By Gefen Miller
On Monday night, Aug. 25, the HaZamir Choir of Baltimore performed at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in honor of the team’s “Jewish Heritage Night.”
The event was part of the Orioles’ “Theme Nights” promotional series. Fans who purchased special tickets for the game — against the Boston Red Sox — received an exclusive Jewish Heritage cap.
The game’s ceremonial first pitch was thrown by Gideon Kantor, a Jewish World War II veteran and D-Day survivor.
The 100-year-old Kantor, who lives in Montgomery County, was also a member of “the Ritchie Boys,” a fabled U.S. Military Intelligence Service group based at Camp Ritchie in Cascade, Maryland.
The Jewish War Veterans of the U.S.A. also took part in the pregame ceremony with a Color Guard presentation. Members included Andrew Altman, U.S. Army Reserve; Dan Berkovitz, JWV Post 167 Commander (Baltimore); Mike Glick, JWV Post 692 Commander (Rockville); Louis Landsman, U.S. Navy veteran; and Arnold Abraham, JWV Post 380 Commander (Annapolis).
The Baltimore choir, led by Erika Pardes Schon, is one of 33 HaZamir chapters around the world. Founded in 1993, HaZamir is an international choral organization and youth movement providing opportunities for high school-age Jewish teens to make meaningful connections through music.
The Aug. 25 performance featured a 23-person chorus, featuring 14 HaZamir teen fellows, seven returning alumni and a handful of adult singers.
The choir performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” as part of the game’s opening ceremony.
“Alumni range [in age] from 19 to 33 and they are very involved, especially when it comes to mentorship [for younger participants],” said Mrs. Schon.
Aaron Troy, a 2012 Baltimore HaZamir graduate from Washington, D.C., said he was honored to attend the game.
“It’s really beautiful to see a new generation of passionate American Jewish singers, to reconnect with alumni friends, and also to sing with my mom [who came] as a Hazamir parent,” he said. “It’s such an honor.”
Maxe Goodwin, a 2025 HaZamir graduate, called singing with the group “one of the best experiences of my life. It has let me connect to my Judaism in a way that I would never have been able to anywhere else. I have gotten so many unique ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunities because of HaZamir and I am nothing but grateful.”
For information about HaZamir Baltimore, contact Dr. Schon at hazamirbaltimore@gmail.com.
Gefen Miller is a Jmore editorial staff intern.
A committed philanthropist and community leader, Russel was president of R&H Motors.
The mother of four was a native of Winchester, Virginia, who spent most of her life in Northwest Baltimore.
The Columbia resident worked on the Gemini and Apollo space missions.
A St. Louis native, Edelman served as ambassador to the central African nation from 1987 to 1989.