Cover Story

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Lori Depriest, Arlene Blumenstein, Sam Blumenstein,
Jack Wolfe, Charlene Wolfe, Denise Baum and Robin
Schwartz, all of We'st Bloomfield, stand in _front of the
Shur with the scroll of parchment that was later assembled
arid-completed as the Memorial Torah.

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Zelig Shemtov, 5, of West Bloomfield and Deena
Martin, 13, of Sylvan Lake get a look at the parch-
ment scroll

that all his kids were on, and we just loved him. Being
commissioning the writing of one, we can make a
able to make him a part of a living Torah, in a way,
donation and be able to actually write a letter, or a
:keeps
him alive."
word or a verse in the Torah."
The
final four letters that completed the Torah were
While much of the $40,000 cost of the Memorial
saved for the Baum, Blumenstein, Schwartz and Wolfe
Torah was underwritten by the four founding families,
families.
donors who purchased letters subsidized the total cost.
On the cover of the Torah is a flame that forms the
Participants who received the honor of writing in the
words Shema Israel (daily prayer of Jewish identifica-
Torah did so with the guidance and supervision of
tion). "This is from the concept that a Jew's last breath
Rabbi Kagan.
should be used in saying the Shema — to remember
"This allowed everyone to be able to write a letter
we
have our God and our Torah," Rabbi Shemtov said.
and fulfill the mitzvah, by dipping the quill in the ink
The cover also reads, "In memory of the victims of
or by holding it along with Rabbi Kagan while he
the Sept. 11, 2001-Elul 23, 5760 tragedy," with a
wrote," Rabbi Shemtov said. "To have the opportunity
Hebrew acronym signifying the phrase, "may their
to be part of the writing of a Torah is something that
souls rest in peace."
not many Jews get to do."
Nearly 2,800 people died in the 9-11 attacks.
Many who chose to write letters did so in honor or
A
"March of Hope" followed the completion of the
memory of a loved one.
Torah,
with participants offered the opportunity to
"This was such an appropriate way to memorialize
take
turns
carrying the Torah from the JCC to its
my nephew," said Doreen Hermelin of Bingham
home at the Shul for a formal dedication ceremony.
Farms who wrote in the Torah in memory of Ian
The event was coordinated by Rosenstein, Rabbi
Schneider who died in the World Trade Center attacks.
Mann, Rabbi Kasriel and Itty Shemtov and chairper-
"He was so involved in his synagogue and was an
son Jack Wolfe. Assistant coordinators were Neil
active member of his Jewish community in New
Wolfson of Commerce, Bernard Blumenstein of West
Jersey. "
Bloomfield and Michelle Martin of Sylvan Lake.
Hermelin was close with her nephew, who had been
a managing partner at Cantor Fitzgerald investment
Highest Honor
brokers in New York. "He meant a great deal to my
"The
general idea of honoring someone — a parent, a
family," she said.
rabbi, a teacher — by dedicating a Torah to them has
"He was an amazing person, a very dedicated family
been a part of Jewish tradition for centuries," Rabbi
man with three children, the coach of all the teams

9/12

2003

72

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Elijah Wolfe, 3, Mendel Shemtov, 9, and Levi Shemtov,
7, all of West Bloomfield, surround Rabbi Kasriel
Shemtov.

Shemtov said. "There is no greater honor in Judaism
than to memorialize the holy people who perished on
9-11 by bringing light into the world with a Torah."
Wolfe said, "We did this in the name of everyone
who was murdered as a result of the attacks — for
Jews and non-Jews."
Media photos that advertised the event showed the
New York City skyline, with an outstretched Torah
scroll standing tall in the space where the World Trade
Center buildings once stood. The words "Light
Against Darkness" are printed in large bold letters.
"That shows if people followed the message of peace
and goodness that is in the Torah, the light of the
Torah would stop such a thing from happening
again," Wolfe said.
"If all we follow is the Ten Commandments — ter-
rorism would be gone," Rosenstein said.
"This Torah is the birth of a new light, a new inspi-
ration in the world," Rabbi Shemtov said. "If there is
hope for our society and for the world to find a way to
survive and thrive, the words of the Torah will give us
that guidance. It is what gives us life and purpose of
who we are.
"We worry that with two years having passed, the
impact of 9-11 is gone. We need to have the same
feelings of urgency to make the world a better place.
Torah is what gets us out of troubles and gets us into
the future. It teaches us that we can respond by bring-
ing a positive light into the world." ❑