In the wake of the death of Hryhoriy (Grisha) Arshynov, who over the past five years spearheaded the restoration of the Great Maharsha Synagogue in Ostroh, a crowd-funding campaign to complete the work has been launched in his honor.
Arshynov died November 1 from complications of COVID-19. He was 59.
His son Dmytro, launched the GoFundMe campaign 10 days later.
“We don’t want this to stop. It was very important for my dad and I must finish it,” he told JHE.
Dmytro, who owns an accounting firm in the United States, said that he will take over the management of the project, with the help of Grisha’s widow, Natasha, in Ostroh. She had worked with Grisha and will continue to manage the project onsite.
“The same people who were working with my dad continue to work on this project,” Dmytro said. He said he was trying to quickly raise funds so that as much work as possible, including waterproofing, can be completed before winter sets in.
He also plans to set up a 501(c)3 nonprofit for the restoration project as soon as he returns to the United States from Ostroh later this month. This information will be posted on the GoFundMe site, which includes photos and videos of the restoration work to date.
Just two days before his death, Arshynov posted on Facebook about the latest accomplishment — restoring the base of the synagogue’s eastern façade.
Watch this powerful video from last year, of Grisha describing his involvement with the synagogue restoration — and why he felt the urgent need. (There are subtitles in English).
Read our obituary of Arhshynov
Read a JTA obituary of Arshynov
1 comment on “Ukraine: Crowdfunding campaign set up to complete the restoration of the Great Maharsha Synagogue in Ostroh, in memory of Grisha Arshynov, who saved it from ruin but died of COVID-19 Nov. 1”
What an amazing man, such a loss not just to the local community but to the wider Jewish world may his memory be a blessing for the world
I hope this project can continue