A couple hailed as “heroes in every sense of the word”, a “gifted musician” and a “woman of integrity” have been farewelled in ceremonies across Sydney.
They were four of 15 innocent victims killed during a targeted terror attack against the Jewish community celebrating the Chanukah by the Sea event on Bondi Beach last weekend.
Gunman Naveed Akram has been charged with 59 offences over the mass shooting, including 15 counts of murder, committing a terrorist act and 40 counts of causing wounding/grievous bodily harm to a person with intent to murder.
The area was declared a crime scene and reopened to the public yesterday afternoon.
Boris and Sofia Gurman: ‘In every sense of the word, heroes’
“Yesterday we buried a 10-year-old girl; it’s been years since I’ve seen two coffins next to each other,” Rabbi Yehoram Ulman said during the funeral of Boris and Sofia Gurman.
The married couple who confronted one of the armed men only to be killed were farewelled in a ceremony in Woollahra on Friday.
Dashcam footage captured the moment Mr Gurman wrestled with the man during the early stages of the attack and gained control of a gun for several seconds.
The longtime Bondi couple were due celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary in January. (Supplied)
Rabbi Yehoram Ulman — father-in-law of shooting victim Rabbi Eli Schlanger who was farewelled at a Bondi synagogue on Wednesday — conducted the service, calling it an “unimaginable situation in which we say goodbye to both at the same time”.
“Boris and Sofia, to them we can apply the words of King David: pleasant and beloved in life and in death they were not separated.”
Rabbi Ulman said the world was “shaken” by their murders, but would remember them for their courage in their final moments.
Mourners gathered at Chevra Kadisha Sydney to remember Boris and Sofia Gurman. (ABC News: Che Chorley)
“Boris and Sofia were taken from us, not just because they were Jewish, but fighting for being Jewish,” he said.
“The world has seen the footage of, I think they were the first ones to go. They’ve seen a terrorist taking out his gun and [they] courageously attacked him, tragically, to be killed with a second gun.”Â
He shared a statement written by the couple’s son, Alex, which spoke to Sofia’s natural authority and Boris’s love of gardening and deep sense of care.
Video shows Bondi couple confronted gunman before their deaths
“If you were lucky enough to know Sofia and Boris, you didn’t just know them, you felt their presence in your life,” he read.
“From a young age, Sofia was always the one a little further ahead,” he read. “The first up the tree, the one you trusted with responsibility, the ones others instinctively followed. That instinct followed her through life.”
Alex added that every year, the extended family knew and looked forward to her traditional Soviet wafer cake.
When speaking about Boris, he said his father was an “unmistakable presence”.
“In his younger years, he was something of a troublemaker. But over time, that energy matured into a deep sense of responsibility and care for the world around him,” Alex wrote.
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“He loved a chat, and it didn’t matter how well he knew you or fluent the shared language was; Boris always found a way to connect,” he read. “His English was sometimes broken, but his meaning never was.”
Alex said that after he was born, his parents had “made a decision that would shape the rest of their lives” by leaving the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
“They started from ground zero in Sydney, in a new country with a new language, and a completely new life. They bought their first house in Bondi, and over time Sydney became their home.”
Boris and Sofia Gurman have been remembered as heroes. (ABC News: Che Corley)
The pair’s strong partnership came not just from how hard they worked, but how well they knew each other, their son wrote.
They had been married for almost 35 years, with their anniversary coming up in January.
Read more on the Bondi Beach shooting:
“They showed us what family truly means. Family went beyond blood, it included those they lived near, worked alongside and shared their daily lives with.”
He said that even in their final moments, they showed the depth of who they were.
“Facing those moments with courage, selflessness and love. In doing so, they reminded us that they were not only devoted parents and partners, but in every sense of the word, heroes.”
Mr Gurman was a retired mechanic and Ms Gurman worked at Australia Post for the past five years.
Edith Brutman was a ‘woman of integrity’
Mourners filled a western Sydney chapel for the funeral of Edith Brutman, who was one of the victims in the Bondi terror attack.
Others were seated outside the chapel and watched the proceedings on a screen.
She was remembered at the service for her love, loyalty and devotion to her community and family.
Edith Brutman has been remembered for her love, loyalty and community devotion. (ABC News: Billy Cooper)
Ms Brutman was vice president of the NSW branch of B’nai B’rith, an international Jewish organisation that aims to combat antisemitism and provides humanitarian aid.
Rabbi Yehoram Ulman, who also conducted the funeral for Boris and Sofia Gurman, said Mrs Brutman was “charitable in every way”.
“And she did it with love, with devotion, and without being asked.”
Rabbi Ulman said he had known her for nearly two decades, and said it was “truly difficult for me to imagine she isn’t here”.
“She was a person that liked to be called, but she also called you. She [would] always call with something to say, and give her own interpretation.”
“Edith wasn’t just a part of our lives; she was a very, very vocal part of our lives. But her love, her loyalty, her devotion, was really unique in every way,” he said.
In a social media post on Tuesday, the organisation described her as a “cherished leader”.
“She led the organisation’s anti-prejudice and anti-discrimination committee, work that now carries an even more painful and profound significance,” the post read.
A family statement earlier this week said “our beloved Edith was a woman of integrity who chose humanity, every day”.
“She met prejudice with principle, and division with service. Our family mourns her deeply, but we ask that her life, not the senseless violence that took it, be what endures,” the statement said.
Boris Tetleroyd remembered as a ‘gifted musician’
More than 100 mourners gathered for the graveside funeral for Boris Tetleroyd, who was at the Hanukkah event on Sunday evening when he was fatally shot.
Mr Tetleroyd has been described as a “gentle” person who was a gifted musician and valued member of the community.
Mr Tetleroyd was “cherished” by his family. (Supplied)
A statement by the family said he was “loved by everyone he met”.
“He was well known to his neighbours, deeply connected to our wider community, and cherished by his family,” the statement read.
“Boris was a gentle man, a gifted musician and a valued member of his community,” it said.
His niece Leia Roitour set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds to support the family, and said he was the primary provider for his wife.
She said Boris’s son was also injured in the attack at Bondi and was recovering in hospital.
He is survived by his two sons and wife.
“We honour his life and the love he so generously gave to those around him,” the statement said.