Seventy-eight Holocaust survivors from across Israel — from cities, kibbutzim, moshavim and development towns, from north to south — spent Tuesday being pampered and glammed up and then took the stage at the Bat Yam Culture Hall to receive a “Heroes of Beauty” sash from mayors, regional council heads and welfare department chiefs from their communities.
That was the high point of the “Heroines and Heroes of Beauty” ceremony, the annual tribute event for Holocaust survivors, held for the eighth year and this time under the theme “Chain of Generations.” Bat Yam, which hosted the event, will mark next month 100 years since its founding as the Beit Vegan neighborhood in the sands south of Jaffa.
Before taking the stage, the heroines and heroes were treated to hairstyling and cosmetic care, and, most importantly, to meetings with soldiers from the Home Front Command’s Search and Rescue Unit, air defense fighters, the Air Force’s Shaldag Unit and the Mofet unit in the IDF Manpower Directorate.
The soldiers accompanied the survivors throughout the day, and bonds of friendship and appreciation were formed between the sides. The survivors also were invited to tour IDF units.
Those who survived, those who fought and those who returned
The meaning of the chain of generations was illustrated by one family story told from the stage: The mother of Bat Yam Deputy Mayor Eli Yariv is a Holocaust survivor, and her grandson, an Air Force pilot, took part in the assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut.
Yariv presented the story as one link in the same chain — a chain of Zionism, giving, sacrifice and the struggle for life, connecting the generation of grandparents to the generation now fighting for Israel’s security and future.
Yariv’s family story was only one of many. Alongside the presentation of the sashes, four additional life stories of heroines and heroes were shared during the evening.
Luis Har, who was kidnapped from his home on October 7, survived the Holocaust and Hamas captivity in Gaza
(Photo: Meir Even Haim)
Luis Har, who was kidnapped from his home on October 7 and freed from captivity in Gaza by IDF and Shin Bet fighters in Operation Golden Hand, was invited to the stage. Har, a member of a family that carries the memory of the Holocaust from generation to generation, embodies in his life the deep meaning of the chain of generations: from the generation that struggled to survive, through the generations that built lives in the State of Israel, to the generation that continues to carry memory, identity and faith in life.
Since his release, Har has chosen to speak about what he endured, to share moments of terror and despair alongside moments of prayer and faith, and to turn the difficult experience into a message of life. The word “hope,” which accompanied him even in the hardest moments of captivity, became a tangible symbol: He initiated the “Hope” installation in Hostages Square and the “Chain of Hope” — hope for life, for the return of the hostages and for better days.
Helen and Avraham Hoffman also took the stage. Both are the sole survivors of their families. After the Holocaust, they immigrated to Israel and built a family of five children, 22 grandchildren and 35 great-grandchildren. Since October 7, 20 members of the family’s second and third generations have served or are serving in the IDF, in mandatory service and in the reserves.
Honor was also given on stage to Moti and Rina Angrest, the grandparents of released hostage Matan Angrest, who also carry the memory of the Holocaust. Matan, who is currently abroad, sent a video in which he surprised them with warm words about the strength they gave him not to give up — and to continue the chain of generations.
The tribute journey was concluded by 102-year-old Miriam Harel of Kiryat Bialik and 100-year-old Yaffa Einhorn of Moshav Nehalim. Both pass on the legacy of the Holocaust to future generations: Miriam through her many years of writing, and Yaffa through stories she only began telling in the past two years, after many long years in which she kept the painful chapter of her family’s loss in the Holocaust locked in her heart.
Moti Angrest, the grandfather of former hostage Matan
(Photo: Gal Ganot)
The evening’s stories were woven together by host Izzy Mann, author of rhymed Hebrew prose, poems and songs, who has written connecting texts for thousands of state, military and institutional events in Israel. Mann honored the heroines and heroes, representatives of the chain of generations, with a poetic composition that he read during the ceremony:
“Here is the wheel of generations, rolling from exile and wandering — to home ... from fear and persecution — to security ... from the house of father and mother — to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
“Such is the wheel of generations, in which names and memories return and move forward — through the circle of seasons and years.
“And a grandfather who married a grandmother, and together they fought for the future ... and the children and grandchildren — now a free people, with a flag and an anthem — they too are fighting to see the sunrise ...
“And together, in the wheel of generations, they move upward along the road — and see, even from years of curse, the light and the blessing.
“Yes, each man and woman in their time ... each woman like a lioness ... each person in their own way, according to the spirit of the times ...
“But together, in the wheel of time that turns between day and night and between night and day, they write in the book of history our finest hour.
“And the chronicles of a people — that guards the ember and does not give up ... that moves forward, but does not leave the memories behind ...
“And knows that it always has the power to find, even in days of darkness, every ray of light.”
An army of volunteers
The initiator and driving force behind the project is Col. (res.) Ronit Lev, who is also behind the initiative “Fulfilling Small Dreams for Great People.” Lev leads an “army” of volunteers — including senior female officers who retired from the IDF — who continue to devote themselves to the generation of Holocaust survivors and the founders of the state.
A partner in the initiative is the “Sela” unit, the patrol division for security and policing at the Tel Aviv Municipality. Donors to the event included the Hever organization; Yohananof supermarket chain; Bitchonnet, which has accompanied the initiative from its first day; Zer4U, which has supported the project for the past five years and works year-round on behalf of Holocaust survivors; and Michlol, which provides bank financing to construction companies in Israel.