Alexander Velder, chairman of the Jewish community of Kazan, Russia, received a medal from the Tatarstan republic’s President Mintimer Shaimiev in honor of his 50th birthday.

Velder, who works with Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi Yitzchak Gorelik, the capital city’s chief rabbi, to provide for the needs of an estimated 10,000 local Jewish residents, was awarded “for making a worthy contribution to strengthening the unity between the peoples of Tatarstan and for his active efforts in reviving the education and preservation of national, cultural, historical and spiritual traditions of the Jewish people.”

The Jewish community of Kazan, which maintains a day school, synagogue and ritual bath, is a member of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia. …