The Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh commemorated the third anniversary of the antisemitic shooting on Shabbos day at the congregation Tree of Life in Squirrel Hill, in which 11 people were murdered.
Each of the school’s divisions has taken part in memorial efforts.
In keeping with the custom to learn a Mishna starting with the letters that spell out the name of the deceased, 4th-8th grade boys found a Mishna that begins with each of the 22 letters of the Alef Beis and divided them up among all the students to learn in memoery of the 11 kedoshim. Collectively a Mishna was learned for each letter of the Alef Beis.
The high school girls marked the anniversary by resolving to do something that would bring more positivity to the community. On Friday, they handed out flowers and hung up flyers that encouraged people to pledge good deeds in the memory of the victims.
These flyers, as well as the business card-sized “Find the Kind” reminders, are part of a campaign the girls hope will be adopted on a wider, national scale, so that others can pledge mitzvos in memory of those lost.
To get “Find the Kind” posters with good deed pull strips, as well as good deed cards, email [email protected].
On Sunday afternoon, they walked to Tree of Life and davened Mincha outside.
The high school boys participated in an assembly where they heard from Eric Lidji, director of the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center and a Yeshiva Schools alum. He is the editor of the book Bound in the Bond of Life and is heading up the forming of the October 27th archive at the Heinz History Center.
