First-ever kosher community fridge in the US is dedicated to slain Hamas hostage

SKOKIE, Illinois — Several hundred people attended a dedication ceremony outside of Chicago on Wednesday for the first-ever kosher community fridge in the United States, launched in memory of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was killed in Hamas captivity two years ago.

Goldberg-Polin’s parents — both Chicagoland natives — attended the ceremony and spoke about how the project embodied their late son’s values.

“Hersh was an idealist who sought to make the world a better place in small ways, and he would do it without speaking about making the world better,” said Hersh’s father, Jon.

Rabbi Hody Nemes, one of the main architects behind the project, recalled an early meeting of organizers that was scheduled on September 1, 2024. A day earlier, Golberg-Polin and five other hostages who had survived 328 days in captivity were executed by their Hamas captors as they heard IDF troops approaching.

“I considered canceling the meeting, but the team said, ‘No. We must meet.’ So we gathered, we cried, and we agreed to research the idea of a kosher fridge,” said Nemes, who heads Solu, a group that aims to build bridges between Orthodox Jews and surrounding communities.

A week later, they watched Hersh’s funeral via livestream.

“We heard how Hersh had promoted justice and peace in the purest way — looking out for the overlooked. We heard how he’d been a convener, bringing people together at music festivals, soccer games, wherever he went, seeking to understand the other always with dignity and respect,” Nemes added.

“We heard Jon say, ‘May his memory be a revolution,’ and those three words pierced us. We wanted to be part of your revolution,” he said.

A year later, Hersh’s fridge began operating, offering sealed meals from kosher restaurants and caterers, home-cooked kosher dishes, fresh produce and sealed groceries.

Organizers estimate that the set of fridges — located in a parking lot across the street from Skokie Valley Agudath Jacob synagogue — is accessed 50 times each day.

While the exclusively kosher products make Hersh’s fridge of particular use for observant Jews in need, the project is open to those of all faiths and backgrounds.

“You have truly helped me and my family during times that have been really hard. From helping with Shabbos, to kids’ snacks, to weekly dinners, it’s been incredible,” said one client, whose testimony was read aloud at the ceremony.

“It has given me and my family a sense of calm to know there’s an option that we can go to anonymously without worrying about possibly seeing people we know,” the client added.

A portrait of Hersh, hung up on the fridge compound, was also unveiled at the event.

Hersh’s mother Rachel read aloud a passage from an essay her son had written in high school.

“I feel like seeing the world, without phones, without brands, without rich, without poor. I want a quiet, peaceful community, and always to wander. I feel like breaking free and being myself, and I will be free. I want to see what’s out there when the road gets small and fades,” Hersh wrote.