PEORIA, Ill. (25 News) – Even though the conflict is thousands of miles away, members of Peoria’s Jewish community have such strong ties to their spiritual homeland that the conflict there feels as real and present as if it were next door.
Executive Director of the Peoria Jewish Federation Susan Katz said many locals either know someone in the country or have been there themselves. The congregation of Anshai Emeth synagogue off University Street in Peoria gathered to share their grief over images of intense violence and killings in Gaza.
Hundreds are dead. Many are missing or being held hostage by Hamas terrorists.
“It’s hard to comprehend the depth of the pain that we feel and that we feel for the families that are looking for their loved ones that don’t know where they are… I can’t imagine,” Katz said.
A Peoria couple is stuck in Israel right now. The couple, identified only as Paul and Connie by the federation, are in Ashdod visiting family. The port city is about 25 miles north of Gaza.
The couple said they are staying close to the “safe rooms” present in every home. Those rooms are meant to withstand mortars and are typical in homes along the border.
The couple updated their congregation via a short video message played at Tuesday’s gathering.
“I don’t know if you can hear it in the background… there’s right now a constant thundering as they are bombing Gaza,” Paul said in the video. “It’s like distant thundering.”
The couple said they’ve only heard the sirens once in their city. They cannot leave the country, and plane ticket prices have tripled.
Congregants also saw another video of a woman on social media begging to be reunited with her sons who were captured by Hamas, and a man recounting his ten hours spent in hiding with his family.
Faith leaders from Hindu and Baptist congregations also shared messages of support and prayers for the Jewish community.
The Federation is asking for its members to donate to the Jewish Federation of North America’s emergency fund for this situation. They also provided local news sources to keep up with what’s happening on the ground in Israel.
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