As High Holidays approach, Pittsburgh expands security training and preparedness

Security is always at the top of Rick Wice’s mind.

Wice is the head of security for Congregation Poale Zedeck and coordinates of a few WhatsApp groups dedicated to security in Pittsburgh.

It’s a responsibility that, at times, can be exhausting.

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“It gets a little tiring to have to always be thinking about that one-in-a-million, worst-case situation,” he said. “But that’s the mentality and attitude that, I’m proud to say, the Poale Zedeck safety team has.”

So, when Wice first learned about the Community Security Service from the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s security team, he said he immediately volunteered his time to learn more.

“Our board signed on very quickly and I’m sort of the western regional coordinator,” he said.

Incorporated in 2007, CSS was founded on the idea that protecting Jewish life starts with Jews taking ownership of their security.

The organization is the nation’s leading community-based security group providing professional training and coordination, according to its website. It has trained thousands of community members and volunteers who help ensure the safety of hundreds of Jewish institutions and events.

Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh Deputy Security Director Eric Kroll said that CSS is a donor-funded program that comes to synagogues and trains safety teams to work during services and other events.

“It’s not a substitute for police or security,” he said. “They aren’t armed.”

What it provides is another layer of security. Training includes a four-hour online course and another four-hour in-person session.

“They help establish a leadership structure,” Kroll said. “They teach awareness and how teams should patrol the area. They teach to keep the problems outside of the synagogue instead of having a potential threat inside.”

Wice said the training builds on offerings already available in the city like Run, Hide and Fight active shooter training and Stop the Bleed. The first training session Wice took with CSS was called the First Seven Minutes.

“It’s what you do if, God forbid, you have an active shooter or someone with a weapon inflicts severe harm to people — some bleeding, some dead already,” he said. “What do you do in those first seven minutes before emergency responders show up? What do you do with these stop the bleed the kits? What do you do with tourniquets? What do you do with people standing around who may be slightly injured or not injured at all to maximize lifesaving?”

Kroll said there’s an advantage to having another level of security volunteers who are familiar with a congregation: They recognize faces and can pick out strangers.

What CSS does, he said, is “professionalize” the volunteers and teach skills.

What it doesn’t do is eliminate the partnership synagogues and organizations have built with their local police or the Federation.

“We work hand in hand with CSS,” Kroll said. “If there are any suspicious incidents, they get reported to the police and our team would address any situation. Federation would also help with things like providing equipment because there’s some communication equipment that can come along with this.”

Kroll also noted that CPR certification can be a part of the CSS training, as well as more intensive Blue Point training, which is found in 35 Pittsburgh locations.

“Federation would add their own training, too, and customize it for Pittsburgh,” he said.

Before his time at the Federation, Kroll was a police officer for 32 years and also trained police officers for more than two decades. He said he’s impressed by what CSS offers.

“For civilian training, it’s some of the best I’ve ever seen,” he said.

The training is free for volunteers and it comes with an added benefit: liability coverage.

“Whether it’s a slip and fall or there’s a confrontation that leads to a lawsuit, as long as you’re following what they’re teaching, you have liability protection that they provide, which is phenomenal,” he said.

Poale Zedeck is the first congregation participating in the program, but Kroll and Wice aim to have congregations across the region and of all affiliations take advantage of the training.

Interested organizations should reach out to Kroll. Training won’t take place before the High Holidays, but that doesn’t mean the Federation isn’t focused on keeping the community safe during a time when synagogues experience their highest attendance of the year.

This week, the Federation announced an expanded security posture across the region’s Jewish community.

In a written statement, the Federation said it has been coordinating security planning for the past two months and has requested police departments across Greater Pittsburgh to rotate additional patrols near the approximately 30 venues hosting High Holiday services or events.

State grant funding is supporting private contract security and off-duty police officers at sites throughout the region, and the Federation is sharing information with the FBI to maintain awareness heading into the holiday season, the statement said.

This coordination is in addition to the Federation’s commitment during the year. In 2026, it has already spent $450,000 on security. Additionally, 30 local institutions received a combined $1.7 million from the Pennsylvania Nonprofit Security Fund Program.

Shawn Brokos, Federation’s director of community security, said the goal is for the community to celebrate the holidays with confidence.

“This is not a response to a heightened threat,” she said. “It is a heightened level of preparedness, the result of months of planning and close coordination with our law enforcement partners. Pittsburgh’s Jewish community should feel free to gather, pray and celebrate this season.” PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.