Boynton Beach resident commemorates Jewish history here and in Israel

After a successful career in the world of finance, Boynton Beach, Florida, resident Jerry Klinger has become a "professional rememberer."

Klinger, 73, started this endeavor as a result of trying to locate the first Jewish house of worship in New Mexico, Temple Montefiore, Las Vegas, N.M., established 1884. Instead, he found a Catholic church. At that location, he established the first of many markers, plaques and monuments he has placed across the United States. The list includes the first Jewish house of worship in Florida, Temple Beth El in Pensacola. The goal is to commemorate the history of Jewish individuals, Jewish communities, and their American experience. The projects are "positive affirmations of Jewish American commonality and legitimacy." All of the expense for these projects comes out of Klinger's own pocket.

An only child, Klinger's Viennese father survived Buchenwald and his Polish mother survived Bergen Belsen. Klinger was only 6 years old when his father succumbed to injuries suffered in the concentration camps. He grew up in America, was a former Yeshivah student in Washington, D.C. and did advanced studies at the University of Maryland. Turned down by the U.S. Army because of a college athletic knee injury, he served with the Israeli Defense Forces in the Sinai.

After retiring as a senior vice president of Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Klinger founded and became president of the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation, http://www.JASHP.org, a nonprofit embarked on bringing to light little known historical Jewish experiences in America. Klinger believes using his "wealth" in this way is more important than any other legacy he might leave.

More recently, this effort has expanded to five other countries. JASHP has now completed well over 100 projects in 40 states and internationally. That includes 11 projects in Israel with more in development. Over 7 million people annually visit and learn from one of JASHP's projects

Klinger estimates that he has spent more than $1million JASHP on projects.

"I'm concerned about the rising antisemitism. This is my way of helping protect all Jews, our children and grandchildren from antisemites who say, 'You (Jews) have no right here, you didn't help build this country,'" Klinger said.

In May 2021, during the recent assault on Israel from Gaza, a large, sculptured memorial with seven Yemenite refugees by Sam Philipe was installed on the Sherover Promenade in Jerusalem. It was conceived and funded by Klinger and JASHP, with the support of the mayor of Jerusalem and several other organizations. Titled the Departure and Expulsion Memorial, it is to commemorate the over one million Sephardi/Mizrahi Jews who in 1948 lived in Arab lands, including Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Iran, countries which they considered home for over 2,000 years. But they found themselves expelled from their homes, leaving everything behind with no compensation or opportunity to return. Less than 10,000 remain in those lands.

Jews who Saved Jews – Memorial in Safed

Klinger is fulfilling a long-held desire to fund and build the first permanent memorial honoring Jews who saved Jews, filling in small measure the void left by their omission at Jerusalem's Yad Vashem. For example, extraordinary Jews like Jonas Eckstein from Bratislava who saved 2,000 Jews during the Holocaust - he is not listed at all at Yad Vashem.

The memorial, titled "The Hands of Choice," is shown in the attached artist's rendering. To be located next to the municipal building in Safed, it will be covered with representative names of "Jews who saved Jews," spanning 3,500 years of history. It should be completed this summer.

As Klinger pointed out in his Blog, "Jewish law does not mandate that a Jew should risk their life to save another Jew. The decision to choose is personal and individual. Those who made the choice, frequently at the risk of their own lives, are the lights of hope and example for today and for our children's tomorrows."