Vivian Silver, activist killed in Hamas attack, remembered as peacemaker at Winnipeg memorial
CBC
Hundreds of people gathered in Winnipeg Thursday night to pay their respects and honour the life of Israeli-Canadian peace activist Vivian Silver, who was killed when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
Silver, 74, was remembered as a tireless advocate for peace, a bridge-builder, and a women's rights advocate. She was born in Winnipeg and moved to Israel in 1974, where she devoted her life to peace work.
"She was fierce for what she believed in, in any setting and in front of anybody," her son Yonatan Zeigen told CBC ahead of Thursday's memorial.
"She had this duality to her, that she was small and also seemed fragile and sensitive and soft, but she was also very assertive, and she had a really strong centre and even stubbornness."
He and his brother, Chen Zeigen, arrived in Winnipeg from Israel earlier this week for the memorial.
"I was always very proud of the way she never gave up," said Yonatan. "She was relentless."
For more than a month, family and friends believed Silver was among the 240 hostages taken by Hamas after the militant group's Oct. 7 assault.
Her remains had been found shortly after the attack at Kibbutz Be'eri, in the south of Israel, where she lived, but weren't identified until weeks later.
While a previous memorial was held in Israel, her sons said the Winnipeg memorial — organized by the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg and held at the gymnasium at the Asper Jewish Community — was important.
"This was sort of her home — our home away from home. We would spend summers here," Yonatan said.
"It was very important for us to have the chance to come be with our family here, where she grew up, where she spent her formative years."
Chen said no matter what his mother was doing to help others, family was always important to her.
"We'll keep remembering her for the person she was, in all of her political activities and achievements.… They were part of it. But to me they were kind of secondary," Chen said.
"She would march for her causes at noon and tuck us into bed at night," he said. "She would orchestrate international peace rallies during the week and bake elaborate cakes for her grandchildren's birthdays."
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