JUPITER, Fla. — A wave of relief and joy is washing over a Jupiter family and Jewish communities across the globe, as the last of the living hostages from the October 7th attacks in Israel are finally free.
At Temple Beth Am in Jupiter, emotions ran high during a celebration marking the long-awaited release of 20 surviving hostages. The occasion, filled with song, prayer, and tears, signaled the first major turning point in a peace agreement two years in the making.
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For Warren Rochmaker, the moment was deeply personal. His two children, Talia and David, were in school in Israel when the attacks happened on October 7, 2023. With flights grounded, they were trapped for days, unable to return home.
“It wasn’t until that moment that [the hostages] were first on TV… that’s when you knew everything was going to be okay,” said Rochmaker.
Though his children were not taken hostage, the fear and trauma of those uncertain days left a lasting mark. Once they returned home, the gravity of what happened began to surface.
“The horrors of everything started coming out then,” said Rockmacher. “What had happened on October 7.”
Now, nearly two years later, Rochmaker says the release of the final hostages feels like a turning point.
“It’s a great day,” said Rochmaker. “It’s a great day to be Jewish,” he said. “It really is. It’s a very prideful day and especially falling on this holiday the way it is — it’s pretty amazing.”
The holiday he’s referring to is Simchat Torah, which marks the completion of the annual Torah reading cycle and the start of a new one. Coincidentally, the original attacks in 2023 also fell on Simchat Torah, giving today’s release a profound, symbolic meaning for many.
“You could see it that way, as divine intervention,” said Rochmaker.
He also credited former President Donald Trump, saying, “This would not have happened without him.”
Still, amid the joy, he remains clear-eyed about what comes next.
“We’ve got to keep what happened alive,” said Rochmaker. “We have to remember. And it’s kind of a theme in Judaism, not to let it happen again. We can’t let this happen again. We really can’t.”
As celebration filled the sanctuary in Jupiter, the message was one of resilience, remembrance and hope.
