AACI holds memorial ceremony for North Americans who fell in battle and victims of terror

AACI, the Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel, held its annual memorial ceremony on Thursday evening, commemorating North Americans who fell in military service to the State of Israel or as victims of terror. The event was held at the KKL Rabin Forest near Sha’ar Hagai and was conducted in English.

The ceremony featured remarks from US Ambassador Jack Lew, Maj.-Gen. (Res.) Doron Almog, chairman of the Jewish Agency, representatives from the Israeli government, families of the fallen, and parents of the hostages. Joseph Gitler, the founder of Leket Israel and the father-in-law of David Schwartz, who fell in battle in Gaza, was the keynote speaker.

In his opening remarks, David London, the CEO of AACI, noted that before October 7, there were 360 names on the organization’s Memorial Wall in the forest. Since that date, he said, 77 new names have been added.

Jewish Agency head Doron Almog invoked the memories of Staff Sgt. Rose Lubin and Sgt. Binyamin Meir Airley, who fell since October 7. Lubin, 21, a native of Atlanta, Georgia, moved to Israel as a lone soldier to enlist in the IDF and was drafted to serve in the Border Police. On October 7, while staying with her ‘adopted family’ in Kibbutz Sa’ad near the Gaza Strip, she courageously defended the kibbutz against Hamas terrorists. On November 6, Lubin was tragically murdered in a stabbing attack in the capital.

Airley, a member of the Paratroopers Brigade in the 101st Battalion, was born in New York and made aliyah to Ramat Beit Shemesh with his family in 2006. He was killed on November 18, 2023, fighting Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip. Almog concluded his remarks with a prayer for the safe return of the hostages held in Gaza.

American ambassador to Israel speaks at commemoration 

US Amb. to Israel Jack Lew noted that more than 30 American citizens were murdered in the Hamas atrocities on October 7, and 23 dual-national American Israelis have fallen in combat since that date. “This year, our hearts are heavy as we honor the memory of the 77 individuals who tragically are now added to the Memorial Wall.”

Lew added that since assuming the position of ambassador, he has had many difficult conversations with families of fallen soldiers, kidnapped hostages, and other innocent people murdered on October 7. “Amid the pain, I’ve seen unbounded resilience and endless resolve,” Lew added that the United States remains determined to bring the hostages home and end the conflict in a way that protects Israel’s safety and security.

In his keynote remarks, Joseph Gitler spoke of his son-in-law, Sgt.-Maj. (Res.) David Schwartz, 26, who fell in battle in Khan Yunis on January 8. Referring to North American olim, he said, “Every one of us here could have stayed put and had an easier life without the stresses of language, culture, no Sundays off, unremitting terror, and long military service.” Despite the sacrifices involved, said Gitler, more than 200,000 Americans are currently living in Israel. While everyone who has come to Israel has sacrificed, he added, “No one has sacrificed like those whose names are etched on this monument, and that needs to be commemorated.”

Despite the tragic losses that have befallen the Jewish people, Gitler said, “We will carry on as the Jewish people have done for millennia, to continue building our homeland as a light unto the nations even if often many of the nations seem blind to our light.”

A video about the lives of Judi Weinstein, a 70-year-old who held Israeli, American, and Canadian citizenship, and her Israeli American husband, Gadi Haggai, who were murdered by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nir Oz, was screened for the audience, and a panel discussion with Robert Airley, father of Binyamin Airley, and Mrs. Lisa Zenilman, mother of Ari Zenilman, who fell in Khan Yunis on December 10, was moderated by Atara Volk Itzchaki, director of projects at AACI.

At the event, AACI introduced its commemorative website, www.aaciremembers.org, which honors the memory of individuals from English-speaking countries or members of AACI who have fallen in service to the State of Israel or as victims of terror. The website enables visitors to search the listing of the fallen by name, hometown, or year of birth, and offers insights into their stories and the conflicts in which they perished. Officials expressed the hope that in future years, they will no longer have to add names to the Memorial Wall and the website.