A vigil will be held later this week as the Sunshine Coast community comes together in solidarity following the deadly Bondi terror attack.
Rabbi Oshy Goodman, who leads the Jewish community on the Sunshine Coast, says they are “in shock and very shaken”.
Fifteen people, including a 10-year-old girl, were killed and a further 42 people were taken to hospital after the attack.
One of the two gunmen was shot and killed by police and the other is under police guard in hospital.
Rabbi Goodman’s friend and colleague Rabbi Eli Schlanger was among those killed on Sunday night.
“He had a friend up here who owned a house and he would come up here to spend time in that home. I would join them, a great friendship was formed, with his children as well,” Rabbi Goodman said.
He said the response from the wider Sunshine Coast community had been overwhelming.
“We’ve had so many calls from people showing their solidarity. Some people were crying. It’s unbelievable,” Rabbi Goodman said.
After living on the Sunshine Coast for four years, Rabbi Goodman said he had never experienced antisemitism in the region. But on a national scale, he believes more could have been done to prevent the tragedy.
“There is quite a bit of resentment, and I think not enough has been done to protect the Jewish people here in Australia,” Rabbi Goodman said.
Footage circulating online captured acts of bravery during the attack, including 43-year-old Ahmed Al Ahmed, who risked his life to wrestle the gunman’s weapon away.
“He’s a real hero,” Rabbi Goodman said. “Hats off to him.”
Rabbi Goodman also called for calm, stressing the importance of unity across faiths.
“There’s plenty of Muslims in Sydney or here who would do anything to save anyone regardless of the faith,” he said.
The menorah will be lit in solidarity with the Jewish community in Foundation Square, Maroochydore, on Thursday from 5pm. Another event will be held in Tickle Park, Coolum, on Sunday from 5pm.
“They’ve been holding them here for years. This one is, of course, in sharp focus as a consequence of the event in Bondi,” Chief Inspector Jason Overland said.
“I can assure the members of the community that we’ll be reviewing our security to ensure that anyone attending this event is as safe as they can possibly be.”
Mayor Rosanna Natoli said the Sunshine Coast community was shocked and saddened by the events that transpired in Sydney.
“We’re encouraging everyone who wishes to show that our Sunshine Coast community is united in this front to join us here on Thursday night, and then again in Tickle Park on Sunday,” she said.
“We stand together with our Jewish community to say that this kind of violence, this hatred, this display of absolute antisemitism has no place in our society, no place in our Sunshine Coast community.”
An image shared widely online shows Sunshine Coast local Jackson Doolan sprinting barefoot to provide first aid during the attack in Bondi.
“I’m safe and all the lifeguards are safe. Speechless. Well done to everyone involved in helping out,” Mr Doolan shared online.
Mr Doolan relocated from the Sunshine Coast to Sydney in 2016 after securing a full-time role as a Bondi lifesaver, along with a television contract on Bondi Rescue.
Fellow Bondi Rescue lifeguard Andrew Reid took to social media to praise his colleague.
“7pm yesterday in Bondi – lifeguard Jacko running over from Tamarama with medical equipment to back up lifeguards, clubbies, police, ambos and other everyday heroes who tried to save people during yesterday’s horrific attack,” Mr Reid wrote.
“I can’t even begin to imagine what you all had to witness and deal with, but you are all the most incredible people.”
