Hundreds of residents from the Shoalhaven region came together in a powerful display of unity and compassion, offering support to their local Jewish community in the wake of the devastating Bondi terror attack.
A Gathering for Healing and Solidarity
The vigil was held on the evening of Wednesday, December 17, 2025, on the lawns outside the Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre in Nowra. For members of the area's Jewish community, the event was a profound moment of connection and a crucial step in their healing process. Many were seen embracing, offering comfort, and shedding tears as the scale of community support became evident.
Addressing the large crowd, local resident Danni Rosenthan expressed both gratitude and profound grief. "This evening you have all given us hope and strength, that we will find our way back, and come together for each other again," she said. Rosenthan thanked the broader community for its outpouring of care, noting that many may not have even been aware of a local Jewish presence before the tragedy.
A Stark Warning Ignored
However, Rosenthan's message carried a sharp and painful critique. She stated unequivocally that the attack on Jewish people celebrating Hanukkah at Bondi Beach was "inevitable." "Australia allowed hate to win," she told the sombre gathering.
"We have been begging you to listen while waiting for this day, holding our collective breaths and praying that it wouldn't. We told you this would happen," Rosenthan continued, outlining the constant fear that defines daily life for many Jewish Australians. She highlighted the chasm in experience, pointing out that while average Australians were asking if she now felt scared in public, she and others had always lived with the knowledge that some wished them dead.
The personal cost of the attack was heartbreakingly clear. "Right at this moment, instead of celebrating Hanukkah, my husband's family are at a funeral we should never have had to attend," she shared. Rosenthan voiced a deep sense of alienation, stating, "I am an Australian, and yet I don't feel wanted here by Australia, because I am Jewish."
A Path Forward Through Unity
Despite the anguish, the vigil was also a call to action and a reaffirmation of shared Australian values. Rosenthan pointed to the community's response—the prayers, blood donations, and the turnout at the vigil itself—as the true embodiment of mateship. "The heritage of our Aboriginal people, mateship and celebrating differences, is what this country is made of," she asserted.
She urged a move away from divisiveness, declaring that the "us versus them mentality" had caused immeasurable harm. "Through the good and bad, we grow stronger together, when we come together and face it head on for each other. Human beings, not human teams," Rosenthan concluded, offering a vision for a more inclusive future.
The event was also addressed by Shoalhaven Mayor Patricia White, underscoring the official community support for those grieving and standing against intolerance. The vigil in Nowra stands as a significant local response to a national tragedy, highlighting both the specific pain of the Jewish community and the broader Australian capacity for solidarity in times of crisis.
