South Florida Judaic artist uses billboards to spread pro-Biden-Harris message

A Judaic artist is behind three South Florida highway billboards — as well as two floating ones — in support of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

Jeanette Kuvin Oren, 59, who lives in Connecticut, but grew up in Palm Beach, said she wanted to find a way to convey a message that new leadership will bring unity.

“I see all the destruction that has happened over the last few years, and think that this disruptive president doesn’t deserve our loyalty,” she said. “Biden and Harris are good for everyone.”

When Biden announced that Harris would be his running mate in August, she immediately knew what to do. She based a design on the first letter of Biden’s last name and the first letter of Harris’ last name. B”H is often used in Jewish communities to stand for Baruch HaShem, (Thank God) or B’ezrat HaShem, (With God’s help). She said it all made sense.

“The design came to me very quickly,” she said. “They will win with God’s help.”

Oren, a grandmother of two, who usually creates large wall hangings, mosaics, Torah covers, and Ark curtains, said as soon as she posted her design on Facebook it “took off.”

“Everyone wanted T-shirts, yard signs, or kippahs with the B”H design on it,” Oren said.

That convinced Oren to team up with a Facebook friend in Utah to sell the merchandise from a pop-up website, with all profits being donated to the campaign. She said she has already donated more than $5,000 to the campaign.

But she wanted more exposure. She thought the billboards were the way to go. She started a GoFundMe campaign Sept. 21, the day after Rosh Hashanah. Six days later — before Yom Kippur — Oren had about $21,000, enough money to rent three billboards. Over 240 people donated anywhere from $18 to $180.

“I wanted a way to speak to people in South Florida,” she said.

Three billboards have been erected on Interstate 95 and will be up through Nov. 3. The locations are: I-95 south of Palmetto Park Road (faces south; seen by northbound traffic) in Boca Raton; I-95 south of Griffin Road, just north of Stirling Road (faces north; seen by southbound traffic) in Hollywood, and I-95 just south of Hallandale Beach Boulevard (faces north; seen by southbound traffic) in North Miami-Dade.

A Miami businessman, who Oren said wanted to remain anonymous, saw a billboard and offered to help by adding two floating digital billboards. The B”H design is now on Ballyhoo Boats traveling the Intracoastal in Miami until Oct. 25.

Oren said her grassroots campaign proves that “there is a lot of support in the Jewish community for Biden and Harris.”

“People want to change things they want the country to be better,” she said.

Earlier this month, the Republican Jewish Coalition dropped more than $3 million on two TV ads that support President Donald Trump and knock Democratic nominee Joe Biden in South Florida.

The ads — one of which calls President Donald Trump the “most pro-Israel president in history” — began running at the beginning of October in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach, where there are more than 500,000 Jews.