to help the synagogue as a reflection of our gratitude.

About the Judische Gemeinde Synagogue:

The Judische Gemeinde Synagogue, a part of the Progressive Movement in Germany (equivalent to the Reform Movement in the U.S.) is sharing the Betty Heine Saal, which was an historic synagogue based in the former Jewish Hospital in Hamburg, which survived the bombing in WWII.

The Temple Association, founded in 1816 in Hamburg, was the first liberal congregation in the world to endure. The Temple Association became the predominant synagogue among the Jews of Hamburg. In total, around 20,000 Jews lived in Hamburg in 1933. After the Nazis seized power, more and more Hamburg Jews left the city and the number of Jews living in Hamburg fell to just under 10,0000 in 1939, most of whom were deported and murdered in the following years.

After the liberation of Hamburg in May 1945, 70 Jews still lived in Hamburg. Most had survived with the help of their non-Jewish spouses. These 70 Jews founded the "Jüdische Gemeinde in Hamburg" as early as November 1945. These survivors came from all Jewish communities of Hamburg and had been members of both the Temple Federation and the Orthodox communities. In view of their small number, they stipulated in the statutes that this community should be the home for all Jews, regardless of whether they considered themselves liberal, conservative or orthodox.

After 1945, the membership of the community increased greatly. The liberated surviving Jewish inmates of the concentration camps returned to their homes, which were mainly in Eastern Europe. There they faced renewed pogroms from the population living there and had to flee from the anti-Semitism. They felt safest in the areas of Germany occupied by the Americans and the British. This was Bavaria (USA) and Hamburg with Northern Germany (Great Britain).

The Jüdische Gemeinde in Hamburg“ now has about 300 Jews who attend services with some regularity. A goal of the reform synagogue is to bring Jewish history back to the consciousness of the population of Hamburg. They see themselves as part of Hamburg society, take part in discussions about the Jewish Hamburg history and regularly receive school classes to report on Jewish life and Judaism.

The Reform Synagogue was given a chapel in the larger building for its sole use by the Hamburg City Council and there is a lot missing. While they have a Torah, they do not have an ark in which to house it. The Torah ark is estimated to cost Euro 6,000 to build and so far they have received donations of about 3.000 (euro).

THIS FUNDRAISER, CREATED BY SOLOMON FAMILY MEMBERS CAN HELP TO COMPLETE THE MISSION!

PLEASE HELP!