Kostroma Jews Mark Synagogue’s Centennial Anniversary
Kostroma, Russia –- This week, Jews residing in Kostroma had good occasion for celebration, with the centennial anniversary of the city’s historic Synagogue. This structure was built exactly 100 years ago by Rabbi Tzvi-Hirsh Shneiderman, whose predecessors also traveled here from far away to mark this important event. Rabbi Shneiderman, who led the rather small Jewish community at that time, drafted the architectural plans himself and oversaw the construction of this building.
The Jewish community of Kostroma, a member of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, welcomed the visitors for this anniversary celebration, including Rabbi Shneiderman’s granddaughter Ester Mazovetskaya and great-grandson Victor Kublitskii from Minsk, together with his family. There are also numerous living relatives of the Rabbi who continue to live in Kostroma. Dovid Zakharov, also a direct descendent, actively takes part in local Jewish life and is a student in the STARS youth educational program run by the Kostroma community.
It was not so long ago that the Kostroma City Administration returned ownership of the building adjacent to the Synagogue, which is the home where Rabbi Schneiderman lived. It was from here that his wife noticed someone trying to carry the body of a dead child into the Synagogue, an observation that helped to prevent a planned pogrom from occurring in this Russian town.
After touring the Synagogue and the neighboring home, Chief Rabbi of Kostroma Nison Ruppo showed the guests a display of children’s artwork dedicated to this anniversary and a photo exhibition on the community’s development. Rabbi Ruppo then presented them a series of photographs and documents concerning Rabbi Schneiderman and the community’s development.
