Two Federation Events to Remember the Victims of October 7th

Last year on October 7th, Israel and the Jewish world were shaken by the horrific attack on Israel by Hamas. Now is the time for us to come together as a community to remember the victims of October 7th, pray for the soldiers of the IDF, and show our support for Israel.

It is time for us to come together to remember the 1,200 victims of the attack on October 7th, to remember the more than 700 IDF soldiers who have died fighting Hamas and Hezbollah and pray for the return of the 101 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza.

From Horror to Hope: An IDF Commando’s Journey

On Sunday, October 6th at 12 PM, the Jewish Federation’s Community Relations Committee will co-sponsor a virtual event on Zoom with the Jewish Federation of Northwest Indiana. The event will feature Noam, a soldier in an elite IDF commando unit. The title of his talk is “From Horror to Hope: An IDF Commando’s Journey.” (click here to register) In his talk, Noam will share his story of saving lives at Kibbutz Be’eri and the joy of accompanying freed hostages back to Israel.

Noam is a BA student in Law at Tel Aviv University. Previously, he served as a Captain in a Commando Unit in the IDF. On October 7th, even before receiving the official call-up order from the army, Noam drove to Kibbutz Be’eri near the Gaza border to help rescue civilians. He then went on to serve for six months with his reserve unit in combat operations in Gaza.

Our thanks and appreciation to former shlicha Chen Nissan, and Abi Miller, a friend of our community, for helping facilitate his talk.

Gathering to Remember October 7th

Then, on Sunday, October 27th, we will gather in-person at the Jewish Federation at 11 AM for a 30-minute memorial ceremony organized by the Jewish Federation’s Partnership2Gether committee. We are calling the event “Gathering to Remember October 7th.” (click here to register) Doors will open at 10:30 AM, so we can begin the ceremony on time.

Immediately following the ceremony, at 11:30 AM, we will join a virtual event on Zoom with other Partnership communities across America for a special program presented by Partnership2Gether.

The program will begin with Yizkor, followed by a panel of Israelis who will share their harrowing experiences of October 7th and the past year.

The speakers will include:

• Liat Atzili, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz and released. Her husband’s body is still held in Gaza.

• Dubi Lahav, who, along with his son, was severely wounded on October 7th. They are gradually recovering with the help of his family and his community.

• A representative of one of the bereaved families from Akko.

• David Vaknin, a businessman from Western Galilee who was called up for reserves. He has been deployed to the northern border since October 7th. David and his family are among the 60,000 displaced Israelis from northern border communities.

The program will conclude with a moving video clip by the Matte Asher Community Center choir.

On behalf of the leadership and staff of the Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley, we call on you to join us to show solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Israel and honor the memories of the fallen.

Bob Feferman
Director of Community Relations, Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley
(574) 233-1164 x1815
RFeferman@TheJewishFed.org