Heartbreaking Post: Mother of Slain Hostage Hirsch Goldberg-Polin Lights Hanukkah Menorah

A Mother’s Lasting Light

Rachel Goldberg-Polin, whose son, Hirsch Goldberg-Polin, was brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists after being held hostage for nearly a year, has found a unique way to mourn and remember him this Hanukkah. In an intensely emotional post shared online, she revealed a simple, hand-crafted menorah made from paper cups, stating this raw, humble creation will replace all her treasured heirlooms.

Hirsch Goldberg-Polin was murdered alongside five other hostages in the Gaza Strip in August 2024. He was abducted from the Re'im music festival on October 7, 2023, after losing part of his arm in a grenade blast. His unwavering spirit and his parents' tireless advocacy made him one of the most recognizable faces of the hostage crisis.

In her moving tribute to her son, Rachel Goldberg-Polin wrote, “I have many beautiful, expensive, and sentimental menorahs. But this is how I will light a menorah for all the Hanukkah holidays I have left in this world.”

The Power of the Simple Symbol

This powerful statement signifies a transformation of grief, replacing material possessions with a raw, tangible symbol of enduring loss and devotion. The image of the simple paper cup menorah immediately resonated across the global community, becoming a poignant symbol of the pain and resilience felt by the families of all those killed and held captive by the Hamas terrorists.

The mother's decision to use this humble, disposable material mirrors the heartbreaking footage recovered by the Israeli military, which showed Hirsch and five other hostages, including Carmel Gat and Eden Yerushalmi, lighting Hanukkah candles together in a dark Gaza tunnel during their first Hanukkah in captivity in December 2023. In that harrowing video, the hostages, who were murdered months later, were seen using candles fashioned out of paper cups to observe the holiday, singing traditional songs through tears, an image that epitomizes the strength of the Jewish spirit in the face of unimaginable adversity.

Rachel Goldberg-Polin, along with her husband Jon Polin, became international figures, meeting with world leaders and speaking at massive rallies, advocating tirelessly for the return of their son and all the hostages. Her new menorah acts as a permanent, painful reminder of the year they fought for his life and the bleak reality that he, and five others, were murdered by Hamas just as Israeli troops were nearing their location.

This paper cup menorah is not merely a memorial for Hirsch, but a profound declaration that the mother's experience of the Jewish holiday has been irrevocably changed by the brutality of the terrorists and the immense loss she and the community have endured.