You notice increased security as you enter some local Jewish buildings. What you don’t always see are flow charts and detailed plans for emergency communications and evacuation.
But as the nation enters the second week of war in Iraq and the Department of Homeland Security’s national threat level remains high, at Level Orange, Jewish agencies and organizations are continuing to develop and refine already existing emergency action plans to ensure the safety of the Milwaukee Jewish community.
According to the FBI and local law enforcement agencies, there is no specific threat to Jewish institutions, said Paula Simon, executive director of the Milwaukee Jewish Council for Community Relations, which coordinates security between law enforcement agencies and the Jewish community, and acts as a liaison to Jewish organizations and institutions that are not constituent agencies of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation.
Still, local organizations are taking the advice of Homeland Security secretary Tom Ridge not to be afraid but to be ready.
The council and the federation are working with representatives of area facilities, agencies and institutions to help them develop appropriate and complete emergency plans. They also work closely to coordinate the information going to local Jewish institutions, said Simon.
According to Brian Leibl, chief financial officer of the MJF who oversees the management of federation-owned community facilities, the federation has worked with two security experts to prepare an emergency action plan for the Helfaer Community Services Building on N. Prospect Ave., where its offices and the council are located.
“In addition,” he said, “we are working in close cooperation with our constituent agencies to provide direction and assistance with their own emergency plans. We are playing a coordinated role and are developing complete plans for the Karl [Jewish Community] Campus, where several of our agencies are housed.
“We’re beginning to address security from a campus-wide perspective as opposed to an individual agency or individual building perspective,” he said.
Jay Roth, executive vice president of the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center, the largest agency headquartered at the Karl Campus, explained that additional security steps have been implemented there.
“Basically we’ve instituted the same procedures we did during the first Gulf War,” he said, “when we had experts come in and guide us.”
“We’re doing what’s reasonable and expected…. I think we’ve been effective so far and, God willing, we’ll continue to be effective and people will feel comfortable. The response from members has been positive and appreciative.”
In the north building of the campus, special plans have been drafted with the cooperation of the four resident organizations and schools: Hillel Academy; Milwaukee Jewish Day School; Children’s Lubavitch Living and Learning Center and the Coalition for Jewish Learning, the federation’s education program.
“We have to be as prepared as possible for the unexpected,” said Nancy Gorens-Edelman, MJDS co-director and general studies co-principal. “If there’s a concern, it’s not just a problem for one group; it affects all our children within this building and all the staff.
“Our parents need to know that we’re able to respond,” she said, referring to the three-page letter sent to parents that explained additional security procedures, guidelines for parents and tips for talking with children about critical issues.
The security plans are not new, Gorens-Edelman explained. “We’ve been trying to be proactive; you don’t put together plans like this overnight. We’ve been working diligently over the past two and a half years.
“We’re constantly receiving information and we’ve been working closely with the federation and the council,” she said.
“We’re pleased,” said Simon, “that law enforcement has been proactive in their efforts to address and allay community concerns and that Jewish community institutions are maintaining, reviewing and updating their own procedures.”
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