![\"Elinor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MIA_PRO_ISRAEL_RALL_MJO_06.jpeg\" "\\"Elinor")
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Elinor Ben David and her daughter Liel Abissidan, 8, sit near the Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach during a rally held days after the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.<\/p>\n
MATIAS J. OCNER<\/p>\n
mocner@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
For decades, the Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach has been a formal place of remembrance for the six million Jews and millions of others murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust.<\/p>\n
This year, on the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks on Israel, the Memorial is inviting the South Florida community to honor the lives lost through a day of commemorative activities and reflection.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the day where the largest number of Jewish people were targeted and murdered since the Holocaust,\u201d said Sheri Zvi, CEO of the Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach. \u201cThe memorial wants to be a place for the community to come to remember, to have difficult conversations, but also to grow and expand and connect.\u201d<\/p>\n
October 7 marks three years since about 1,200 Israelis were killed and another 250 were taken hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas. That dark day was felt by Jews all around the world, especially those in South Florida with connections to Israel, reshaping Jewish life for many.<\/p>\n
The day-long event, \u201cRemembering October 7th<\/a>,\u201d will include a reading of the names of those who were killed in the attacks, a candle-lighting ceremony and special programming at the new Education Center. The day aims to bring the community together to mourn those who were lost while gaining a deeper understanding of that deadly day in history, said Zvi.<\/p>\n The education center will be showing films on October 7, including one that offers a VR experience of survivors<\/a>, and hosting a handful of Holocaust survivors who will be speaking throughout the day. One panel discussion will feature Holocaust survivor Saul Blau<\/a> and a survivor of the Nova Music Festival.<\/p>\n Two years after the deadly attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, the Holocaust Memorial engraved the names of the 1,200 murdered in the Hamas attacks in Hebrew and English \u2014 the first place in the world to do so.<\/p>\n The granite panels now sit beside the engraved names of the six million Jews who perished in Europe during the Holocaust. It\u2019s a visual reminder that Jewish suffering has not ended with the Holocaust, said Zvi.<\/p>\n \u201cThis draws a direct line from the Holocaust to October 7 and the contemporary antisemitism that we\u2019re seeing rising throughout the world,\u201d Zvi said.<\/p>\n Since that dark day, antisemitism around the world has reached historic highs, leading to the vast majority of American Jews feeling less safe due to incidents involving violence, harassment and vandalism of Jewish institutions, according to the Anti-Defamation League\u2019s most recent report on antisemitism in 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every Jewish person has a story about where they were when they heard the news on October 7, but Holocaust survivors are among those who were most impacted by the news.<\/p>\n \u201cThis triggered them tremendously,\u201d said Zvi. \u201dBecause their lives have been spent saying never again and trying to educate future generations, and to see something like this happen in their lifetime was massive and so traumatic.\u201d<\/p>\n As Holocaust survivors decline, so do opportunities to hear their stories firsthand \u2014 an element of the Memorial that visitors often say is the most impactful, Zvi said.<\/p>\n \u201cTo sit with a Holocaust survivor and speak with them is something that time after time our visitors have shared have been life-changing moments,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd our hope is that on October 7, we can do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n IF YOU GO:<\/p>\n What: Remembering October 7th<\/p>\n When: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7<\/p>\n WHERE: Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach, 1933 -1945 Meridian Ave., Miami Beach<\/p>\n COST: Free<\/p>\n INFORMATION: holocaustmemorialmiamibeach.org<\/a><\/p>\n