This Sunday marks 100 days.  

One hundred days since the “Black Sabbath;” since more than 200 Israelis and foreign nationals were taken into Gaza as hostages.  

One hundred days of darkness.   

More than 120 hostages remain in Gaza, including 19 women and two children. More than 20 are believed to be dead. Thinking about them and what they and their families must be enduring keeps me up at night.  

As the war with Hamas moves into its next phase, and other stories top the headlines here in the U.S. and around the world, the families of the hostages are doing everything in their power to keep their loved ones’ names and faces in the forefront of public attention. 

When we were in Israel in November, the hostages’ faces were everywhere. Meeting with their families and hearing their searing stories was a central part of our mission to bear witness.  

Standing in the ruins of a neighborhood of Kibbutz Kfar Aza, we happened to meet Simona Steinbacher, the mother of Doron Steinbacher, a 30-year-old veterinary nurse who today is still being held captive. Simona was searching for anything she could find from Doron’s destroyed home to have ready for when Doron returned to her. She stopped what she was doing to implore us to share Doron’s story.  

Doron is one of seven remaining hostages from our sister community of Sha’ar HaNegev. We must keep her story front and center along with those of the other hostages, including: 

As the mother of 23-year-old twins who love sports and hip-hop, that last one hits far too close to home.  

One San Diego family is facing this personal anguish each and every day. Rotem and Dahlia Cooper are longtime San Diego residents. Rotem’s parents, 79-year-old Nurit and 84-year-old Amiram, were brutally kidnapped by Hamas from their home on Kibbutz Nir Oz. While Nurit has since been released, Amiram is still being held captive. I asked Rotem if there was anything he wanted to share, and this is his message: 

“It is unthinkable that we are marking the 100th day that 136 hostages, including my father Amiram Cooper, who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, have not yet been released. The hostages are being held in life-threatening conditions, with low air ventilation, high humidity and a very limited supply of food and medicines. They are literally dying there with each day that passes. This is a watershed moment for the Jewish people and humanity at large. We must not get used to this unbearable reality. Every day, each and every one of us must ask himself or herself what can I do today to help bring about the safe and immediate release of all the hostages." 

I encourage you to heed his words, and tonight as we usher in the light of Shabbat, to remember Amiram, Doron, and all those left in darkness. 

Shabbat Shalom, 

Heidi 

Heidi Gantwerk, President & Chief Executive Officer