The phrase "How we've missed each other" echoed repeatedly during the touching reunion of students from 'Alonim' Elementary School in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council. On Monday, children from the kibbutzim who survived the massacre on October 7 gathered together having barely seen each other for nearly eight months.
These kids, from the communities along the border with Gaza, which were attacked during the Hamas atrocities have been in temporary accommodations and alternative schools. As the school year draws to a close, they each arrived from their respective evacuation areas for a joyous event filled with hope. Perhaps soon, they will return be able to return to their school.
The reunion
(Video: Yaron Brenner)
The educational staff decided to give the students time to reconnect with friends they hadn't seen for months and, most importantly, to provide a break from the routine at the evacuation centers. The emotional reunion also included children who had been held hostage.
Also present were Uri Libstein, the son of the late Ofir Libstein, head of the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council who was murdered near his home, the children of the late Tal Eylon, a member of the auxiliary squad in Kfar Aza who was killed, and the children of Tzachi Idan, who was kidnapped from Nahal Oz. The school also has grandchildren of other murder victims from various kibbutzim.
Talya Levinson, a sixth-grader from Kfar Aza, shared her excitement: "I missed all my friends. It's so nice to see everyone again. I really miss my home in Kfar Aza. There are friends I haven't seen for a long time, yet I grew up with them and saw them every day for six years, and now I hardly see them. It's a bit sad, but we keep in touch. My home in Kfar Aza is okay; it wasn't damaged, and my dad is there almost every day. I'm really looking forward to going back to my home."
"The children are so excited to meet their friends from the other kibbutzim, and after they part and return to the evacuation centers, it's a bit hard for them because they miss each other and, above all, their daily routine," a teacher says. Amir, one of the children, added, "If someone used to come over to my house, I could invite them to walk around the kibbutz, but now that's not possible. I want to go back to Kfar Aza. It's not so much fun not seeing the kids. I miss them. If I see them, I'm happy, and if not—I'm not happy."
Shlomzion Cohen, the principal of 'Alonim' Elementary School and a resident of Kibbutz Mefalsim, summed it up: "We faced many challenges this year. After October 7, we sought ways to strengthen the students' sense of belonging despite the evacuation and what they went through. Although gathering them together is incredibly strengthening, it's still not like being at home. When they meet, they feel at home. When they are together with their teacher in their original classroom, that's the real and right thing for them. The children want and need to return to the familiar stability, to their teachers who have educated them. Our most important task is to maintain their unity because it's the source of their resilience."