Jews have lived in Annapolis for a century or more. But the community has only recently gotten its own eruv, a ritual enclosure that allows observant Jews to carry items on Shabbat.
Now parents can push baby strollers, people who use walkers can leave their homes and anyone can carry medicines, tissues and house keys.
The eruv took three years to complete and involved getting utility company permits, fundraising and construction.
On July 17, the project’s leaders met with Mayor Michael Pantelides in the Annapolis City Council chambers to ceremonially purchase the rights to use the land within the eruv for one silver dollar.
In exchange, Pantelides signed a proclamation enabling Jewish residents to use the land within the eruv. The Annapolis eruv covers a few-mile radius around Congregation Kneseth Israel.
There are plans to expand the eruv in the near future.
The eruv was dedicated to the memory of the three Israeli teenagers who were murdered in June – Gilad Shaar, Eyal Yifrach and Naftali Frenkel – and of Joelle Benchmuel, a friend of the congregation.
