"Next step" - conference of Women's sections from Serbia and the region

"NEXT STEP"-- two-day conference of Women's sections from Serbia and the region, held on September 9th and September 10th 2017 and organized by the Women's Section of Jewish Community of Zemun, is behind us. The main theme of the seminar was the role of the Jewish mothers and women generally in preserving Jewish faith and tradition. Other important issues have been raised regarding the sustainability of our community in the future.

The work of JC of Zemun was presented to us, showing their publishing and other activities. The participants visited the exhibition "Participation of Jews in the development of volunteer firefighters in Zemun" which was accompanied with the film on the theme of the exhibition. A lecture on Jewish cuisine and kosher nutrition as well as "Orthodox women in Judaism" was organized. In addition to the lectures, the organizers and cordial hosts made effort to show the guests the town seen from the old elevated part of Zemun, called Gardoš, as well as by the boat ride on the rivers Danube and Sava. 

Such projects are very useful because they give possibilities to exchange experiences between the Jewis communities of  EX- YU.

Photos will conjure up the working atmosphere and our socializing.

Rut Lihtental, President of Women's League of the JC Pančevo

More info on http://joz.rs/gallery5/Zene-1_dan/index.html

Women's league meeting

On November 28-29, 2015, the Jewish Community of Pančevo was the host to Women's League of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Serbia. The communities’ representatives in large number attended the meeting. The two–day program consisted of the official part, visiting the Jewish Pančevo, and informal socializing.   At the beginning the communities gave a brief report on their activities since the last meeting and presented what they had done during this period referring the publication that is going to be published about the Women's League after WWII. Jasna Ćirić, the president of the JC of Niš, held a video lecture speaking of how women can contribute to their community to be more prosperous and preserve the heritage of earlier generations. Multimedia artist Gabrijela Nikolić presented a video story of her family perished in the Holocaust. Professor Dušica Stojanović presented a lecture "Women and the Language". During the first day of the meeting the participants had the opportunity to learn something from the history of Pančevo, and visited the National Museum. On the second day they visited the memorial complex "Stratište" at the road between Pančevo and the village Jabuka. More than 10.000 people were killed there, among them about 6.000 Jews. They also visited Jewish cemetery and the remains of the magnificent Pančevo synagogue, demolished in 1956. All participants agreed that such meetings are very useful and should be organized every year.

Purim at Women's League, March 3, 2015

Women's League of the Jewish Community of Pancevo, on the occasion of the Purim feast, invited the nearest Jewish communities – Belgrade, Zemun and Zrenjanin to its usual Tuesdays socializing.

The curator of the Jewish Historical Museum in Belgrade and the member of the community, Barbara Panic, held a lecture followed by a video presentation depicting the celebration of Purim at the time of the Spanish Inquisition. Many interesting data and images drew back us to the time when the Jews in the Iberian Peninsula, South America and Mexico were forced to hide their faith and gradually, over the centuries, began to lose their identity in the Christian surroundings.

The members of the Womens League of JC Pancevo prepared for their guests some culinary specialities, so that in a very pleasant atmosphere the time between 4 pm to 8 pm passed very quickly.

Woman's League of the JCP

Woman's League has an important role in all segments of the Community work. It is, along with the Culture Section, the initiator of many events that in the best way promote Jewish life and the Jewish Community of Pancevo.

In his book "Across our Fatherland", published in 1922, Dr. Nikola Milutinovic recorded the year 1873 as the year of the foundation of Jewish Woman's Charity Society in Pancevo. In the same book it is mentioned the existence of the Jewish Woman's Cooperative established with the aim to support the needy. He also states that, in the twenties, two prominent members of the Jewish Community, Laura Fisher and Marta Freiner, were active in the Jewish Church Choir Society. The Society was founded even in 1886.

Pavle Sosberger in the book "Synagogues in Vojvodina" mentions that the Jewish Woman's Charity Society in Pancevo "gave to the Jewish Community 1,000 florins in loan" in order to build the synagogue. The land for the building was bought in early 1876 and the construction was completed in late August of the same year.

Woman's League of the Jewish Community of Pancevo, led by Rut Lihtental as a president, works within the Woman's League of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Serbia. For many years after WWII, until her death in 2008, the president was Mrs. Vera Pavlovic.