Oral Histories

Rabbi Elisar Admon was a teacher at the Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh and a member of the Gesher Chaim Shel Emes chevra kadisha (burial society) at the time of the October 27 attack.

Meryl Kirshner Ainsman (b. 1954) was chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh board of directors at the time of the October 27 attack.

Leslie Aizenman was director of refugee services at JFCS-Pittsburgh, also known as Jewish Family and Community Services, at the time of the October 27, 2018 attack.

Lauren Apter Bairnsfather, Ph.D. is the director at the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh.

Zach Banner was an offensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers at the time of the October 27 attack and became well-known within the local Jewish community in early 2020 when he challenged an antisemitic social media post written by a fellow National Football League player.

Moshe Baran is a Holocaust survivor and a member of Congregation Beth Shalom.

Rev. Liddy Barlow was the executive minister of Christian Associates of Southwestern Pennsylvania and a pastor in the United Church of Christ at the time of the October 27 attack.

Tracy Baton is a community organizer in Pittsburgh and was director of the Women’s March on Washington—Pittsburgh at the time of the October 27 attack. 

Nancy Bernstein is a community organizer and political activist in Pittsburgh. She was a founder of J Street Pittsburgh and co-chair of the group at the time of the October 27 attack. 

Rabbi Aaron Bisno was senior rabbi of Rodef Shalom Congregation at the time of the October 27 attack and is now Frances F. & David R. Levin Rabbinic Scholar at the congregation.

Kathleen Blee is the Bettye J. and Ralph E. Bailey Dean in the Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh and a member of Congregation Dor Hadash. 

Zack Block was executive director of Repair the World Pittsburgh at the time of the October 27 attack. 

Shawn Brokos is the Director of Jewish Community Security at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and was a Crisis Management Coordinator at Federal Bureau of Investigations Pittsburgh’s field office during the October 27 attack.

Victoria Butch is a Community Resource Officer for Pittsburgh Police Department Zone 4 and was one of the first responders at the October 27 attack.

Nina Butler is an educator who is active in several Jewish community organizations called upon to address local needs in the immediate aftermath of the October 27 attack. 

Rev. Dr. Darryl Canady is the senior pastor of Rodman Street Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly Black church in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

Walter Daniel “Wally” Caplan was raised in Jeannette, PA. in Westmoreland County and has lived most of his life in Greenberg, PA. aside from his college years at Penn State University.

Rosalind Chow is a professor of Organizational Behavior at Carnegie Mellon University and was director of its Executive Leadership Academy at the time of the October 27 attack.

Anna Coufal is a lifelong member of Congregation Dor Hadash and was a teacher in the Dor Hadash Religious School at the time of the October 27 attack.

Tim Crosson is a religion teacher at Serra Catholic High School in McKeesport, PA and a participant in the Catholic-Jewish Education Enrichment Program in Western Pennsylvania.

Upendra Dahal is a political refugee from Bhutan and was project director for the Bhutanese Community Association of Pittsburgh at the time of the October 27 attack.

Sister Gemma Del Duca is founder of the National Catholic Center for Holocaust Education and was a Sister of Charity at Seton HIll University at the time of the October 27 attack. 

Sister Gemma Del Duca is founder of the National Catholic Center for Holocaust Education and was a Sister of Charity at Seton HIll University at the time of the October 27 attack. 

Lenora “Lee” Dingus is an artist based in Western Pennsylvania, an advocate for Native American affairs, and co-founder of the cultural resource “Echoes of the Four Directions.”

Harry “Hershey” Dugan is a businessman with experience in various fields, including sales, small businesses, real estate, and the law. He is a lifelong resident of Pittsburgh.  

Kathryn Fleisher is executive director of the non-profit Not My Generation, which she founded as a University of Pittsburgh student in response to the October 27 attack.

Charlene Foggie-Barnett is community archivist for the Teenie Harris Archive at the Carnegie Museum of Art and daughter of a prominent Civil Rights family in Pittsburgh.

Ira Frank is the owner of a family business selling linens to institutional customers and a communal worker active in many Jewish organizations throughout Pittsburgh. 

Josiah Gilliam is a Special Initiatives Coordinator for the City of Pittsburgh. 

Gilliam previously served as the coordinator of My Brother's Keeper. He was also a program manager for My Brother's Keeper through his role at the Homewood Children's Village, where he served as the web and digital communications manager and special assistant to the CEO. 

Jess Gold is an activist and community-based educator in Pittsburgh.