Queens Borough Hall filled with music, community leaders, elected officials, and visible Jewish pride on Monday, May 18, as Queens Borough President Donovan Richards hosted the third annual Jewish American Heritage Celebration at the Helen Marshall Cultural Center in Kew Gardens.
The event honored Evie Litwok of Witness to Mass Incarceration, Lyudmila Mierova of All About Kindness, Ayelet Pearl of UJA-Federation of New York, Shimi Pelman of Tomchei Shabbos of Queens, and Howard Pollack of JCRC-NY. The awards were presented in partnership with the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, UJA-Federation of New York, the American Sephardi Federation, and the Queens Jewish Community Council.
The celebration came at a tense moment. Swastikas, hateful stickers, and antisemitic graffiti have recently appeared in Rego Park, Forest Hills, Forest Park, and near Borough Hall itself.
Pelman, president of Tomchei Shabbos of Queens, was introduced as having been a Queens resident since 1963. He has completed 44 years of service on Queens Community Board 8, alongside his work with Tomchei Shabbos, JCRC, QJCC, and numerous civic organizations. Pelman emphasized that the recognition was never about him personally. “I accept this award not for Shimi Pelman,” he said. Instead, he accepted it on behalf of the more than 200 individuals who show up every Tuesday and Wednesday, whether it is warm, cold, rainy, or snowing, to pack and deliver food throughout the borough. Pelman credited the Katz family, the Weinsberg family, elected officials, contributors, and supporters for making Tomchei Shabbos’ work possible. His hope, he said, is that one day Tomchei Shabbos will no longer need to exist because every family will have enough resources. Until then, the work continues with quiet dignity.
Born in the former Soviet Union, Lyudmila Mierova, founder of All About Kindness, arrived in the United States as a refugee child after her family fled religious persecution and civil war. Her parents left behind careers, possessions, and security so their children could have a future. She recalled standing in the airport when someone asked her mother where their luggage was. Her mother held her children close and answered, “This is our luggage.” Mierova explained that after arriving in America, organization after organization stepped forward to help her family begin again. Today, All About Kindness supports vulnerable families through food assistance, holiday programs, educational initiatives, youth empowerment, and crisis support.
Borough President Richards mentioned that earlier that morning, he attended the ribbon-cutting for the first 880 housing units at Willets Point, a project he connected to former Borough President Claire Shulman’s longstanding vision for Queens. “Jewish history is New York history,” Richards said, “and Jewish culture is Queens history.” Richards directly addressed the recent antisemitic incidents across the borough, pointing to the work of his Hate Crimes Task Force, the NYPD, the Queens District Attorney’s Office, and the city’s Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, which he helped create while serving in the City Council. Richards also highlighted his office’s financial support for Jewish nonprofits, announcing $1 million toward a Holocaust memorial planned for the grounds of Queens Borough Hall.
District Attorney Melinda Katz, the only Jewish DA in the state, referenced the assault on Rabbi David Shushan in Forest Hills, which her office charged as aggravated assault in the first degree as a hate crime. While hate crimes must be prosecuted aggressively, Katz stressed that public solidarity and education remain equally important.
Council Member Lynn Schulman, the only Jewish member of the New York City Council from Queens, announced efforts alongside City Council Speaker Julie Menin to secure $1 million for the Holocaust memorial. “It’s not easy being Jewish now,” Schulman said. “But we are not fearful.”
Evie Litwok, founder and executive director of Witness to Mass Incarceration, spoke about entering prison and unexpectedly finding herself reciting the Shema throughout the day. That memory connected her back to her father, a Holocaust survivor who had once been beaten by a Nazi for carrying his tallis and tefillin. Years later, her father reunited with the Jewish doctor who had treated him after the beating and had told him, “I’ve done all I can. The rest is in G-d’s hands.”
Ayelet Pearl, Queens Community Mobilizer at UJA-Federation of New York, spoke as a third-generation Queens resident and reflected on growing up surrounded by both Jewish and non-Jewish diversity. She dedicated her remarks to Larry Vogel, a beloved family friend who recently passed away, describing him as someone who embodied the generosity, humor, family devotion, and chesed that define Jewish life in Queens.
The event reflected the moment facing Jewish communities across Queens. Throughout the afternoon, speakers repeatedly returned to the recent rise in swastikas, graffiti, threats, and antisemitic incidents. The mood in the room was never one of fear, but of communal resilience — a sense that despite the rise in antisemitism outside its walls, Jewish life in Queens would remain vibrant and visible.
By Shabsie Saphirstein
