Every Sunday for the past two years, members of the Baltimore community have gathered in front of Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom Congregation to walk down Park Heights Avenue as a part of Run For Their Lives, a national movement to raise awareness of the hostages taken by Hamas by hosting weekly walks in different cities across the United States.
Participants, not all of whom were Jewish, would assemble in front of Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom, and organizers would read the names of every hostage who was still held captive. Then, the group would sing a prayer together and film a video saying how many days it had been since the hostages were taken, which would then be sent to the national organization and passed on to the hostages’ families.
“It was very important for us that the plight of the hostages, the plight of their families, not be forgotten,” said Jay Bernstein, co-organizer of the Baltimore branch of Run For Their Lives.
Six days after the two-year anniversary of Oct. 7, the last 20 living hostages were released and reunited with their families in Israel. Now, Run For Their Lives branches across the nation are deciding what’s next for their mission.
“With every week when we would meet together, right from the beginning, our hope was that we would not have to continue with the following week,” said Bernstein. “We’re so grateful — grateful to the president, to God, to everyone who was involved, that we finally reached that point.”
Baltimore’s branch had anywhere from 50 to 75 attendees on any given Sunday, walking around the block onto Reisterstown Road, then Slade Road back to Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom, while holding American and Israeli flags.
“One that stands out is the Sunday after the attack on the walkers in Boulder, Colorado — we had 400 people walking,” said Bernstein.
A Run For Their Lives event in Boulder, Colorado, was attacked by a man throwing Molotov cocktails in June, resulting in injuries to 15 people, one of them an 82-year-old woman who later died.
Bernstein said Oct. 26 was the first Sunday in two years that there would be no walk.
“It took way too long and [too] much suffering,” Bernstein said. “But we’re thrilled that it’s come to an end, with the continued hope, of course, that every single body is returned.”
As for what comes next, Bernstein explained that, while all the remaining living hostages are home, there is still work to do.
“There are a lot of ideas out there, such as holding an occasional walk or get-together until all the [hostages’] bodies are returned,” Bernstein said. “Perhaps adopting a cause [or] organization that provides assistance to hostages and their families who are recovering.”
Bernstein added that, while the marches may not have been one of the main reasons the hostages were released, it still had a meaningful impact in Baltimore.
“First of all, I think most importantly, it had an effect on all of us who participated,” Bernstein said. “Not only [did] we create a community of friends … but it allowed us to remember and keep the issue in our minds.”
The walks frequently attracted national media attention from CBS and local outlets such as WMAR2 News.
“I think it was important for Baltimore that people knew that there was something going on in Baltimore every single Sunday,” added Bernstein. “We were the only organization doing this. So, it kept the issue alive in Baltimore.”
On Oct. 19, Baltimore’s Run For Their Lives group celebrated the official release of the hostages. According to Bernstein, around 50 to 100 people attended the celebration.
The event included music and remarks from many local Baltimore leaders, such as Caren Leven, executive director of the Baltimore Zionist District, and Rep. Kweisi Mfume of Maryland’s 7th Congressional District.
“The mood was a mixture of relief, joy, thanks and poignancy after so many [walks] for many weeks no matter the weather,” said Bernstein. “We’re glad we got to the endpoint.”
