Sarah Lynn Milgrim, who was murdered on Wednesday with her partner after an anti-Israeli shooter opened fire at an event in Washington's Capital Jewish Museum, was a graduate student at American University School of International Service and has worked tirelessly to promote peace between Israel and its neighbors before she joined the Israeli Embassy in the US.
Milgrim, a 26-year-old American, and had been working at the Israeli mission's department of public diplomacy. She had also worked as a Jewish educator on top of being engaged in peace efforts during her academic studies.
The shooter, identified as Elias Rodriguez, apparently wanted to kill Israelis at the American Jewish Committee event hosted by the museum in order to protest Israeli policy toward the Palestinians and even shouted "Free, Free, Palestine," according to those at the scene.
Milgrim spent five weeks in Israel researching the role of friendships in peacebuilding for her final master's project, according to a LinkedIn post she shared two years ago. Milgrim focused on the experiences of 12 Israeli and Palestinian participants in a seminar organized by Tech2Peace at Neve Shalom / Wahat al-Salam, documenting their stories and the complexities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Her work built on a previous stint with Tech2Peace the prior summer, where she developed a passion for capturing the stories of participants. "While working for Tech2Peace last summer, I fell in love with documenting the amazing stories of their participants, and I knew I needed to do more," Milgrim wrote. Her project aimed to highlight how personal connections could contribute to peacebuilding efforts in a region marked by longstanding tensions.
Milgrim expressed gratitude for the opportunity to return to Tech2Peace, emphasizing the sense of community she found there. "It was an honor to rejoin Tech2Peace and their amazing community, where I made new life-long friends while doing work that is so important to the region," she stated. She also thanked Hela Lahar and the Tech2Peace staff for their warm welcome and acknowledged American University School of International Service for supporting her travel.
The LinkedIn post received positive engagement, with comments from peers reflecting admiration for her work. Stephanie Khoury, a biomedical engineer and seminar participant, commented, "We are lucky that you have joined our seminar😍🥰Good luck with your master degree💪." Milgrim responded, "Thank you so much, Stephanie!" Another commenter, Isaiah Anthony Luna, who works in international affairs and sustainability, wrote, "So proud of you, Sarah!" to which Milgrim replied, "Thank you, Isaiah ❤️."
Tech2Peace is a nonprofit that brings together young Israelis and Palestinians to collaborate on technology and entrepreneurship projects, fostering mutual understanding. Similarly, Neve Shalom / Wahat al-Salam, meaning "Oasis of Peace" in Hebrew and Arabic, is a cooperative village where Jews and Arabs live together, serving as a model for coexistence (Jerusalem Post, https://www.jpost.com). These settings align with Milgrim's focus on how personal bonds can contribute to peacebuilding.
