The Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland (FODŻ) has begun cooperation with the Czerwony Bór Prison. Prisoners will help maintain Jewish cemeteries in Jedwabne, Łomża, Szczuczyn and Zambrów. FODŻ will organize educational activities as part of the project.

The idea was conceived in the spring. Due to the high cost of maintaining the grounds of the Jewish cemetery in Łomża, which covers more than 2 hectares, FODŻ decided to purchase its own equipment and seek partners to help carry out the work.

Anna Moczydłowska established contact with the Czerwony Bór Prison. Acting on behalf of FODŻ, she had taken responsibility for the cemetery, replacing Kazimierz Szczechura, who had been its long-standing caretaker. The request for assistance received a positive response from the prison director, Colonel Zbigniew Jankowski.

As part of the cooperation, inmates of the prison will carry out maintenance work at the Jewish cemeteries in Jedwabne, Łomża, Szczuczyn and Zambrów. FODŻ will provide equipment, fuel and meals, and will organize educational sessions for the inmates on Jewish culture and history.

“There is a great deal of willingness and enthusiasm to work,” said Colonel Zbigniew Jankowski. “It is also important for the prisoners because they learn something and have an opportunity to go outside.”

Education will be an important part of the program. This is also significant from the perspective of the inmates’ rehabilitation.

“Through this project, the prisoners will learn about the Jewish communities that lived in the surrounding towns,” added Anna Moczydłowska. “I think these lectures will attract a great deal of interest.”

There are already tangible results of the cooperation. At the prison, Krzysztof Bielawski of FODŻ gave a lecture on Jewish cemeteries and Jewish burial customs, and the inmates spent three days carrying out maintenance work at the Jewish cemetery on Wąska Street in Łomża.

“The four cemeteries covered by the agreement are not simply Jewish cemeteries,” said Krzysztof Bielawski. “They should be also viewed as burial places of people who lived in these towns. They are also places of martyrdom, as well as historic sites.”

Gary and Susan Berman funded the purchase of brush cutters for work at the cemeteries through Friends of Jewish Heritage in Poland. FODŻ covered the costs of fuel and meals for the prisoners from its own funds and from donations received from Gary and Susan Berman, Yoav Rudelman, Barry Sklar, and Łomża Jewish Cemetery Foundation.

However, continuing the work will not be possible without additional funding. Please help us care for the graves of Jews in Jedwabne, Łomża, Szczuczyn and Zambrów. Donations can be made to FODŻ by bank transfer or through PayPal (Fundacja Ochrony Dziedzictwa Żydowskiego), as well as through Friends of Jewish Heritage in Poland | Restoration.

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