October 7, 2024 marked one year since the Hamas-led attack on Israel, during which nearly 1200 Israelis were killed and almost 250 were taken hostage. In remembrance of the violence and of the lives lost, Bi-Co Chabad, in partnership with Club Chai, held several memorial events across both Bryn Mawr and Haverford campuses, allowing students and faculty to pay their respects and come together as a community.
The day began with two reflection and exhibition rooms, one on each campus, memorializing the victims and survivors of the October 7 attacks. They featured art from Israeli artist Bothaina Halabi, and portraits of hostages. Halabi’s art symbolizes new life and revival, and sheds light on the strength of the Jewish community through times of hardship. Several Bryn Mawr students passed through the exhibition room in the Wellness Center to quietly pay their respects and process the events of October 7.
Photo by Harrison West, Bi-Co News photographer
The evening event was open not only to the Bi-Co community, but also Bryn Mawr and Haverford alums and local families, hosting a primarily older crowd. This two-part memorial service took place between Haverford College’s Visual Culture, Arts, and Media (VCAM) building and Founder’s Green.
Bi-Co Chabad invited a survivor of the October 7 attacks, Shoham Cohen, as a speaker. As Cohen recounted his experiences, detailing every moment of the music festival from the time of his arrival until his ultimate escape from the attack, he conveyed a deep sense of self-purpose following the event, expressing that it took him “months to realize that God wanted [him] there to spread [his] message of light and love.” His speech evoked many emotions amongst the crowd, as audience members gasped and cried throughout his retelling of the attack.
Following Cohen’s speech, the floor was open for other audience members to share their feelings. Blumie Gurevitz, advisor of Bi-Co Chabad, offered a speech expressing a sense of isolation as a Jewish member of the bi-college community, feeling as though antisemitism and a lack of sensitivity was prevalent amongst students. Gurevitz claimed in her speech, “people who we interact with, people we sit in class with, our peers and colleagues can uplift terror in such a way and invoke it on us as though we were deserving.”
The speakers following Gurevitz focused primarily on victims of October 7. One speaker, Leo Gordon, a junior at Haverford College, highlighted Hersch Goldberg Polin, a 23 year old American-Israeli who was kidnapped and killed during the Nova massacre. Gordon concluded his speech by professing, “there is hope for those who are still [in Gaza] and we can still bring them home.” Gordon Schatz, a Jewish alum of Haverford College class of 1974, delivered a speech memorializing Vivian Silver, a Canadian-Israeli peace and women’s rights activist who was also killed on October 7. A non-Jewish alum of Haverford College’s class of 1983 also offered a few words, claiming that the presence of the Jewish community was “key to [his] experience” at Haverford and that he is “horrified” by the presence of antisemitism within the Bi-Co community, sharing a similar sentiment to Gurevitz.
The evening concluded with a vigil at Haverford’s Founders Green, in which candles were lit in the shape of the Star of David and audience members gathered to recite songs and prayers.
Photo via the Bi-Co Chabad Instagram
These memorial events opened a door for bi-co community members to come together and mourn the losses of the October 7 attacks, but also highlighted a general feeling of estrangement within the community. Bi-Co Chabad captioned an Instagram post reflecting on the day: “Today, we stood together in mourning, in remembrance, in prayer and in hope. Thank you Shoham for sharing powerful words encouraging us to love, embrace and show kindness. As we sang and healed together on Founders Green as proud and unapologetic Jews, we are reminded that we share light and We Belong, no matter what others may say. Am Yisrael Chai.”
