[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 82 (Thursday, May 29, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E866]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                      DEDICATION OF THE FOX TORAH

                                  _____
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 29, 2014

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, the dedication of a Torah is always an 
extremely important occasion in the Jewish community. But next week's 
dedication of the Fox Torah at Ezra Habonim, the Niles Township Jewish 
Congregation in Skokie, is truly something special.
  The Fox Torah was underwritten by Martin Fox, who found some comfort 
from the terrors he experienced during the Holocaust in knowing that he 
could make such an enormous contribution to his faith and to his 
synagogue.
  Martin Fox was 34 years old when the Nazis marched into Poland in 
1939. He watched as his wife and three daughters were murdered. Then he 
was herded onto a train and sent to Auschwitz. He survived, came to 
Chicago, settled in Chicago's West Rogers Park Community, and became a 
successful businessman. But while he remarried, he never again had 
children, and the horrors of what he experienced during the Holocaust 
never left him.
  Martin Fox joined Ezra Habonim but was emotionally unable to say the 
Kaddish, the prayer for the dead. After many conversations with Rabbi 
Shlomo Levin, then the congregation's rabbi, Mr. Fox was finally able 
to say Kaddish for his lost family and light the Memorial Candle at the 
synagogue's Kristal Nacht service.
  The spiritual and personal support that Mr. Fox received from Ezra 
Habonim, Skokie's oldest synagogue, made a powerful difference in his 
life. It provided him with a safe and nurturing place, and gave him the 
emotional strength to recite the Kaddish in remembrance of his lost 
family. He in turn helped others by becoming a ``gabbai'' or 
``trustee'' of the synagogue.
  Today, Ezra Habonim continues its commitment to creating a warm, 
caring and supportive community under the leadership of Rabbi Jeffrey 
Weill. In addition to maintaining the tradition of giving each 
individual and family the personalized attention they need, the 
synagogue provides for the educational, religious and social needs of 
the Jewish community. And, as it did with Martin Fox, it gives members 
of the congregation the opportunity not just to take part but to give 
back.
  While Martin Fox died in 1981, the Torah that he funded and that will 
be dedicated on June 1 is a true gift. As Rabbi Weill says, ``This 
Torah symbolizes not only Martin Fox's story, but the remarkable story 
of the Jewish People. It represents continuity, bravery, fortitude, and 
the indomitable human spirit.''
  I want to join the Jewish community in Skokie in celebrating the 
completion and dedication of the Fox Torah and in thanking Ezra Habonim 
for the important role it plays in our community.

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