RICHMOND, Va. -- Rabbi Dovid Asher is processing his own pain while supporting the congregation at Keneseth Beth Israel in Richmond's West End.
Hersh Goldberg-Polin worshiped at the synagogue and attended their day school as a child.
The 23-year-old — who was abducted by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel last year — was one of six hostages found dead in Gaza late last week.
On Sunday, protests erupted in Israel as thousands demanded the government reach a hostage deal for those still in captivity.
In Richmond, Rabbi Asher said there is considerable heartbreak from those who know the Goldberg-Polin family better than he does. The family left Richmond just before he became Rabbi.
"Yesterday, I felt like I was hit by a bus. My wife and I are walking around in a daze," Rabbi Asher said. “People are broken and they need to be healed. People are really struggling. This is antisemitism at its worst when it leads to violence that is murder. So they're struggling with the fact that it's not something you read about in a book. It's their friend, it's their neighbor, it's their fellow Richmonder.”
For many Americans, Goldberg-Polin became the face of the Israeli hostage crisis, as his parents spent months pressing world leaders across the globe to help broker a deal.
On Monday, as thousands lined the streets of Jerusalem to pay their respects, the Goldberg-Polin family laid Hersh to rest.
"For 330 days Mama and I sought the proverbial stone that we could turn to save you. Maybe, just maybe your death is the stone, the fuel that will bring home the remaining 101 hostages," his father, Jon Polin, said.
"Okay my sweet boy, go now on your journey. I hope it's as good as the trips you dreamed about because finally, my sweet boy, finally, finally, finally, finally you're free!" Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Hersh's mother, said. "I will love you and I will miss you every single day for the rest of my life.”
Rabbi Asher watched the services online and said the family's "bravery and valor" in this horrific moment was incredible to see.
"It's a gut-wrenching, horrific trauma that nobody should ever have to go through," Asher said.
Goldberg-Polin's death, Rabbi Asher said, should show the world that hatred toward the Jewish community is an issue worldwide that needs to be addressed.
"The teachers need to teach their students about it. Parents need to teach their children about the values of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, and people need to be committed to making a better society," he said.
There is an informal service to support those who know the Goldberg-Polin family or were moved by their story at Keneseth Beth Israel Monday evening at 8 p.m. All are welcome to attend, Rabbi Asher said.
This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.
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