Shalom Baruch, a Jewish cemetery in Humble, is now home to the first permanent Oct. 7 monument in North America, officials announced in a Nov. 3 news release.

The big picture

Per the release, the monument honors the lives that were lost as well as the survivors and hostages of the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks in Israel. The monument was unveiled at a Nov. 2 ceremony, which was attended by more than 200 community members, elected officials and faith leaders.

"Jewish Houstonians and our many allies showed up for us today," Varda Fields, Israeli-American founder of Shalom Baruch, said in a statement. "I can only hope that they continue to speak up against antisemitism, support the Jewish people and even encourage others around the country and the world to build their own memorials so that we never forget what happened on Oct. 7 and every day thereafter."

Zooming in


Per the release, the monument was conceptualized and designed by an art committee with members including Anat Ronen, Kristen Coco and Jonathan Dror.

"The Star of David emerging from the ground stands as a symbol of resilience, identity and collective memory," Coco said in a statement. "It honors those we lost, affirms the strength of Israel and reflects a commitment to rise above hate, together."

In addition to the Star of David, Israeli artist Yaron Bob created a similar, ribbon-shaped sculpture out of shrapnel recovered from Israeli missiles in Iran, per the release.

Omer Shem Tov—a former Israeli hostage who was abducted on Oct. 7, 2023 and held captive for 505 days—was also honored during the event with "The Lone Star of Israel Award." Officials noted the award was the first of what they plan to be an annual recognition.


Check it out

The memorial can be visited during the cemetery's regular hours, Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.