Alexander, flanked by his family, described the honor as a reminder of communal resilience. “It’s just not my name on the sign it’s a reminder of how powerful a community can be when it refuses to give up,” he said.
Residents of Tenafly gathered Monday to pay tribute to hometown hero Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old Israeli soldier who survived more than 580 days in Hamas captivity and is preparing to return to active duty with the IDF
In a moving ceremony outside borough hall, officials unveiled a new street sign renaming the road leading into the municipal parking lot ‘Edan Alexander Way.’
The dedication served as both a symbolic homecoming and a sendoff as Alexander prepares to rejoin his unit in Israel.
“A year and a half in captivity was the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through but I never felt completely alone,” Alexander told the crowd of about 200.
“To have a road named here in a place I call home, I would never have imagined. I knew my family, my town, and so many people were fighting for me, keeping my name alive, and pushing for my return. That gave me strength.”
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WATCH: NJ Honors Former Hostage Edan Alexander – In a moving ceremony, Tenafly officials renamed a street "Edan Alexander Way" to honor the former hostage as he prepares to return to his IDF unit in Israel. Alexander told the crowd of 200 that his 18 months in… pic.twitter.com/iOueNC1Use
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Alexander, flanked by his family, described the honor as a reminder of communal resilience. “It’s just not my name on the sign it’s a reminder of how powerful a community can be when it refuses to give up,” he said.
Mayor Mark Zinna, who presided over the event, praised Alexander’s “strength and courage” in deciding to return to the frontlines.
He also referenced a recent act of vandalism at Tenafly’s Temple Sinai, where an Israeli flag was burned, calling it “a blatant act of antisemitism.”
He said the congregation responded by purchasing more Israeli flags.
U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) commended Alexander’s decision to continue his service, describing him as a soldier who “overcame all odds and then rushed back to continue the fight against terror and evil.”
Gottheimer said Alexander’s humility after his release left a deep impression: “He told me the real heroes are the ones still there, and those who gave their lives.”
Alexander was freed in May after protracted negotiations involving Israel, Hamas, and the United States. He received a hero’s welcome upon his return to Tenafly but remained largely out of the public eye over the summer.
Earlier this month, he announced at a Friends of the IDF fundraiser that he planned to return to service.
“My story does not end with survival. It continues with service,” he declared.
Monday’s ceremony was briefly disrupted by a lone protester waving a Palestinian flag and holding a sign that read, “When do we Jews notice that Israel is insane?!”
Identified as Rich Siegel, 67, of Teaneck, he accused Israel of committing atrocities in Gaza and described enlistment in the IDF as “an obscenity.”
Despite the protest, the mood among most attendees remained celebratory and supportive of Alexander.
Rabbi Mordecai Shain of the Lubavitch of the Palisades, who had prayed for Alexander’s safe return, presented him with Tefillin, small black boxes containing Torah verses, symbolically binding mind and heart to God.
“Just as we prayed for him while he was in captivity, we will now pray for him again as he returns to serve Israel,” Rabbi Shain said.
