The Collection

The October 27 Archive currently contains 799 objects and is regularly being expanded with more material. The archive includes flyers and programs from community gatherings held since the October 27 attack, a comprehensive collection of news coverage about the day of the event, oral history recordings reflecting a diverse array of experiences, and historical documentation about the Jewish experience in Western Pennsylvania.

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Park Avenue Synagogue (New York, Ny.) binders with illustrated selections from the "Prayer of Peace"

Two identical binders containing photocopies of handwritten, illustrated selections from the "Prayer of Peace" created by sixth grade students at Park Avenue Synagogue (New York, Ny.). The front cover of each binder reads: "Read Me, A Prayer for Peace, For Tree of Life Synagogue From Park Avenue Synagogue NYC 6th Graders." Each student illustrated a stanza from the "Prayer for Peace," an eighteenth century prayer which was composed by Rabbi Natan Sternharz, a prominent student of the Chasidic leader, Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, and is included in the Rabbinical Assembly's prayer book. Frequent motifs include the Star of David and Menorah candelabra. Both binders feature typed copies of the "Prayer for Peace" on their respective back covers.

Historical Notes

In the days after the October 27 attack, people began leaving objects at two locations outside the Tree of Life synagogue--one at the corner of Wilkins and Shady avenues in front of the Zittrain Gardens, and the other on a private lawn at Wilkins and Murray avenues, just beyond police barricades. Community volunteers moved the entirety of these two memorials inside the Tree of Life building on November 14, 2018, for preservation purposes. Most of these objects including this one were moved to archival preservation over the following year, but a small number were arranged in public display in the windows of the Hailperin Sanctuary Rauh Jewish Archives staff and volunteers dismantled this display on February 16, 2023, and the objects were brought to the archive for preservation. Park Avenue Synagogue (PAS) is a prominent Conservative synagogue located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, a clergyman at PAS with family connections to Squirrel Hill, travelled to Pittsburgh to show his support for the local Jewish community and attend a funeral.

Use and Reproduction

Donor Information

Item

MSS1297_B001_F019

Donor

Tree of Life Congregation, New Light Congregation, Congregation Dor Hadash, Tree of Life Inc., The 10.27 Healing Partnership

Subjects

Park Avenue Synagogue (New York, NY) , Synagogue , Children , Jewish

Terms of Use

The October 27 Archive collects responses to an antisemitic attack in Pittsburgh, Pa. on October 27, 2018. These responses take many forms but share a motivating impulse. Each began in the mind and heart of someone who was moved by the events of that day and was compelled to create something meaningful from that feeling. By sharing these responses, those people chose to be vulnerable for the sake of a greater good. The October 27 Archive website was launched with the belief that sharing these responses with the world can provide an avenue for people all over the world to reflect, learn, and heal.

By entering this website, you agree to honor the spirit in which these responses were created and in which they are being shared with the world.

The materials on this website are being made available exclusively for research purposes. For permission to use any of the materials on this website for any other purpose, please contact the archive. If you are the creator of any of the material on this website, and you would like to provide context or request to have something removed, please contact the archive. If you intend to reference any material found on this website, please attribute all citations to the Rauh Jewish Archives, so that other researchers can easily locate these materials in the future.

The Collection

Using this archive

Park Avenue Synagogue (New York, Ny.) binders with illustrated selections from the "Prayer of Peace"

Full metadata

Park Avenue Synagogue (New York, Ny.) binders with illustrated selections from the "Prayer of Peace"

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