Although last month’s tragic shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh left many Jewish Baltimoreans worried it could happen here, they should be reassured that The Associated continues to make security a number one community priority.
Through its agency, the Baltimore Jewish Council (BJC), The Associated is providing infrastructure upgrades, training and increased funding to Jewish schools, synagogues and the JCC, among others – to help ensure Jewish Baltimore’s safety.
“BJC and the Associated see our role in terms of security as much broader than merely protecting the agencies of the Associated,” said Howard Libit, executive director of BJC. “We feel we have a real responsibility to everyone in the Jewish community to protect all our Jewish institutions in Baltimore City, Baltimore County and the surrounding counties, as well.”
Over the years, said Keith Tiedemann, who is on the staff at BJC as well as serves as The Associated’s director of security, The Associated has been called upon to review security infrastructure and protocol at area institutions. According to Tiedemann, he’s been involved with more than 70 assessments at area schools and synagogues across the Baltimore metropolitan region, including Harford County, Howard County and Annapolis.
Immediately following the Pittsburgh shooting, The Associated and the BJC convened a security summit. Approximately 100 people representing Jewish institutions across the region, including Associated agencies, synagogues, and day schools, as well as Jewish organizations such as Sol Levinson & Bros., Inc., attended. Law enforcement officials discussed what they were doing to protect local Jewish institutions.
In addition, thanks to the work of the BJC, in the past year the community was awarded more than $1.75 million in federal Homeland Security grants for synagogues and other Jewish institutions. This makes a total of $9.8 million to our community since the program began 14 years ago.
At the same time, the BJC was successful in advocating for the passage of two new statewide security grants as well as helping secure funding in the Governor’s budget.
“We are very appreciative of the Governor and our state legislators who are not only willing but committed, to investing in protecting our schools and our institutions,” said Libit. The Associated, in conjunction with BJC also holds Active Shooter workshops, led by the Baltimore Homeland Security Unit, for synagogues and schools, and offered a bomb workshop open to the public and led by the Department of Homeland Security.
Emotional Well-Being
When tragedy strikes unexpectedly, the psychological trauma goes well beyond those who are immediately affected. Whether it is a devastating shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue that left 11 dead or the sudden death of a young parent – classmates, co-workers and the greater community often find themselves grappling with various emotions and reactions in the aftermath.
To help the Baltimore Jewish community cope in the wake of a critical incident, The Associated funded the Jewish Community Critical Incident Response Team, spearheaded by Jewish Community Services (JCS), to provide “psychological first aid” in times of crisis.
Over the years, the group of trained professionals throughout The Associated system visited synagogues and classrooms to help staff cope with traumatic incidents such as violence and death.
In the past few years, the group has been called on a number of times. For example, in 2017, when bomb threats were being made against the JCC, the team offered support to JCC staff. They also worked with JCC preschool teachers, who were called upon several times to evacuate the children, providing them with information that would help them “be there for the kids as well as the parents,” explained Beth Land Hecht, senior manager, community engagement for JCS and a member of the program.
“We are available to deploy a team to the Baltimore Jewish community anywhere from 48 hours to 10 days after an incident and have responded to a variety of requests, including the untimely death of teachers and congregational staff to a fatal automobile accident that traumatized students at a Jewish middle school,” said Jacki Ashkin, director of community connections for JCS who also heads up this program.
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