BOISE, Idaho — Members of Boise's Jewish community gathered at the Idaho State Capitol Building on Monday to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the state's first synagogue.
One of the members of that first synagogue was Moses Alexander, who went onto serve as the mayor of Boise and later became Idaho's 11th governor. Alexander was the first practicing Jewish governor in the United States' history.
In honor of the anniversary, Gov. Brad Little issued a proclamation honoring the 125 years of Jewish history in Idaho.
"I, Brad Little, Governor of the state of Idaho do hereby proclaim the year of 2020 on January 20th to be the 125th anniversary of Idaho's Jewish community in Idaho," Little said at that proclamation. " And I call upon the people of Idaho to celebrate the heritage and contributions of Idaho Jews to observe this anniversary year with appropriate program activities and ceremonies."
The event kicks off a year of activities honoring the milestone, which includes the return of Deli Days in June after being on a two-year hiatus and the 125 Acts of Tzedakah (which means righteousness in Hebrew), where the Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel will host charitable activities every month.