Monticello, one of the central destinations in the erstwhile Borscht Belt, is not a place you expect to find anti-Semitic graffiti.
But that’s what Dolores and Gordon Wine found on Aug. 8 when they arrived at their summer home in Monticello.
The Wines have been spending their summers in Monticello, located in New York’s Catskill Mountains, since the 1980’s. Gordon Wine built the house at 218 Gregory Road, off Sackett lake Road, in the 1990’s. The house was under construction recently, but the workers took off without finishing the job.
What the Wines found when they arrived at their home was horrifying. In huge letters the word “JEW” was spray painted several times on the outside walls of the house. A swastika and a Jewish Star were also spray-painted on the house. Various items were also stolen from the home, such as tools and a television.
Ezra Wine, the son of the owners, said that the State Police had been called, but no one has yet been arrested. He said that there are other Jews in the area, especially at the local bungalow colonies. He also told the JewishPress.com via email that his parents have attended services at the Monticello synagogue.
The Wines’ home was the only one on the street that was vandalized.
