As the third anniversary of Oct. 7 approaches, the Jewish Federation of Greater Nashville will host a community commemoration featuring special guest Barak Morag, a survivor of the Oct. 7 attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6, and the location will be provided upon RSVP.
“The idea for this event came from reflecting on what the third anniversary of Oct. 7 means for our community,” said Jessica Cohen Banish, director of the Nashville Federation’s new Israel and Overseas department.
In addition to remembering and honoring the lives taken in those horrific attacks, Cohen emphasized a focus on the future. “My hope is that each person leaves feeling empowered to support one another, to lean on one another, and to recognize the strength we have as Jewish community,” she said.
Cohen described the commemoration as an opportunity for Nashville's Jewish community to gather as one. “Bringing together Jewish Nashville synagogues, agencies, and institutions is an important part of that vision,” she said.
Bar Segev, Israel and Overseas associate, shared her thoughts as an Israeli leading up to the commemoration. “It is one of those moments where I see how strong, united, and resilient our community is, and it’s beautiful to see,” she said. “This year we are commemorating, but we are also emphasizing the strength of Kehila, [“community” in Hebrew] and the strength we give to each other…because that’s what rebuilds us.”
The community will hear from Barak Morag, Oct. 7 survivor from Nir Oz, a kibbutz near the Gaza strip. “Morag’s story embodies the message of this event,” said Cohen. “After experiencing unimaginable fear, death, and destruction . . . he chooses each day to lean into hope.”
Morag said his emotions are deeply mixed as the third anniversary of the attacks approaches. “As we mark three years, I am filled with hope seeing the ongoing processes of rehabilitation,” he shared, expressing gratitude for the return of the living and deceased hostages. “For a long time, we couldn't even begin to plan ahead; all our energy was consumed by the struggle to bring them home. Now, a year since their return, there is finally emotional space to look toward the future.”
While this anniversary carries a new element of closure, Morag described the pain of a wound only now beginning to heal. “Time does not simply make it all go away,” he said. “We always remember and deeply miss those who are no longer with us. Healing is a very long and subjective journey. Even as we function, progress, and plan for the future, the void in our hearts, the trauma, and the fears remain very present. It is a constant duality of carrying the pain while looking toward the future.”
Morag shared why he tells his story, and why he hopes people feel a sense of connection, resilience, and hope. “I want the audience to understand the power of choosing life, the strength required to rebuild, and the immense importance of community—both our local one and the global family that stands with us,” he said.
For Morag and many other survivors, storytelling is not only a gift to the audience, it is also a gift to the survivors. “I want to express my deepest appreciation to the Nashville community for holding this space,” he said. “For us in Israel, and especially for my family and me, the unwavering support from communities worldwide has been an absolute lifeline. ... It is essential for preserving our narratives and keeping our truth visible to the world.”
Morag looks forward to standing together in Nashville, saying, “I am really looking forward to meeting everyone in person.”
Additionally, to mark the third anniversary of Oct. 7, a memorial is being created. Judy Alperin, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Nashville, said she wanted to do something deeper and more permanent this year. “The atrocity that was committed was so horrific that it deserves to be remembered in perpetuity,” she said.
With that goal in mind, she asked Nashville resident and steel artist Alex Limor and his son Avi, a steel artist and IDF reservist, to help. The sculpture will consist of dancing stick figures encircling a group of children, inspired by the Nova music festival attendees attacked and killed on Oct. 7.
Limor is the son of Holocaust survivor Irvin Limor. After being liberated from a labor camp in Poland, his father and mother moved to Palestine, where Limor was later born in 1947—a year before Palestine became recognized as the state of Israel. The family moved to Nashville in 1957.
Limor described his father as a skilled metal sculptor for several decades. “He taught me everything I knew about steel,” Limor shared. “The place where I have a connection with my dad is at my shop. When I’m working, I’m surrounded by his essence, his soul.”
Limor is the founder of Limor Steel, where he and his children carry on the family legacy of metalwork. His work can be seen on the Gordon JCC grounds, including a menorah in front of the building, and a book sculpture in the Holocaust memorial.
Limor’s inspiration for the memorial of the dancers includes “endurance, survival, optimism, and looking to the future,” and the necessity of joy.
Limor and Avi described the beauty of working with steel: it can be manipulated, is permanent and versatile, and requires skill and craftmanship. As viewers move around the sculpture, the piece can change with their perspective, creating a sense of motion and deeper meaning.
The sculpture of stick figure dancers surrounding a group of children will serve as a permanent reminder of the generational power of hope. Alperin also extends a special thank you to Gordon JCC for their partnership and support in this project. She said the Nova festival attacks inspired the theme, “we will dance again” — a theme of both tragedy and expectation. “I think it's the perfect representation of the moment,” she shared, “and will help carry us forward as we remember.”
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