National Shomrim News and Information
The 2019 National Shomrim convention on board the Celebrity Silhouette is practically sold out! Our official Shomrim cruise planner Tony Lostumbo advises that there are only a handful of staterooms left at the prices Celebrity has guaranteed for our group. Once those staterooms are gone, anyone wanting to join us will have to pay the full price the cruise line will charge all their guests for this cruise. There is a possibility that Tony might be able to squeeze a few more staterooms from Celebrity for our group, but that’s not guaranteed. If you want to attend you must book your cabin before the price increases.
Celebrity Silhouette is sailing from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Friday, February 1, 2019, to Grand Cayman, Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao, returning on Sunday, February 10, 2019. The Silhouette will sail deep into the Southern Caribbean to ports that National Shomrim has never traveled to as a group and will have many of the special services that our group always gets – private cocktail parties, Sabbath services, and of course, our own meeting facilities, where our expert lecturers give talks on many different topics that are important to our professional and personal lives. Attendees can also choose from two of these four extra perks that Celebrity is offering to our group:
- Free internet for two people (in the same stateroom), or
- Free beverage package, or
- Free gratuities, or
- Onboard stateroom credit of $300
Balcony $1,572.96 per person (single price is $3,001.96)
Inside $1,126.25 per person (single price $2,145.25)
A $450.00 per person deposit is due at time of booking and is fully refundable until October 15, 2018. Insurance is highly recommended and an additional price.
As a reminder, if any one attending the cruise needs kosher food, with enough notice the ship will provide as many triple wrapped kosher meals that any attendee requires. The reduced price and the extra perks will only be available until February 28, 2018, so if you want to join National Shomrim on a fun filled cruise please email Tony at cruisexpo@gmail.com or call him at (954) 384-7245 to book your cabin before the end of this month to take advantage of the additional benefits our group will be getting.
Sheldon Levi of Shomrim of D.C. advises that the Kaddish service will be taking place on Monday, May 14, 2018, during National Police Week in Washington D.C. The ceremony will begin 9:00 a.m. at the NLEOM and the collation following the ceremony will take place at Metropolitan Police Headquarters Line Up Room (same location as last year), 300 Indiana Avenue NW. A Metro DC police officer in the building will direct attendees to the location for the collation. This is a moving and important ceremony that all Shomrim members should attend. We should never forget our members, and all members of all services, police, fire fighters, and the others in the uniformed services whose lives mattered. Additionally, Nassau Shomrim member Alan Hirsch advises that the Police Unity Tour will ride to Washington D.C. to participate in National Police Memorial Week. A group of 15 Israeli Police Officers and Nassau County Shomrim members and police officers will leave the World Trade Center and ride to the Memorial in Washington D.C. They will also be attending the Kaddish service with National Shomrim. The Israeli Police have sent officers over to the U.S. for the past two years to participate in this important event. They are asking for donations to cover their costs. Please contact Mike Safris at (201) 303-0622 or email at msafris@msafris.com or Alan Hirsch at (516) 382-6353 or email at AHirsch@PDCN.ORG.
I hope you are all making your plans to join National Shomrim as we march up Fifth Avenue in New York City for the annual Celebrate Israel Parade on Sunday, June 3, 2018. There is always a preparade collation and a short National Shomrim meeting before we line up. Details will be sent out as we get closer to the parade. Don’t miss this amazing experience of marching with the National Shomrim members and Chapter Presidents to the cheers of thousands as we walk up Fifth Avenue in New York City!
More National Shomrim history: Steven Klein, Chairman of the Board of the FDNY New Tamid Society, has provided more information on the past presidents of our organization. Leon Chikofsky, a captain in the FDNY, and Seymour Mencher, a firefighter with the FDNY, were presidents of National Shomrim in the 1960s. Herb Schoenfeld was a Sergeant in the New York City Transit Police and was in office in the 1960s. Mel Bader was a New York State Court Officer assigned to Bronx Supreme Court and served as president of National Shomrim from the late 1960s to the early 1970s. Gerry Hershenshon was with the Boston Police Department as a server of misdemeanor warrants and was the president in the 1970s, as was Milt Charen, who was a deputy sheriff in Essex County, New Jersey. We love learning about the history of our organization, and if anyone has more information, we’d love to fill in more blanks!
Chapter News and Information
Shomrim of Maryland invites all to their Purim Party on Thursday, March 1, 2018, at 12:00 noon, at the JUSA Law Enforcement Lounge, 600 Reisterstown Road, Suite 303 (corner of Slade Avenue), Pikesville, Maryland 21208. Their chaplain, Rabbi Chesky Tenenbaum, will be reading Megillat Esther and afterwards guests will enjoy a Purim feast, including traditional hamantashen. There is no charge to attend this Purim Party and sponsorships are available. For information or to RSVP please email RabbiCT@JewishUSAMD.org or to Shomrim of Maryland President Jeremy Silbert at silbert@shomrimmd.org.
Shomrim of Maryland advises that Jeremy Silbert has been reelected as President of their organization. Assisting him will be Gary Yamin as his First Vice President, Ron Starr as his Second Vice President, David Blumberg as the Treasurer, Mordechai Singer will be the Secretary, David Rosenblatt is the Sergeant-At-Arms, and guiding them with all spiritual and ritual matters will be Rabbi Chesky Tenenbaum as their Chaplain. Congratulations to all!
South Florida Shomrim Society President Harvey Meshel and his wife, Randi, who also serves as the organization’s Treasurer, have pulled off an amazing mitzvah. They called in favors, reached out to friends, sponsors and professional contacts, solicited donations from anyone and everyone and singlehandedly marshalled an army of volunteers to sort and pack dozens of items that were sent to the students in Parkland. Over a thousand backpacks, toys, snacks, and educational materials were boxed and delivered to the student survivors so that when they returned to school they would have welcome packages and words of comfort to help them transition back to a sense of normalcy during this heartbreaking episode in their lives. Harvey’s warehouse was command central for this massive undertaking, and he is so thankful to everyone to donated, including several Shomrim chapters who sent monetary donations. The kindness that Harvey and Randi are showing to the Parkland students will never be forgotten.
Additionally, Andrew Pollack, the father of slain student Meadow Pollack, AH, has arranged with Chabad to build a park and garden in her memory. Chabad of Coral Springs is donating the land, to be called the Chabad Meadow Garden. If anyone would like to donate to keep her memory alive please send your checks to Chabad Meadow Garden, 10101 West Sample Road, Coral Springs, FL 33065.
South Florida Shomrim’s annual picnic, “Machin a Piknik,” is scheduled for Sunday, March 18, 2018, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m at C.B. Smith Park in Pembroke Pines, Florida. This free picnic draws over 300 members from the many public safety communities in South Florida who attend with their families. There is plenty of kosher food available, and entertainment too. Attendees must pay the small admission fee to C.B. Smith Park, which entitles them to go in and out of the park as many times as they like. The annual picnic is instrumental in raising vital funds benefiting families of members and assisting charities. Please consider a tax deductible donation of funds, good and/or services. For information on how to contribute or sponsor one of the many events, please contact South Florida Shomrim President Harvey Meshel at harvey@hsmconsulting.net
Thursday, March 22, 2018, is the date for the NYPD Shomrim Society’s Annual Dinner Dance, where the new board of officers will be sworn into their positions for NYPD Shomrim and National Shomrim. It will take place at Da Mikele Illagio, 79-17 Albion Avenue, Elmhurst, Queens, NY, 11373. The cost for the dinner is $125.00 per person in advance and $135.00 at the door and begins at 6:00 p.m. Valet parking is available. Please RSVP to dinner dance chairpersons Murray Ellman at mur543@yahoo.com or Marty Turetzky at rmturetzky@aol.com if you plan to attend.
Nassau Shomrim will once again partner with the Hatzilu Rescue Organization to bring Passover food to needy clients. The food distribution will take place on Sunday, March 25, 2018, at Nassau Kosher Provisions Warehouse in Freeport, New York. Anyone wishing to donate goods or their time to this mitzvah should contact Nassau Shomrim member Stuart Roberts at stubert86@yahoo.com.
FDNY Ner Tamid Society will be holding a Passover Seder at Fire Headquarters in Brooklyn. There is no cost to attend. Please RSVP to FDNY Ner Tamid President Nicholas Malter at fdnynts@gmail.com for details.
NYPD Shomrim’s trip to Israel in April is sold out, but you can put your name on the waiting list. The trip visits historical cities and sites and there will be meetings with selected leaders of the country and with Israeli law enforcement. Please contact Gordon Nash in Florida at (516) 632-7764 or Sam Miller in New York at (347) 723-6708 if you’d like to be on the standby list for this trip.
Member News and Information
Shomrim of Illinois advises that longtime member Peter Lane passed away in December 2017. His son, Fred, a former Chicago Police Sergeant, is now with the federal government. We pass along our condolences to the Lane Family.
We send condolences to Shomrim of Maryland members Ilene Nathan and Stuart Nathan upon the recent loss of their mother Gladys. May they be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Israel.
Congratulations to National Shomrim Central States Regional Vice President Bruce Rottner, of Shomrim of Illinois, who was appointed Interim Chief of Police of Lincolnwood, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, on December 1, 2017. Bruce retired as a Deputy Chief of Patrol in 2011 after 39 years with the Chicago Police Department.
Congratulations to Associate Member Jed Dolnick who has put in his papers and will be retiring shortly as the Chief of the Jackson Police Dept. in Wisconsin. Welcome to the club Jed!
Port Authority Shomrim is very proud of former Executive Vice President and retired Lt. Paul Zuckerberg, who will be honored by UJA Federation at a breakfast reception at Congregation Ohav Shalom, 145 S. Merrick Avenue, Merrick, New York, on Sunday, March 11, 2018. The breakfast will begin at 9:45 a.m. and there is no charge to attend. Paul was chosen by a committee to receive this honor because of his commitment to UJA and his efforts in the community. His family, especially his son David, also a member of the Port Authority Police and the current Shomrim treasurer, have followed in his footsteps and are continuing his work. Please contact Sherri Candel at (516) 762-5896 or candels@ujafedny.org to attend.
JOB OPPORTUNITY! The Franklin Lakes, NJ Volunteer Fire Dept. is actively seeking trained fire fighters who may be interested in participating in a newly formed Duty-Crew program and also a Day Time Stipend program that is being funded by a FEMA S.A.F.E.R grant. Please contact Chief Ryan Dodd at (201) 891-5736 or firechief@franklinlakes.org for details and information. Applications can also be picked up at the Franklin Lakes Borough Hall, 480 Dekorte Drive, Franklin Lakes, NJ.
National Shomrim keeps growing in popularity! In the past two months we have welcomed three new associate members!
- Mark Rader, retired Senior Parole Officer from New Jersey Dept. of Corrections
- Philip Lerner, a court officer in New York
- Ryan Mann, from Des Moines, Iowa. Ryan emailed National Shomrim and explained he’s a 14 year veteran of law enforcement and the lone Jew in his police department of Des Moines. Ryan has also been featured on the classic TV show “Cops.”
These individuals, along with our other associate members, are exactly who we are seeking to join our organization. Associate members are our lifeline and bring diversity to our group. We look forward to meeting all of them at any of our upcoming National or chapter events.
All National Shomrim chapters and associate members are reminded that when they meet Jewish police officers, fire fighters, court officers, parole, probation, etc., whether in the course of your professional duties or if you’re on vacation, in areas where there is a small or nonexistent Jewish population and where they are the lone Jew in their agency or police department, get their contact information and forward their email to either the National Shomrim President at president@nationalshomrim.org or to the Corresponding Secretary at BAstrizky@aol.com. We want to keep our organization growing and help our chapters grow too!
CHAPTER PRESIDENTS! Don’t forget to send in your events, meetings, etc., to the Corresponding Secretary in a timely manner. Also, please make sure that your chapter dues of $100 are paid for 2018. It is important to keep your chapter active so that you can vote on important matters during our National Shomrim meetings. If you are unsure if your chapter has paid its dues please contact our treasurer, Marty Turetzky at rmturetzky@aol.com.
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS! Please send in your dues of $18.00 for 2018. If you’re also unsure if you’re membership is paid up for this year please contact the treasurer.
PLEASE MAKE ALL CHECKS OUT TO NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF SHOMRIM SOCIETIES
All dues should be mailed to:
National Shomrim Treasurer Marty Turetzky
264 East Broadway, C1905
New York, NY 10002
Please like our Facebook page as well as the Facebook pages of our chapters.