DENVER (KDVR) — On the walls of Denver’s BMH-BJ Congregation, paper plates line the walls with small handprints and scribbled handwriting. Each plate contains one word: peace.
The situation in Ukraine is on the minds of many inside the Jewish congregation, including Rabbi Yaakov Chaitovsky.
“We have preschool teachers on our faculty who have deep roots in Eastern Europe,” Chaitovsky said. “And they’re all anxious about the situation.”
Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Babi Yar Holocaust memorial in Kyiv said damage was inflicted to a Jewish cemetery at the site. The memorial honors more than 33,000 Jewish people killed there by the Nazis in 1941. In Denver, the Babi Yar Memorial Park near Yale Avenue and Havana Street honors those victims as well.
“When we heard today that Babi Yar, that that area was bombed, it automatically just went right to our heart because of what Babi Yar means, what it’s a symbol for,” Chaitovsky said. “It really upset us, no question about it.”
How to donate to the Ukrainian cause
Chaitovsky and Jewish Colorado are encouraging people to donate to Jewish humanitarian efforts in the region.
The Orthodox Union has set up a Ukraine Emergency Fund that will support the efforts on the ground. The cause will receive 100% of the proceeds.
JEWISHcolorado has established an emergency fund in support of the work of global partners responding with critical services on the ground.
Chabad has set up the Ukraine Jewish Relief Fund to provide much-needed help to the Jewish community of Ukraine.