Members of the Jewish community gathered Monday in Virginia Beach to mark one year since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
The commemoration, one of hundreds taking place across the world, brought together local religious and civic leaders to remember lives lost and hostages taken. Speakers included Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Attorney General Jason Miyares and Virginia Beach City Councilmember Joash Schulman, among others.
Schulman called the event “bittersweet,” acknowledging the tragedy it commemorated.
“To be able to come together as a community here in Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads to support one another, to support the State of Israel, is meaningful to me, as the only Jewish city councilperson in all of Hampton Roads,” he said.
Betty Ann Levin, CEO of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, said the commemoration was to unite people.
“We wanted to bring the community together — not only the Jewish community but the broader community — to remember the day and show our support for Israel, Israelis and remember the hostages,” she said.
Some 1,200 people were killed in the Oct. 7 attack on a music festival and another 250 were taken hostage, according to the Associated Press. Around 100 people remain hostages a year later, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum reports.
Posters bearing hostages’ names and photos circled the pond at the Reba & Sam Sandler Family Campus, where the commemoration took place. Yellow ribbons fluttered in the breeze above the posters. Several attendees carried signs saying, “Bring them home now.”
The service included prayers for hostages, Israel Defense Forces soldiers and Israel, as well as Israel’s national anthem.
Two Israeli students volunteering in the U.S. on a gap year before their year of mandatory service for the IDF attended the memorial.
“You split your life into two parts — before October 7 and after it,” said Emily, 18, who is from Kiryat Ekron.
Danielle, 18, from Kefar Sava, added, “After October 7, you appreciate every moment in your life, every moment that you spend with your family, with your friends, with everyone, because life can change.”
The program the students are participating in does not allow them to share their last names with media.
Israel’s subsequent war against militants has killed more than 41,000 people and displaced around 1.9 million in Gaza. Most of those people are Palestinian.
Hunter Thomas, a spokesperson for the event, touched on the broader conflict.
“We all are aware of the pain that is happening in the Middle East, and we want an end to the war,” he said. “Today’s event really was to hold space for the Jewish community.”
The day before the event at the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, a small group of religious leaders called the Interfaith Coalition in Support of Human Rights held a prayer service to honor those lost on Oct. 7, 2023 and in the violence since then.
“All lives are precious, and we mourn the loss of the tens of thousands lives lost during this past year — Israeli, Palestinian, Lebanese, and others — both civilian and military,” the group wrote in a press release.
Rabbi Ari Oliszewski of Temple Emanuel in Virginia Beach also attended Monday's commemoration.
“We are here, the Jewish community, trying to say that we are not supporting the terror. It’s totally the opposite,” he said. “We want peace in Israel, peace in the world.”
