State of Israel

... In 1947, we formed a group within the club to pre- serve the cultural and spiritual heritage of Bialystok. These activities generated much enthusiasm among our landsleit and friends. For example, we published an album, which I brought from Paris, containing songs and pictures from the Bialystok ghetto. The club also estab- lished annual memorial assemblies in tribute to the 60,000 martyrs of Bialystok and immediate vicinity who perished during the Holocaust. This custom has continued. Furthermore, when the State of Israel was proclaimed in May 1948, our members were among its first enthusi- astic supporters, purchasing Israel bonds and contri- buting to the United Jewish Appeal. In 1949, at the world conference of Bialystoker /andsleit held in New York, the club made a generous contribution to establishing Kiryat Bialystok. ...