Children cook meals for needy and mourners lay wreaths for Bondi attack victims on national day of mourning

"The prime minister said the day was about remembering the 15 victims of the 14 December attack, which he called a stain on our nation. It's an opportunity for us as a nation to wrap our arms around the Jewish community because people were targeted because they were Jewish Australians. Every Jewish Australian felt that very deeply that evening, and ever since as well, he said on Thursday. Today, we share their grief. A grief with no ending, only a beginning."

"In Paddington in Sydney's east, children came together to cook meals for the needy. On the menu at Kids Giving Back on Thursday morning was Thai red curry and a salad with parmesan and pepitas. The 350 meals will be distributed to vulnerable communities in Macquarie Park. The co-founder and CEO, Carole Schlessinger, started the non-denominational charity 13 years ago, basing it on the Hebrew concept of tikkun olam, or repairing the world."

"It's giving people hope and agency when everything feels so dark, she said. The kitchen was a place to focus on positivity and the basic kindness people need to overcome the evil that's in the world, she said. Carole Schlessinger (middle), CEO of Kids Giving Back, helps some of the families as part of the One Mitzvah for Bondi event."

Fresh wreaths of flowers were laid at Bondi Beach and flags flew at half mast on the Sydney Harbour Bridge for a national day of mourning for the 15 victims of the 14 December attack. The Prime Minister described the attack as a stain on the nation and urged the country to embrace the Jewish community. The New South Wales One Mitzvah for Bondi initiative encouraged all Australians to perform acts of kindness. In Paddington, children cooked 350 meals for vulnerable communities through Kids Giving Back, a charity founded on the Hebrew concept of tikkun olam, offering hope and agency.

Read at www.theguardian.com