A profound sense of grief enveloped Bondi, Australia, as the community gathered to mourn the tragic loss of 10-year-old Matilda, the youngest victim of a terrorist attack that claimed 15 lives on October 15, 2023. The service, held at the Bondi Pavilion, attracted a crowd that swelled from 1,000 to nearly 2,000 mourners, reflecting the deep sorrow felt by those who had come together in solidarity.
As darkness fell, Matilda’s father, Michael, expressed his heartbreak with an emotional tribute. “We came here from Ukraine… I named her Matilda because she was our firstborn in Australia. And I thought that Matilda was the most Australian name that could ever exist. So just remember – remember her name,” he said, his voice breaking under the weight of his loss. His wife, Valentyna, added, “I couldn’t imagine I would lose my daughter here,” as she pressed her hand to her heart, conveying the anguish that would resonate among the gathered crowd.
The memorial included a solemn reading of the names of the victims by Rabbi Yossi Friedman, who announced that the Jewish community would begin burying their dead the following day. The names read included Rabbi Eli Schlanger, a community leader, and Yaakov Levitan, the secretary of the Sydney Beth Din, both of whom were killed in the attack. “There are more victims… and no doubt their names will keep coming,” Friedman assured the mourners.
Later in the evening, the name of Edith Brutman, vice-president of the anti-prejudice committee at B’nai B’rith, was added to the somber list. The atmosphere was punctuated by the sound of a woman’s anguished cry as she recounted her close connection to the victims. “I’ve come to rip off the Band-Aid,” she stated, describing how her mother’s friend was among those killed. Her cousin had narrowly escaped the gunfire, adding to the trauma felt by those in attendance.
Efforts to support the families of the victims are already underway. Rivky Shuchat, from Jewish Education Matters, has been actively collecting donations. She displayed photographs of her slain friends, Rabbi Schlanger and Rabbi Levitan, and encouraged attendees to contribute. “In the past 48 hours, almost $400,000 has been raised for Rabbi Schlanger and almost $200,000 for Levitan,” she reported. “I won’t stop until we get to a million for each – these men had young families.”
As the memorial continued, another layer of grief unfolded with the announcement of two more victims, Boris and Sofia Gurman, who had attempted to intervene during the attack. Mark Leach, a Sydney Anglican minister, addressed the crowd, acknowledging the broader societal failure that allowed such violence to occur. “Forgive us. You are a tiny, tiny minority, and the majority of this country has allowed this to happen,” he said, calling for a collective effort against antisemitism. “The fight against antisemitism is not yours to win. You cannot win it. It is a fight for all of Australia to win.”
As the mourners gathered, the sea of flowers at the Pavilion continued to grow, symbolizing the community’s solidarity and love for the victims. Traditional Hebrew songs filled the air, intermingling with the Australian national anthem, as Rabbi Motti Feldman issued a message of resilience. “We grieve, we mourn, we cry. But we will not be silenced,” he stated, emphasizing the importance of kindness and unity in the face of hatred.
In the wake of this tragedy, the Bondi community stands united, vowing to remember Matilda and the others lost to violence, and to work towards a future where such acts of hate are extinguished.
