The Zachor (“Remember”) New Orleans fund, a Jewish Endowment of Louisiana administered fund, was established this week by the Crescent City Jewish News as part of its long-range goals of preserving and archiving the history of the Jewish community of New Orleans.
Annette Smason, left, treasurer of the CCJN, presents a check establishing the Zachor New Orleans fund to Saundra Levy, executive director of JEF on Monday, November 25. (Photo by Arlene Wieder)
This is the first step in the process of securing the funding necessary to digitize the Jewish newspapers of New Orleans’ past including The Jewish Ledger, whose only copies are presently housed at Tulane University’s Howard Tilton Memorial Library. Estimates say the project will take years and substantial funding to make a true digital library of New Orleans’ past Jewish community.
Once the project is finalized, the library and archives will be made available to the public and to scholars for research through an online portal. Pictures out of the past will also be digitized and corrected.
Annette Smason, treasurer of the CCJN Executive Board, met with Saundra Levy, executive director of the JEF, on Monday to create the fund on behalf of the board. Now that the fund has been created through JEF, all donations are tax-deductible. Donations for the project are now being accepted to the JEF’s Zachor New Orleans fund.
For more information, call Saundra Levy at 504-524-4559.
