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Where Memory Takes Root
As communities across Israel and around the world commemorate October 7 and the lives lost in the war that followed, remembrance has become woven into the physical and social fabric of daily life.
In the Hadera-Eiron region, this remembrance can be found in gardens and schoolyards, in art and athletics, in digital archives, and in projects that invite people to build, learn, gather, and give.
These initiatives are as varied as the people they honor. Families, students, educators, municipalities, youth movements, and community organizations have each found their own language for memory. Some have created quiet places for reflection. Others have chosen activities filled with movement, creativity, or service. Together, they show how remembrance can remain closely connected to the values, interests, and relationships that shaped a person’s life
Gan Hane’urim: A Garden Created by Students
Gan Hane’urim, the Garden of Youth, was established in Hadera in memory of 17 of the city’s residents who fell in the Iron Swords War - Asaf Mordechai Edberg, Captain Alon Sacagiu, Captain Ron Zarfaty, Captain Yarden Zakai, Lieutenant Ron Arieli, Lior Atun, Major Sergei Matatov, Master Sergeant (Res.) Eliran Abergil, Master Sergeant (Res.) Or Ohad, Sergeant Major Boris Danilov, Sergeant First Class (Res.) Nitzan Shesler, Sergeant Shahar Manoav, Chief Sergeant Avichai Amsalem, Staff Sergeant Neta Bar-Am, Staff Sergeant Nisim Kachlon, Staff Sergeant Nissim Meytal, Staff Sergeant Noam Eitan.
Located in the Beit Eliezer neighborhood, the garden began with students from Hativat Hane’urim at Tichon Hadash Beit Eliezer, who wanted to transform the shared area between local schools into a living educational and community memorial.
Seventh-grade students took a leading role as part of a mitzvah project. They spoke with bereaved families and gathered photographs and information about the people being commemorated. In its original form, each personal memorial corner included a tree, a community-built picnic table, a planter with ceramic anemones, and a memorial post with a QR code leading visitors to a photograph and biographical information. The temporary memorial posts were later replaced with permanent elements designed by artist Or Benbenishti. Olive trees planted throughout the garden represent rootedness, continuity, and hope.
The project brought together the school, its parent leadership, nearby schools, local community partners, Yad La’Banim, and Hadera’s municipal memorial committee. What began as a student initiative gradually developed into a recognized municipal memorial site and was officially rededicated in April this year.
The garden is intended to remain connected to school and community life. Each incoming seventh-grade class is invited to continue the work through activities related to the stories of the fallen, the war, community, and responsibility. The students do not encounter memory as something finished. They receive it as a commitment passed from one class to the next.
Building in Neta’s Memory: The Annual Lego Exhibition
Staff Sgt. Neta Bar-Am, a Hadera resident and combat intelligence soldier, was serving at the Nahal Oz outpost on October 7. As the outpost came under attack and Neta understood the gravity of the situation, he sent a final message to the family. “This is probably the last message I am writing to you,” it began. It ended with a request that became a guide for the family: “Keep collecting and building Lego for me. I love you more than you can imagine.”
The family chose to carry those words forward through an annual Lego competition and exhibition. Held during Sukkot for the second year in a row, close to the anniversary of Neta’s death, the event takes place at the Eshkol Pais building of the Multidisciplinary School in Hadera, where Neta studied. It is led by the family together with Orly Akron of Hakubiya Haksuma, a community Lego museum in Pardes Hanna.
Several months before the exhibition, a theme is announced and the public is invited to create related Lego models. The 2026 theme, “Knowing the Land of Israel,” reflected another important part of Neta’s life. Neta was an enthusiastic young field guide and led a district Shelach course toward the end of 12th grade.
The competition includes separate categories for children, teenagers, and adults. Experienced Lego builders who are not participating in the competition also display original creations. Children can build at activity stations and play in “Lego pools,” while visitors can take part in a prize-based puzzle. Admission and participation are free.
The event has grown into a broad community gathering. It is hosted for the third year by sports presenter Sharon Perry, regularly shared by Hanoch Daum and media outlets, and this year was honored by the presence of the Danish ambassador, representing the birthplace of Lego. In previous years, guests included Paralympic rower Moran Samuel, and this year the exhibition also drew interest from Lego-loving social media creators.
The exhibition translates a private message into an open community tradition. Children, families, expert builders, and first-time visitors all contribute something of their own. In that spirit, the event continues an idea Neta often expressed: “Never stop building, because Lego brings people together.”
Bar Garden: A Quiet Space in Ein Shemer
Bar Tomer was born at Kibbutz Ein Shemer in 1998. Throughout her life, Bar painted, danced, traveled, and cultivated a wide circle of friends. Those who knew Bar found someone who listened, encouraged others, and brought an attentive presence to the people around her.
Bar served in the Israeli Navy and later worked as a painter at music festivals in Europe, a bartender, a youth instructor, and a human resources coordinator at the Elkonin Hotel. At the same time, Bar studied psychology and management at Bar-Ilan University. Bar also studied NLP, explored Eastern teachings and spiritual growth, and practiced yoga and Pilates.
Bar was murdered at the Nova festival on October 7, 2023.
Created in Bar’s memory, Bar Garden covers approximately 500 square meters in the center of Kibbutz Ein Shemer. The Japanese-style landscape reflects the social and spiritual aspects of Bar’s life and offers visitors a setting for quiet, movement, and time together.
The garden includes a torii gate, Japanese plants and trees, walking paths, basalt stones and pillars, a stream, a small bridge, a fountain, stone lanterns, bells, and seating areas. A deck with a pergola provides space for yoga, Pilates, meditation, mindfulness, and community gatherings.
Bar Garden does not ask visitors to experience remembrance in only one way. People can walk among the plants, sit with friends, practice, reflect, or simply spend time outdoors. The garden connects Bar’s memory with activities and ideas that were part of her own search for growth, balance, and human closeness.
Other Forms of Living Memory Across the Region
Across the Hadera-Eiron region, remembrance has also found expression through schools, youth movements, public spaces, sports, art, digital archives, and acts of service. Each initiative preserves a different facet of a life and offers another way for people to connect with the person behind the name.
In memory of Sergeant Ori Locker, ORT School created a personal page as part of its memorial project for fallen graduates. A children’s soccer field was inaugurated in Pardes Hanna in Ori’s memory, while Ori’s school established a memorial corner and a traditional volleyball tournament.
The family of Sergeant Yinon Tamir created Remember Yinon, a dedicated website containing stories, videos, and links. Yinon is also commemorated on the Israeli Scouts’ memorial website, and in July 2024 a group in Shevet Alon was named Gdud Yinon in Yinon’s memory.
A personal page for First Class Sergeant Guy Ben-Harush appears within the memorial project of the Oketz Unit Foundation. In Pardes Hanna-Karkur, a dog park and tree orchard on Nehilot Street provide a community space dedicated to Guy’s memory.
The family of Chief sergeant Avichai Amsalem created a website containing memorial texts, photo albums, and press coverage. Additional initiatives include a wooden memorial site in the community of Yafit, a stand at the Tel Aviv Marathon, and a community garden in Lod.
Digital spaces offer another way to preserve stories across distance and time.
Captain Ron Zarfati is commemorated in 7.10.360, Kan’s digital museum. Sergeant Major Boris Danilov has a memorial page for university graduates on the University of Haifa website, as well as a digital memorial page and downloadable album through Sipur Chayai. The Nova Tribe Community created a memorial page for Lior Atun, while Hadera High School hosts a personal page in memory of Nitzan Shesler.
Some projects preserve deeply personal objects or traces of a person’s life. Stickers and a Book of Psalms associated with Staff Sergeant Nisim Kahlon were featured in Ma’alim Zichronot, the President’s Residence memorial project.
Through Ot.Chaim, a commemorative typeface was created from Master Sergeant First Class Eliran Abergil’s handwriting, alongside a personal memorial page on Sipur Chayai. The same platform hosts a page for Alon Sacagiu containing photographs, videos, stories, and a recipe. A brewery and annual event requested in Alon’s will remain a planned memorial project included in the National Remembrance Forum.
Other initiatives bring memory into movement and shared outdoor spaces. A large surfers’ circle was held at Manao Ne’urim Beach in memory of Assaf Mordechai Edberg, in cooperation with a surfing club. A mural honoring Assaf and Stav depicts the two holding a surfboard.
In memory of Yarden Zakai, a dedicated website was created, as well as a school bench expressing the idea that no one should feel alone and a memorial corner in the teachers’ room. On October 24, 2025, the family held a memorial sail at the Hadera sailing club.
Noam Eitan is remembered through a shaded seating area with a table, benches, and a drinking fountain. Family and friends also ran five kilometers in Noam’s memory during the 2025 Hadera race. In January 2026, Yedidim Hadera inaugurated a wheel-lending station dedicated to Noam.
Doron Bolds, a talented chef with a passion for bringing people together through food, dreamed of opening his own food truck. After Doron was murdered at the Nova Music Festival on October 7, 2023, his family chose to honor his memory by turning that dream into reality. Today, Bolds Farm serves not only food and coffee but also as a living tribute to Doron's warmth, generosity, and love for people.
These initiatives differ in scale and form, but each begins with something deeply personal: a handwritten word, a love of the sea, a commitment to friendship, a passion for building, or a desire to help others. Together, they ensure that those who were lost remain part of everyday life, woven into classrooms, public spaces, community gatherings, and acts of kindness across the region. In this way, remembrance is not only about the past. It is also about carrying values, stories, and human connections forward.
May their memory be a blessing. יהי זכרם ברוך
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