April 2026
Benjamin Gelber
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
National Police Memorial Week will take place this year from Sunday, May 10, 2026 to Saturday, May 16, 2026. As they do every year, Shomrim of D.C. will host the annual Kaddish Service on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. The service and reception will take place at 441 4th Street NW, two blocks from the memorial. National Shomrim and our chapters always have representatives at this important event. Please email Jay Gruber at JayGruber62@gmail.comfor more information.
I am very much looking forward to leading our National Shomrim delegation up Fifth Avenue at the Israel on Fifth Parade on Sunday, May 31, 2026. This year’s theme is “Proud Americans, Proud Zionists.” This year we celebrate the 78th anniversary of the creation of the modern State of Israel. Please make sure that all our National Shomrim chapters and associate members attend, we want to have as many members march with us up the world famous Fifth Avenue in NYC. We want to show the world that we’re loud, proud, and not going away! There will be a preparade collation at Temple Emanuel, 5th Avenue and 65th Street, NYC, with a traditional NY breakfast of bagels, danish and lots of good stuff beginning at 8:45 a.m. There will also be a short National Shomrim meeting prior to stepping off for the parade, at approximately 10:00 a.m., so please make sure your chapter president and/or representative is in attendance so we can have an official meeting. From there we head out together, at 10:45 a.m., as one group, to take our place as one of the first groups who leads off this iconic and important event. As per the parade committee, no vehicles will be allowed to participate in our delegation. Also, non uniformed members of National Shomrim (civilian employees, family members, etc.) are asked to wear their Shomrim chapter’s t shirts or identifying clothing. These rules are in place to keep all parade attendees safe.
I’d also like to thank the members of many police departments that provided security to synagogues and Hebrew schools across the United States, Canada and the UK during Passover and continue to protect the Jewish communities on Shabbat. All these great police officers stayed outside these sacred spaces during community seders and services to ensure that everyone inside felt safe, knowing we could celebrate this Festival of Freedom with joy and reverence.
We’re still planning our National Shomrim Convention at Sea for January 17, 2027. We will be sailing to the Western Caribbean Islands of Nassau, Bahamas; Cozumel, Mexico; and Georgetown, Grand Cayman on the beautiful Celebrity Beyond. There is a fully refundable deposit of $500.00 until October 1, 2026, so please make your reservation and consider joining us at this memorable and fun event. We are also looking for speakers for our Signature Speakers Series to present a topic of interest to our convention attendees. It can be anything – law enforcement, health, history – so if you have an expertise in a topic, please contact the convention coordinators Marty Turetzky at rmturetzky@aol.com or Betty Astrizky at BAstrizky@aol.com and they’ll put you into the convention lineup. We also have our meeting, Shabbat services and private cocktail party, and we’re working on a special event for the convention, so stay tuned. Contact our official National Shomrim Cruise Planner Tony Lostumbo at (954) 384-7245 or email him at cruisexpo@gmail.com to make your reservation.
We’re also still looking to send a National Shomrim Delegation to the March of the Living in May 2027. We have about ten people who have expressed an interest in participating in this incredibly important annual event, but for a group we need at least 25 participants. The dates for next year’s MOTL will be May 3 to 10, 2027, with an option to extend to Israel May 13 to 18, 2027. We can tailor the dates to our group’s needs, focusing on the most important part of the event, recreating the march the Jews and other prisoners at Auschwitz were forced to march three miles to Birkenau. With less than 200,000 Holocaust survivors alive today, with a median age of 87, it is incredibly important that we honor their experience and share the lessons of the Holocaust, especially in these difficult times for the Jewish communities of the world, including here in our own country. If you are interested please email National Shomrim Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms Stacy Barasch at taz4313@aol.com as soon as possible. Once we get sufficient interest, we’ll be able to get prices and dates set and with the possible Israel extension.
Fraternally,
Benjamin Gelber
President