May 1, 2024: Jewish American Heritage Month Begins Today

Last week, Kehillat Shalom hosted its annual Passover Seder, with over 80 (Jewish and non-Jewish) students in attendance. Today marks the beginning of Jewish American Heritage Month, an invitation to consider the history, complexity and many expressions of American Judaism. In recognition of the occasion, what follows is a brief narrative of some of the earliest Jewish communities in the United States, Walla Walla and Whitman college.

The story of the earliest Jews arriving on the land that would eventually be called the United States is one of persecution and oppression. Its origins are found in the Spanish Inquisition, where Jews living in Spain and Portugal were expelled from their countries, and some of their descendants eventually established communities in Dutch-ruled Brazil. Then in 1654, Portugal recaptured Brazil and once again exiled its Jewish inhabitants. Most returned to Europe, but a notable group of twenty-three refugees made their way to New Amsterdam (a decade later renamed New York). In the years that followed, the Jewish community grew as did their fight for rights and political participation in the burgeoning American colonies. According to a Library of Congress Exhibition (“From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America”), early Jewish life in America was rooted in the promise of religious freedom. “George Washington’s declaration in 1790 to the Newport Hebrew Congregation that this nation gives ‘to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance’ provided the Jewish community with an early assurance of America’s suitability as a haven.”

The Jewish American presence in Walla Walla can be traced back to the 1860s, right about the time when the city was officially incorporated. According to an article written on the subject by Michael J. Paulus Jr., a Jewish merchant named Jacques Bauer arrived in town in 1860 and set up a tobacco shop on Main Street. Soon after, he married Portland-born Julia Heymann and they went on to have seven children—thought to be the first Jewish children born in Walla Walla. Paulus also describes some of the earliest connections between Jewish Americans and Whitman college:

“Julia (Heymann) Bauer taught foreign languages at her home, and when Whitman College, chartered in 1859 as Whitman Seminary, began offering courses at the college level in 1882, she was listed as an instructor of French, German, Spanish, and Italian. The Bauer’s youngest child, Marion (1882–1955), composed more than 140 works and received an honorary degree from Whitman College in 1932.”

In 1992, Sharon Kaufman-Osborn, a counselor in the Whitman Counseling Center, worked with some students to form Shalom, the first Jewish student organization at Whitman College. Kaufman-Osborn served as the group's advisor for over two decades, stepping down in 2014. She described the early activities of the group, many of which continue today:

“We were very active: an opening week event in addition to the Activities Fair, big Rosh Hashanah dinners at my house every year, weekly gatherings, visiting student Rabbis with Shabbat celebrations or dinner and discussions, a few retreats in town and in the mountains, visiting Klezmer groups, Holocaust Survivor speakers, Fridays at 5 with occasional discussions and Shabbat dinners afterwards.”

In 2006, Shalom formally affiliated with Hillel International, the world’s largest Jewish campus organization, serving over 160,000 students each year. In 2018, the group decided to end its relationship with the International organization because they felt like Hillel didn’t adequately represent the broad spectrum of viewpoints found in Whitman’s group. At that time they changed their name from Hillel Shalom to Kehillat Shalom—“Kehillat” being the Hebrew word for “Community.”

A website dedicated to Jewish American Heritage month invites visitors to, “unpack the complexities of Jewish peoplehood, explore diversity within the American Jewish community and the beliefs and behaviors that unite Jewish people, and examine the ways in which Jewish people and Jewish values have shaped and been shaped by the America that millions of people call home.” Also, please consider joining today’s Inclusive Excellence Webinar: “Strategies to Foster Safety, Inclusion and a Sense of Belonging for Jewish Students.” 

Consulted websites and articles:

• jewishamericanheritage.org
• Facing History & Ourselves, “Being Jewish in the United States,” last updated March 18, 2018.
• History Link, “The Jewish Community of Walla Walla,” https://www.historylink.org/File/9842
• Jewish American Committee, “What is Jewish American Heritage Month?” ajc.org
• Library of Congress, “From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America,” loc.gov/exhibits/haventohome/
• With special thanks to Sharon Kaufman-Osborn.