by Jill Huber
NJJN Bureau Chief/Monmouth

March 18, 2008

Sharon Faulkner found her father’s camera when she was nine years old. She took a few pictures, but never thought photography would be part of her future.

But for the past 18 years, she has been a freelance photographer who has created photo essays of the plight of Jews, young and old, who live in the former Soviet Union.

How Faulkner, who is not Jewish, found her calling and her subject is something she ascribes to fate.

“My connection to Judaism was beshert — it was meant to be,” she told NJJN. “I create photo essays based on the events of our time. I really never aspired to be a photographer, but I realized that it fell in line with my view of the world and the things that matter. Through photography, I’ve been able to raise awareness, motivate, educate, and sensitize people about the plight of Jews who are in dire need of their help.”

Faulkner, who lives in Chatham, was the guest speaker at a March 6 reception for Hineni, Jaffa Gate, Pomegranate, and Lion of Judah donors to Women’s Philanthropy of the Jewish Federation of Monmouth County. The reception took place at the home of Claire and Adam Boren in Rumson, where more than 40 guests gathered to hear Faulkner’s presentation.

In 1997, Faulkner, acting on a freelance basis, traveled to the former Soviet Union, where she found a Jewish population, many of whose members were ill and malnourished. Their living conditions were primitive; most lived in structurally unsound homes or apartments with little furniture and with no electricity, telephone service, or plumbing, she said, adding that many felt a profound sense of isolation.

During the excursion, she met an elderly Jewish man who told her of the hardships he and his family endured during the Stalin years and in present-day Ukraine.

“He asked me to promise him something,” Faulkner said. “He asked me, when I returned to the U.S., to tell people about the plight of the Jews in the former Soviet Union. I promised to honor his wish, and it has become a relentless mission for me.”

During her travels, Faulkner also learned that many of the elderly Jews in Ukraine were Holocaust survivors. After taking their pictures, she would listen to their life stories.

“These people lost everything, and now they’re spending the end of their lives with nothing. They deserve justice,” she said. “There are no family members left to help them, so many rely on the food, medicine, home healthcare, and other services that reach them as a result of federation funds.

“But the sad reality is they need more money and recognition than they are currently receiving. Federations everywhere need to know that this population has no voice and is still at great risk. We must be their voice and their advocates.”

Faulkner never asks her subjects to pose, preferring to take their pictures in a more natural, spontaneous way. One photograph shows an 88-year-old woman who survived the Holocaust and lives alone in a two-room apartment. Her eyes show the pain she has endured and the travails of her daily life.

“When she returned after the war, she was greeted by a group of youths who shouted that a Jew had come back,” Faulkner said. “They said, ‘They haven’t killed all of you, but don’t worry — we’ll do it here.’”

Another photo portrays a seven-year-old disabled boy who pretended to take Faulkner’s picture while she was photographing him. In another photo, a tiny 16-year-old girl whose skin has a blue tint from the pollutants and lead emitted by nearby factories looks calmly into the camera lens.

“There is sickness all over the region from these factories,” said Faulkner. “But this young girl said she still loves life.”

When Faulkner returned home, she became a freelance photographer on behalf of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and continued to take pictures of those in distress.

Throughout her career, her travels have taken her north to the “top of the world” in Siberia and to Argentina, Cuba, Romania, and other parts of Eastern Europe.

She continues to exhibit her photos before hundreds of federations and Jewish organizations, and also addresses audiences in schools and colleges throughout the country. Her photos have appeared in national publications, and she has discussed her work on television and radio.

“An old Russian woman gave me a note to put in the Western Wall when I reached Israel,” Faulkner said. “When I arrived in Jerusalem, someone translated the note for me. It said, ‘Please God, stop this hunger and suffering.’ We can answer that prayer.”

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