LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On the eve of Oct. 7, there was a somber mood Sunday at Louisville's Jewish Community Center.
"Peace can happen; Israelis don't want to be at war," said Trent Spoolstra of the Jewish Community of Louisville. "American Jews don't want to be at war. We want to live at peace, but peace also comes with the idea of coexistence."
Songs and prayer rang throughout the event commemorating the more than 1,200 people killed and hundreds kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, at the Nova music festival.
Monday marks one year since the date many point to as the beginning of escalations in the Middle East. Palestinian health authorities report over 40,000 Palestinian people have been killed in the past year.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg was among the hundreds gathered on Sunday to honor the lives lost in Israel.
"I am proud to be with you today, I am proud to be Jewish and I am proud to support the state of Israel," Greenberg said.
Spoolstra is calling for broader support.
"Join us hopefully for a time when we don't have to hold events like this because there is peace in that region, and Jews aren't being targeted either overseas or here in America," he said.
Saturday, hundreds rallied at Waterfront Park for the International Day of Action for Palestine.
"We are centering the people of Gaza," said Mohammad Ahmad, of the Kentucky For Palestine Coalition. "They have not been forgotten and we are amplifying their voice even a year later."
Ahmad said protestors from all over Kentucky joined to show solidarity one year into the Israel-Hamas war.
"We're here to say follow the laws, call for a ceasefire, and stop arming Israel," Ahmad said.
A student from the University of Louisville's Students for Justice in Palestine is also demanding change.
"In Gaza, Palestine, the students have the same aspirations, hopes and dreams," she said. "But, instead of being in school this year, they are fighting to survive apocalyptic conditions."
Ahmad said he's a first generation Palestinian, and is mourning the civilian lives killed throughout the conflict.
"I understand how painful this is," he said. "I understand the struggle that Palestinians are going through in Gaza and the West Bank."
The one year remembrance comes as tensions continue to escalate in the middle east, increasing fears of an all-out war in the region.