Evening of Heroism, Survival, and Resilience at Weitzman National Museum

Co-Hosted By:
Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History
Philadelphia Family Forum
American Friends of Oketz

Join us for a night of stories that illuminate both the fragility and the strength of the human spirit. In this special program, we’ll hear testimonies from former hostage Almog Meir Jan and injured IDF soldier Ben Ladany- two young men whose lives were irrevocably shaped by the events of October 7 and the war that followed.

In this rare public appearance, they will share the challenges they faced, the decisions they made, the moments that defined them, and the lessons they’ve carried forward. This evening offers audiences a chance to hear first-hand accounts of survival, resilience, and meaning-making from two voices who have lived through the unimaginable.

Almog was kidnapped from the Nova music festival and held hostage in Gaza for 8 months before being rescued by the IDF. Ben, a lone soldier in the IDF’s Oketz K-9 Unit, was critically wounded in combat while attempting to save his partner, a military dog named Jack. Their stories unfold in very different settings, but both men will speak to what it means to endure trauma, rebuild identity, and return to the world with renewed purpose. In what will be an intimate, honest, and deeply human conversation, Almog and Ben will explore how they’ve made sense of fear, hope, responsibility, loss, and personal transformation- and what they hope others will carry with them after hearing their stories.

The evening invites all of us to reflect on the power of community, the weight of memory, and the possibilities that emerge when survival becomes a story of strength and renewal.

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