‘Heartbroken’: Hawaii’s Jewish community reacts to the Israel-Hamas War
HONOLULU — Last Saturday, Matti Gorodenchik, a football coach at Kaimuki High School, learned that Hamas terrorists had attacked Israel while he was in Pearl City with the Kaimuki Bulldogs before the start of a game.
Gorodenchik, an Israeli immigrant who has lived in Hawaii for the past five years, immediately texted his sister, wanting to know if she was alright. His sister, her husband, and their 2-year-old daughter live in Gilat in Southern Israel. She told him she was hiding in a bomb shelter.
As the Kaimuki Bulldogs played their game, he continued to get messages from his sister and childhood friends, telling him that “terrorists are here.” While Hamas has launched thousands of rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza over the past two decades, he was shocked to hear terrorists had stormed into Israeli towns.
