14 November 2023

Opening ceremony of the restored fence at the old Jewish cemetery in the city of Calarasi

On November 14, the opening ceremony of the restored fence took place at the old Jewish cemetery in Calarasi, which dates back to 1790.

Before the ceremony, a lecture was given to local schoolchildren and library workers about the importance of preserving Jewish cemeteries. The speakers of this lecture were Angela Borsch and Olga Sivak, employees of the Jewish Library. I. Manner of Chisinau and employee of the Museum of History and Ethnography of Calarasi – Mariana Iurcu

Speakers at the ceremony included:
Philip Carmel – General Director of ESJF (European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative), Mrs. Melnik Ekaterina – Acting Mayor of Calarasi, Peter Buschmann – Deputy Head of Mission of the Federal Republic of Germany in the Republic of Moldova, Pavel Tuev – Member of the Association Council and Head of the Expert Council for the preservation of the heritage of the Jewish Community of the Republic of Moldova, Mariana Iurcu is an employee of the Museum of History and Ethnography of Calarasi.

This ceremony was concluded by reading a funeral prayer by the rabbi of the Beit Yosef synagogue in Chisinau, Rav Rahamim Belenky, as well as all the ceremony participants who laid stones and flowers.

We thank ESJF for its assistance in implementing this important project to preserve the historical and cultural heritage of Moldova.