Many in the Jewish community are calling the deadly shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., a brazen act of hate.
From the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Old City to the Katz Jewish Community Center in Cherry Hill, security is being tightened.
"There's no excuse for that kind of violence, two beautiful young people who are doing something positive lose their life because of some maniac," Mike Pollock said.
"This was senseless, this murder accomplished nothing," said Jeff Lasday, the senior chief of external affairs for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.
Officials said several Weitzman Museum staff members were at a Jewish American Heritage Month activity in D.C. Wednesday night, about a mile from the shooting, and were on their way home when they learned what happened.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia called the murder of two Israeli Embassy staff members an act of terrorism targeting Jewish people.
"There is fear in the Jewish community because everyone can picture themselves being in that situation," Lasday said. "We live in a world where there is just too much hate speech, where people feel free to say what's on their mind without realizing their consequences, and words have consequences."
"It's horrific, devastating, and so wrong," said Jen Weiss, the CEO of the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey.
Weiss said she has been to events at the Capital Jewish Museum before, and described the deadly shooting as chilling.
"It's a little harder to be Jewish than it's been in any other point in my life that I can remember," she said.
JFED Security helps protect six Jewish Federations in New Jersey and the entire state of Delaware. Officials said they are tweaking plans ahead of an event Thursday night at a synagogue in Bridgewater.
"We made adjustments to the operational plan that we have already put in place for that event based upon the intelligence that we're able to get from the unfortunate incident last night in Washington," said Bud Monaghan, executive director of JFED security.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia said events are also planned this weekend. CBS Philadelphia has told there will be a heightened sense of security and police will increase patrols around Jewish institutions and museums.
Ryan Hughes
Ryan Hughes joined CBS News Philadelphia in June 2022. He previously worked at WPTV in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he's covered stories ranging from weeks on the Surfside condo collapse, to the impact of Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas, and the Super Bowl in Miami.