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Grand Valley State Students hold vigil for Pittsburgh synagogue victims

A synagogue is a place of worship and togetherness, and 11 innocent people were killed while they were simply praying, said Morgan Mattler, president of GVSU Alpha Epsilon Pi.

ALLENDALE, Mich. - An interfaith crowd standing under Cook Carillon Tower at Grand Valley State’s Allendale campus Monday lit candles to honor the 11 people shot and killed at Tree of Life Congregation synagogue in Pittsburgh Saturday, Oct. 27.

Around 200 to 250 people attended the vigil coordinated by the university’s chapter of Hillel, an international Jewish campus organization, and the Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi.

“I drove to work to teach eight 10-year-olds at Sunday school,” said Allison Egrin, senior and Hillel president. “How do you tell innocent children that there are people in the world who hate us simply because we’re Jewish?”

A synagogue is a place of worship and togetherness, and 11 innocent people were killed while they were simply praying, said Morgan Mattler, president of GVSU Alpha Epsilon Pi.

“I find myself at a loss for words, feeling so broken,” Mattler told the crowd. “Not only because these 11 lives were lost, but because this could’ve been any Jewish community around this country, around this world. My Jewish community is no different.”

Hearing about Pittsburgh, it felt as if the West Michigan Jewish community was also a recipient of hate, said Rabbi Michael Schadick, leader of the Reform congregation at Temple Emanuel on Fulton Street in Grand Rapids.

“When Jews suffer any kind of antisemitism, no matter where it happens, we all feel that same sense of pain and antisemitism because there aren’t that many of us,” Schadick said. “We’re all responsible for each other.”

Several students and school administrators spoke at the vigil including Grand Valley State University President Thomas Haas, who praised his students for coming together.

“We can do the best we can to make changes where it needs to be done,” Haas said. “We have the power to do that."

Rabbi Schadick concluded the ceremony by leading the group in the mourner’s Kaddish, a central prayer recited at daily services. The student speakers, expressing pride in their people, urged the crowd to fight antisemitism and all other forms of hate.

“I'm proud to be a Jew,” said Junior Zack Kirschner. “On Saturday when I woke up, I was proud to be a Jew. On Sunday when I went to bed, I was proud to be a Jew. We won’t accept any hate speech. We want to instill a positive energy into this community."

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