FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q1. How can I find out if I have any relatives or friends interred at any of these cemeteries?
A. Knowing where your relatives lived, where they died, and/or whether they belonged to specific organizations that owned cemeteries (e.g., synagogues, fraternal lodges, etc.) will help you in locating their graves. Burial records are available for some — but not all — of our partner cemeteries. Most of the burial records for the Newark Jewish Cemeteries (and some of the burial records for the North Arlington Jewish Cemeteries) can be found in the JOWBR database at https://www.jewishgen.org. If your relatives were buried in Samptown, North Arlington, or Beth David, the cemetery office (908-245-7100) may be able to help you in locating their graves. If your relatives were buried at any of the Shaarey Tefiloh cemeteries, our organization may be able to help you locate their graves. Send us the full names or last names of individuals you think may be buried at any of the Shaarey Tefiloh cemeteries, and we will search our records. Be sure to include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address, and allow 4-6 weeks for our reply. (Select “Contact Us” in the menu.)

Q2. Why are more funds needed, if my relatives or I have already paid for perpetual care?
A. The funds created by perpetual care payments are designated for care of individual graves --- not for general cemetery maintenance. The general cemetery funds have become insufficient to provide for necessary restoration and present and long-term maintenance because inflationary costs have exceeded the income generated by the funds. This is a common problem faced by many cemeteries, whose founders never anticipated the true cost of maintenance and repairs for the long-term future.

Q3. Why is this being done as a community effort, rather than by asking individual families to pay for the care of their own family plots?

A. We have come together as a community to honor the community of those interred at these cemeteries ----- those who built and strengthened the New Jersey Jewish Communities of yesteryear and those whose efforts gave us the good lives we have today. Furthermore, many of those interred at these cemeteries left no survivors, and many enriched our lives as teachers, merchants, and community leaders, rather than family members. While individual plots are the responsibility of the families, our tax-deductible donations are used for general cemetery maintenance and repairs.

Q4. How can I put my name on your mailing list, so that I can keep informed about your progress and plans?
A. You can register for our mailing list by selecting “Contact Us” in the menu.

Q5. How can I help your efforts by sharing my time and/or expertise or by joining one of your committees?
A. We welcome any help you can provide, including time, information, expertise, or monetary contributions. (Please select “Contact Us” in the menu.)

Q6. How can I send a monetary contribution to assist your efforts to restore and maintain these historic cemeteries?
A. We accept contributions by personal check, credit card, or transfer of securities ----- all of which are fully tax-deductible to the extent permitted by the law. (Please select “Donate” in the menu.)

Q7. How can I send you the names and addresses of others who will be interested in contributing and/or learning about your plans?
A. You can send us as many names and addresses as you like, and we will add these to our mailing list to keep them informed about our plans and progress. (Please select “Contact Us” in the menu.)

Q8. How will our contributions be used?
A. All contributions will be used to restore these cemeteries (initial cleanup), maintain them (mowing grass, pruning plants and trees, etc.), repair structural damage, and beautify them ----- after paying our necessary administrative expenses. All Board members and committee members are uncompensated volunteers.

Q9. How can I send you my ideas and suggestions?
A. We welcome your ideas and suggestions. (Select “Contact Us” in the menu.)

Q10. How will you ensure that your plans are consistent with the principles of Orthodox Judaism upon which the cemeteries were planned and constructed?
A. We consult with several Orthodox Jewish rabbis who have a personal interest in these cemeteries and who share our concerns about them. We consult these rabbis about our plans, to ensure that all plans are consistent with the principles of Orthodox Judaism.