Honoring the Past: Photos of Cemetery Cleanup in Egg Harbor Twp

A group of volunteers spent several hours on Sunday picking up trash and landscaping at an Egg Harbor cemetery in disrepair.

Beth Israel Cemetery, at 6804 Black Horse Pike, across from Walmart, had been littered with waste left by homeless folks who had been living on the grounds.

Beth Israel Cemetery has graves dating back to the late 1800s. Among those interred are war veterans, Holocaust survivors, rabbis, and past leaders of the South Jersey Jewish community.

The holy sight was littered with debris, shopping carts, and human waste.

The windows of the crypts were shattered, and dozens of tombstones were knocked over.

In one mausoleum, there was visible hoarding, including mattresses, pillows, and moldy clothing.

After the cemetery took steps to replace the broken glass on the mausoleums and the toppled timbstones were put back in place, it was time for the cemetery grounds to get some much-needed TLC.

Rabbi Avrohim Rapoport of the Chabad Chai Center talked about the importance of the cleanup.

“This project shows the power of community — when people unite to honor the past, it strengthens the future.”

Volunteers Hold Cleanup on Cemetery Grounds

Sunday's cleanup, organized by Josh Cutler, the Executive Director with the Board of Jewish Education in Atlantic and Cape May Counties, included the efforts of 35 volunteers who collected more than a ton of trash and debris from the cemetery.

Cutler pointed out that the day was more than a volunteer trash detail.

“Cleaning the cemetery wasn’t just a volunteer initiative. It was a moment of connection to the generations who built our local Jewish community. Standing among their stories, doing something real and tangible, reminded me how powerful it is to show up, care, and keep their memory alive.”

The volunteers were also given some background information about the people buried in the cemetery and why they deserved to be in a place treated with respect.

Holocaust survivor Mike Kleidermacher, 83, was happy to have been part of the cleanup.

“I worked hard and raked and gathered four large bags, but when I left, there was still much to be done. I was saddened that the cemetery grounds have been neglected for so long and thus the group doing this is a  provided a great service and of course Mitzvah.

I was also saddened and grateful when I noticed that many gravesites depicted Holocaust survivors and I am one but what got me is that many passed were less than 80 years old and here I am at 83, glad to be alive ...

This program is part of a larger initiative of Jewish cemetery cleanups & educational walking tours that will be led by the BJE in Spring 2026.