Shimon Peres honored at community memorial tribute

PROVIDENCE – On the night of Oct. 27, The Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island held a memorial for Shimon Peres, the late former prime minister and president of Israel.

Peres died on Sept. 28 in Ramat Gan, Israel, at the age of 93. A funeral service was held to honor him in the Mount Herzl national cemetery in Jerusalem on Sept. 30. Dignitaries from 70 countries attended this emotional service to pay their respects. Speakers included Peres’ children, Chemi, Yoni, and Zvia, as well as former President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama.

The memorial and tribute, held in the board room at the Dwares Jewish Community Center, commenced with the singing of the American national anthem, followed by Israel’s national anthem, “The Hatikvah.”

There were five speakers, all of whom shared stories of how Shimon Peres had touched their lives both personally and from afar. Congressman David Cicilline and Matan Zamir, deputy consul general of New England, also shared personal stories about Peres.

Rep. Cicilline said he was grateful to have had the opportunity to meet Peres and to be invited to his funeral. He said that during his last visit with Peres, at his residence in March of 2015, the 92-year-old Peres was still “very energetically” working in the pursuit of peace.

Deputy Consul General Zamir formerly worked as deputy chief of mission at the Israeli Consulate in Mumbai, India, and met Peres during that period. He recalled the time when Peres had a connecting flight in Mumbai and he was called to the airport to be the “entertainment” for Peres during his wait. However, Zamir would turn out to be the one who was entertained: “All I did was sit and listen to his stories,” he recalled.

Shimon Peres was born Szymon Perski on Aug. 2, 1923, in Vishnyeva, Belarus. It seemed that from a very young age, he was destined for a life in politics. Mentored by Israel’s first prime minister and founding father, David Ben Gurion, Peres was taught to lead with dignity and pride. He held many positions in Israeli government during a political career that spanned seven decades, including finance minister and defense minister, as well as prime minister and president.  

Peres was known across the globe for his efforts to promote peace, especially between the Israelis and Palestinians. In 1994, he brokered a peace deal known as the Oslo Accords, which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. 

Shimon Peres has passed, but his legacy will live on. His organization, The Peres Center for Peace, in Jaffa, Israel, will continue his life’s work – the pursuit of peace.

SAM SERBY is a native of East Greenwich and attended Temple Sinai, in Cranston, for many years. He is a recent graduate of Johnson & Wales University.