Tree Of Life Massacre Ceremony To Mark Shooting's 3rd Anniversary

PITTSBURGH, PA — The 11 victims of the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history will be honored Wednesday, three years after the mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill.

The ceremony will occur at 4:30 p.m. on Prospect Drive in Schenley Park and will be highlighted by a candle-lighting ceremony by the victims' families. Jewish community leaders will offer prayers, as will Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto.

The event also will pay tribute to Mt. Lebanon police Officer Jerrod Withrow, who responded to the shooting as a member of the South Hills Critical Incident Response Team. Withrow, 43, died in June from colon cancer.

Eleven members of three congregations that held services in the synagogue -Tree of Life Or L'Simcha, New Light and Dor Hadash - were killed in the rampage. The victims were:

• Brothers Cecil Rosenthal, 59, and David Rosenthal, 54, of Squirrel Hill.

• Rose Mallinger, 97, of Squirrel Hill.

• Melvin Wax, 87, of Squirrel Hill.

• Sylvan Simon, 86, and his wife, Bernice Simon, 84, of Wilkinsburg.

• Joyce Fienberg, 75, of Oakland.

• Daniel Stein, 71, of Squirrel Hill.

• Irvin Younger, 69, of Mt. Washington.

• Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, of Edgewood.

• Richard Gottfried, 65, of Ross.

Seven others were wounded in the shooting, including five police officers.

Largely because of protracted legal delays, the accused shooter, Robert Bowers, 49, of Baldwin has yet to go to trial.

Be the first to know what’s happening in your community and region. With a free Patch subscription, you’ll always be up to date on local and state news: https://patch.com/subscribe.