Qualla: Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: Introduction

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit daveynin from United States, CC BY 2.0. Squirrel Hill is the kind of Pittsburgh neighborhood where crime rates are low and synagogues have stood for generations. Tree of Life -- Or L'Simcha Congregation was founded as an Orthodox congregation in 1864, one of the city's earliest Jewish institutions. The modern building at Wilkins and Shady avenues, built in 1953, housed not just Tree of Life but two other congregations: New Light, a Conservative group, and Dor Hadash, a Reconstructionist community. On the morning of October 27, 2018, all three were gathered for Shabbat services when a gunman entered through a shattered window and killed eleven people in the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: daveynin from United States | CC BY 2.0

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: A Saturday Morning Shattered

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA, CC BY 2.0. At 9:49 a.m., the shooter posted a final message on the social media platform Gab. Five minutes later, he opened fire on the synagogue's windows and entered the building armed with a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock pistols. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, upstairs in the Pervin Chapel, ini...

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA | CC BY 2.0

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: The Eleven

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA, CC BY 2.0. The dead included two brothers, Cecil and David Rosenthal, who lived together at a community home for people with disabilities. Bernice and Sylvan Simon, a retired couple who had celebrated their wedding at Tree of Life in 1956, died together. Rose Mallinger, 97, had been an acti...

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA | CC BY 2.0

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: A Community Responds

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit 燃灯, CC BY-SA 4.0. That evening, over 3,000 people gathered at the intersection of Murray and Forbes avenues for an interfaith candlelight vigil organized by students from nearby Taylor Allderdice High School. Rabbis, imams, pastors, and civic leaders spoke. Members of the Pittsburgh Steelers atten...

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: 燃灯 | CC BY-SA 4.0

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: Justice and Its Weight

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 de. The shooter was charged with 63 federal crimes and 36 state counts. His defense offered a guilty plea in exchange for life without parole, but federal prosecutors pursued the death penalty. The trial began on May 30, 2023, after years of pretrial proceedings. Prosecutors called s...

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: Unknown | CC BY-SA 3.0 de

Tree of Life: Squirrel Hill's Darkest Morning: Stronger Than Hate

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks, Public domain. The aftermath reshaped Jewish security in America. The Jewish Federations of North America raised $62 million to secure Jewish communities across the continent. Federal grants through the Nonprofit Security Grant Program brought in $100 million. By 2023, 93 Jewish federations had...

Read more: Tree of Life on Qualla

Image: Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks | Public domain