Marin Jewish Center Opens Doors, Shatters Barriers

They came from half a world away after living through some of the most horrific circumstances of post-Holocaust Europe.

And  according to a Marin Independent Journal report all five refugees of the war-torn Balkans who are of different faiths have found sanctuary in San Rafael at the Osher Marin Jewish Community Center.

Sead Alisic and his wife, Sefia Alisic and Dursum Bajric are Muslims. Tiho Brkich and Marko Stojcevic are Catholics.

All were persecuted when by many estimates more than 10,000 were killed by Serbian forces led by Slobodan Milosevic who launched a "ethnic cleansing" campaign in what is now called the Bosnian Genocide.

The interfaith effort that helped save their lives during the Bosnian war was the subject of a museum exhibit last month at the Jewish center, staffer Joanne Greene said.

"There are five extraordinarily hard-working Bosnian war refugees on our maintenance staff — all of whom have become treasured members of our community," Green told the Independent Journal.

"We are honoring them for what they endured and how they've been able to build new lives of meaning here in Marin County."

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