Alaska Jewish Museum and Cultural Center
Overview
The Alaska Jewish Museum provides a gathering place and historical repository to help build cultural bridges to promote diversity and tolerance for all Alaskans.Contact Information
1221 East 35th AvenueAnchorage, Alaska 99508
United States
Description
The Alaska Jewish Museum and Cultural Center, an Alaskan non-profit organization managed by a board of directors of diverse backgrounds, was conceived in 2004 by a group of Alaskans, led by Rabbi Joseph Greenberg. The founding group recognized the essential need to provide the people of Alaska with the most vital service that is available to the public in more than 75 cities and communities around the U.S; namely Holocaust Memorial museums and Museums of Tolerance; as well as Jewish Historical Museums and Cultural Centers that provide exposure to Jewish history and culture and to the significant Jewish contribution to the United States of America as well as honoring the United States greatest contribution to the Jewish plight and survival. They can be found in a variety of cities in the U.S. such as: the Jewish Heritage Museum in Atlanta, Georgia; the Jewish Museum of Baltimore, Maryland; the Mizel Museum of Judaic Art in Denver, Colorado; the Museum of Southern Jewish Experience in Jackson, Mississippi; the Oregon Jewish Museum in Portland, Oregon and the Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma and many more. Many of these museums have received funding from the U.S. Federal, State, and City governments as well as public charitable foundations, as they have been recognized all over the United States as serving the public interest by promoting diversity and tolerance. After much discussion the founding group agreed that the AJMCC would be able to best fulfill its mission to provide exposure to Jewish history and culture within its own designated facility. The design and concept of the proposed museum follows the examples of already existing Museums in Anchorage that are dedicated to a particular mission and purpose such as the Alaska Native Heritage Center, the Alaska State Troopers Museum, the Heritage Library and Museum at Wells Fargo, the Oscar Anderson House Museum and the Russian Orthodox Museum.