WASHINGTON – AHEPA denounces the shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh that took the lives of 11 worshipers and left several individuals wounded.

Supreme President George E. Loucas has issued a statement:

“AHEPA denounces the senseless shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh that took the lives of 11 worshipers and left several individuals wounded on Saturday. We are heartbroken and horrified. Our deepest sympathies and prayers are with the victims and their families and the people of Pittsburgh. We commend the first responders for their bravery.

“Federal prosecutors have filed hate crime charges against the alleged shooter, who reportedly made anti-Semitic statements during the shooting and on social media. We stand with the Jewish community. We must not tolerate hate, bigotry and evil. Instead, we must strive for the betterment of society, and for harmony, tolerance and common understanding, as AHEPA’s founders and its early leaders understood.”

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Founded in 1922 in Atlanta, Georgia, on the principles that undergirded its fight for civil rights and against discrimination, bigotry, and hatred felt at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan, AHEPA is the largest and oldest grassroots association of American citizens of Greek heritage and Philhellenes with more than 400 chapters across the United States, Canada, and Europe.

AHEPA’s mission is to promote the ancient Greek ideals of Education, Philanthropy, Civic Responsibility, and Family and Individual Excellence through community service and volunteerism.