Coach Pearl headlines Israel Team solidarity event at Montgomery church
The Israel Team will stand against antisemitism and honor the Jewish people at an event in Montgomery on Oct. 21.
The 7 p.m. program will be held at Frazer United Methodist Church and feature guest speaker Bruce Pearl, head coach of the Auburn basketball team and an outspoken advocate in the fight against antisemitism.
The Jewish Federation of Central Alabama is co-sponsoring the event. Similar events were held in Mobile and Auburn in April.
Rabbi Scott Kramer of Agudath Israel-Etz Ahayem will speak, as will Phillip Ensler, newly-appointed executive director of the Jewish Federation of Central Alabama. Dan Puckett, a historian at Troy University who wrote “In the Shadow of Hitler: Alabama Jews, the Second World War, and the Holocaust,” will also speak. Puckett is past president of the Southern Jewish Historical Society and chairs the Alabama Holocaust Commission.
Aaron David Fruh, senior pastor of Knollwood Church in Mobile, and president of Israel Team Advocates International, will also speak. He is editor of the recent book “The Casualty of Contempt: The Alarming Rise of Antisemitism and What Can Be Done to Stop It.”
Additional speakers include historian Deborah Hall and civil rights advocate Wanda Howard Battle. Al Jackson, pastor of Lakeview Baptist Church, will also speak. Music will be performed by Fathers Joy Music, featuring Mark and Bridgett Moses.
