Jewish community and neighbors to take a stand against hate

Rabbi Rachel Kort, who arrived at Everett’s Temple Beth Or this summer, wishes her introduction to the wider community could have been different.

Rather than a joyful occasion, she’ll speak at a Thursday night vigil in response to the shooting rampage that killed 11 Jewish people at a Pittsburgh synagogue. The downtown Everett vigil is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday in the Robert J. Drewel Administration Building on the Snohomish County campus.

“I wish I didn’t have to hold onto the weight of grief for the community,” said Kort, who came in July to lead Everett’s Reform Judaism congregation. Raised in north Seattle, she previously served at a temple in Orange County, California.

In a heartfelt show of support at the Everett temple Monday, about 20 people from local faith groups and other organizations gathered to plan the vigil. Along with Kort, speakers Thursday will include Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers, Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin, and U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, a Democrat representing Washington’s 2nd Congressional District.

More than a remembrance of the 11 slain at the Tree of Life Synagogue on Saturday, the event is intended to show this community’s embrace of Jewish people here and other historically targeted groups, and to champion religious and cultural diversity.

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