Since April, when Luis Har was in New York, he has been dreaming of this exhibit. On Friday, he finally fulfilled his dream and set up the Tikva Exhibit in Hostages Square. Despite the hardships of captivity, Har never lost hope and now hopes to do the same for other hostages.
Har was released in a military operation after 129 days in captivity, and since then he has been dedicating his life to advocacy in Israel and around the world, continuing to support and fight for families. "My older daughter took a picture of me with the Hope sign in New York. I took a picture, laughed, and forgot about it," he said.
"When I returned to Israel, people started telling me, 'Luis, how much light you radiate, how much hope you give us,' and slowly I began to believe it myself. I saw the picture and said that it was so appropriate for me to do something like this, and then I thought of writing 'Hope' in the square," he added.
Luis collaborated with Inbar Ratzaby, who is responsible for the Hostages Square. The two created the exhibit with the word "Hope" appearing in big cubes. He attached drawings he received from released hostage children to the cubes. "We are also adding colorful tables and chairs, so that children who come to the square can freely approach, draw, and express their opinions. This is the result that came out of all the dreams in my head with the amazing people who joined us. It is mainly for the families at the moment, but not only. It can remain forever because I think this is a message to all our people, who need this hope so much."
Louis is undoubtedly the optimistic ray of light for many families. "I never lost hope," he said. "Even in captivity, we knew we were getting out. We didn't know if it would be through rescue or agreement, but we knew we were getting out and here we are. My dream is that everyone will come back and we can celebrate the holidays together."
Luis added, "We are a divided nation, we are not whole, until everyone is not here we cannot begin our real healing. Neither can I. I am involved in accompanying the families, helping everyone, providing support, and explaining in Israel and abroad what happened in captivity. I can't go back to myself, to my private life. Something moves me every day. I don't sit in front of the TV, I just organize my busy schedule and it gives me peace when I do something positive, something with all my heart."
Lewis's exhibition was created in collaboration with the Ramat Hashnaim Foundation, the Tzabar 2.0 national service, the Fiverr company, the Palraz company, and several volunteers from the northern communities who helped make the dream a reality.