Schechter Attends Dedication of Capt. Omer Neutra Memorial Park

by Corey Flyer, SSLI ‘26

This past Sunday, the community gathered to commemorate the life of Omer Neutra. This was done through a dedication ceremony at a local Plainview park that has been renamed “Captain Omer Neutra Memorial Park.” Omer’s family—parents Ronen and Orna, and brother Daniel—were there in addition to a large portion of the Schechter community. In total, over 550 attended the dedication. The Schechter choir sang, and students and county officials spoke in what was a beautiful ceremony in remembrance of Neutra, who sacrificed his life for the State of Israel.

Freshman Gideon Levenson attended the ceremony and shared his experience. He said, “They put up signs that had his name and explained who he was so that local people who come to the park can read about him. Then they redid the basketball court in all blue and shared that it was dedicated in honor of Omer.” Levenson continued, explaining that the basketball court was “beautifully done.”

Captain Omer Neutra Memorial Park (Shir Levenson)

Junior Sam Levenson, the older brother of Gideon, recounted the speech of Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino. “Saladino spoke for a while to discuss how important it is to remember our local heroes, and especially someone like Omer who loved sports and often spent his time at that playground.” Sam added that Saladino highlighted “the importance of space and that it is a great way to honor his memory.”

Senior Shay Ginzburg spoke at Omer’s dedication ceremony. She discussed how many of our community members showed up for Omer: “I thought the ceremony was beautiful. There were a lot of familiar faces, like Rabbi Levenson, Rabbi Rank, Jeff Pravato, Jennifer Pravato, and even our elementary school choir. Seeing how many Schechter students showed up and were determined to make a change speaks volumes.” Ginzburg went on to say, “Not only that, but seeing how many non-Jewish government officials resonated with Omer’s story was really reassuring in a time like the one we’re living in.”

While we at PPN do not normally express our opinions on the news, we would like to add the following: The entire community must remember and cherish Omer Neutra and his legacy. He was the epitome of courage, selflessness, honor, and integrity. He is someone to whom the youth should be looking up. 

He was a hero.

Corey Flyer is an editor for Paw Print Now and has been published on the site since December 2022. Corey is currently a senior at Schechter School of Long Island and can be reached at the following email address: cflyer26@schechterli.org