More than 1,500 people came together Monday night, Oct. 7, at the Jewish Community Center near Creve Coeur, while others joined remotely, to remember the thousands of Israelis murdered and the 101 hostages still in captivity as a result of the brutal attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Prayers, songs and a commitment to Israel’s defense
The event featured prayers, songs and poems, along with a moving video that paid tribute to those who lost their lives during the attack and its aftermath. Attendees reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Israel and its efforts against Hamas and Hezbollah, expressing a collective resolve not to back down until all the hostages are safely returned.
“Tonight, we will pray for the survivors and the family members of those lost,” said Bob Newmark, president of the board of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis. “We will dare to dream of a better day. And we will do all of this together, pulling strength from one another as our people have done through the ages.”
Naomi Elbaz reflects
One of the most moving parts of the hour-long gathering was hearing from Naomi Elbaz, The J’s Shlichah (Israel Engagement Coordinator). She choked back tears as she spoke of waking up to the “sounds of sirens” in Tel Aviv on Oct. 7, 2023, and soon learning of friends who had been murdered at the Nova Music Festival, as well as others she had served with in the Israel Defense Forces.
“I have never felt so helpless in my life,” she said, adding that soon after, she established a missing persons command center to collect and disseminate information about those taken hostage or reported missing. She also talked of the strength she and other Israelis feel knowing they are supported by the Jewish community worldwide.
“To make your voices heard, saying ‘We stand by Israel,’ meant so much,” she said. “It gave us the strength to focus on the good and start rebuilding what has been destroyed.”
Why people came
Among those in attendance, Randi Davis shared her feelings of devastation over the attack on Israel, despite not having personal connections there. “Israel has to exist, it just has to,” she said. “I’m here tonight because these are my people. I had to be here.”
The theme of solidarity extended across communities, with Diane Perry, 75, attending in an NAACP T-shirt.
“I came out of friendship between the NAACP and the Jewish people,” said Perry, who lives in Pagedale. “The Holocaust was similar in many ways to our slavery, but we never knew the numbers. I worked with a gentleman who was in a concentration camp, and I feel like his history and ours, we have something in common. We have to stop the enemy, the terrorists.”
Another attendee, Jason Turkin, reflected on the importance of showing up: “If we don’t show up for ourselves, who will? The people who didn’t survive the Oct. 7th massacre need us to stand up for them, to raise our voices, and to make it clear that this is not OK.”
For others, the event was about finding strength through community. Deborah Asher described how, over the past year, her need for community has grown exponentially. “I’ve found that community through my synagogue, Temple Israel, my rabbi, and new friends,” she said. “It’s been tragic, but it’s also brought so many of us together.”
Honoring Israeli lives lost
In a moving video assembled through a partnership between the Jewish communities of St. Louis and Atlanta, 29 Israelis were remembered, including Gili Adar z”l, a beloved counselor at Camp Ben Frankel near St. Louis. Adar, who was 24, was among the 260 Israelis attending a music festival near Gaza who were murdered by Hamas terrorists.
In one of the more emotional moments, Rick Recht, executive director of Judaism Alive, shared his wife’s connection to the family of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the young American hostage killed in Gaza. His parents have become symbols of the anguish endured by hostage families. Elisa Recht asnd Hersh’s father, Jon Polin, attended Jewish summer camp together.
“We have a picture of Hersh in our kitchen, so we can remember him and his family at every meal,” said Recht, who performed a song he wrote for Hersh called “Habayta.”
“Survive! this mother cries, know that the sun above you still shines,” sang Recht.
(All Photos by Bill Motchan)
