Bondi Beach Archives - Bondi Beach News

Bondi Beach Records Rare 12ft Waves as Extreme Swell Hits Sydney Coast

Bondi Beach has been hit by unusually large waves as a powerful ocean swell pushed heavy surf into Sydney’s coastline, creating dangerous conditions, prompting rescues, and drawing crowds to the headlands.

Northern End Transformed by Unusual Sur

Wave conditions at Bondi Beach intensified significantly, particularly along the northern stretch where surf is typically more moderate. Sets reached around 10 to 12 feet, reshaping the shoreline and producing steep, fast-moving waves rarely seen in that section. Experienced surfers entered the water to take advantage of the conditions, with some navigating the large breaks while others attempted to paddle through the heavy whitewater.

The swell, driven by strong offshore systems, pushed tides further inland than usual and altered the beach profile, with powerful surges consistently rolling through the bay. The scale of the surf marked one of the most notable wave events in recent years for the location.

Rescues Carried Out in Hazardous Conditions

The heightened surf created immediate safety risks, with multiple rescue operations required throughout the day. At least nine people were assisted across affected beaches, including several incidents at Bondi Beach where swimmers became caught in strong rip currents. Lifeguards entered the water under extreme conditions to carry out rescues, highlighting the severity of the swell.

Elsewhere along the coast, emergency crews responded to additional incidents, including rock fishers stranded by rising tides at Avoca Beach who required helicopter evacuation. The force of the swell also led to equipment being pushed onto rocks during rescue efforts, underscoring the intensity of the conditions.

Crowds Gather as Conditions Peak

Despite the hazards, the event drew significant public attention, with large numbers of spectators lining Bondi’s headlands to watch the surf. Surfers, kayakers and onlookers observed as waves broke with unusual size and frequency, turning the coastline into a focal point for both activity and viewing.

Similar conditions extended to other Sydney beaches, including Coogee and Maroubra, while further north the swell impacted coastal areas around Newcastle. As conditions began to ease later in the day, authorities indicated that beaches were expected to reopen, marking the end of a high-impact swell that temporarily transformed Bondi Beach into a site of both risk and spectacle.

Published 31-Mar-2026

Bondi Reclaims Its Spirit with “The Bondi Feeling” Campaign

Major community recovery campaign “The Bondi Feeling”, has launched across Bondi, inviting Sydneysiders to return to the beach and rediscover the suburb’s irreplaceable energy, three months after the terror attack on 14 December 2025 that claimed 15 lives and left deep wounds across the community.

The Bondi Feeling campaign launched on 12 March, bringing together advertising, digital content, community events, local business support and a new visual identity commissioned from North Bondi illustrator Beck Feiner. Feiner’s distinctive hero graphic, capturing the salty, sun-soaked character of the Bondi community, will anchor the campaign’s creative across traditional and digital channels in the weeks ahead.

The campaign is a direct response to the economic and emotional impact felt by local businesses and residents following the December attack, which claimed 15 lives. Bondi & Districts Chamber of Commerce president Emmanuel Constantinou described the initiative as a welcome boost for a local economy that has felt the consequences of reduced foot traffic and visitor numbers in the months since. The campaign draws on the same sense of collective purpose that has characterised the community’s response throughout.

A Programme Built for the Community

The events calendar runs from now through winter, anchored by the Bondi foreshore and the suburb’s much-loved public spaces. Beachside DJ sessions run every Saturday until 30 April at various beach locations, keeping the seasonal energy alive into the cooler months. Bondi Firelight, one of the beach’s most distinctive annual events, returns on Thursday 9 April from 5.45pm at Bondi Beach South, with bonfires, marshmallows, music, fire dancers and a welcoming, alcohol-free atmosphere on the sand at dusk.

Movies at the Park screens on Saturday 28 March at Barracluff Park and again on Saturday 2 May in the Bondi Pavilion courtyard, with free popcorn, a 6pm start and How to Train Your Dragon playing under the open sky. Saturday at the Park, which features free coffee and gelato, face painting and a visiting petting zoo, takes place on Saturday 6 June during the King’s birthday long weekend in the Bondi Pavilion courtyard from 10am.

Bondi’s Enduring Character

Bondi takes its name from an Aboriginal word meaning “sound of the waves breaking on the beach.” Settlement of the area dates from 1809, with more substantial growth taking place in the 1920s and 1930s as both permanent residents and holidaymakers were drawn to the coast. More than a century on, that draw remains as strong as ever. The promenade fills on weekend mornings regardless of the season.

The surf is in the water before most of Sydney is awake. The cafes along Campbell Parade turn over tables from dawn. The Bondi Farmers Market runs every Saturday at the Bondi Public School grounds. The Pavilion hosts everything from film festivals to community meetings. It is a suburb that does not require a reason to visit, which is precisely what The Bondi Feeling campaign is reminding people.

Why This Matters to the Bondi Beach Community

For residents and businesses of Bondi Beach, the campaign is a practical and emotional lifeline after one of the hardest periods the suburb has faced in living memory. The December attack struck at the heart of a community that gathers at the beach as naturally as breathing, and the impact on local businesses, visitor numbers and community confidence has been real and sustained.

The Bondi Feeling does not paper over that reality. It acknowledges it and responds to it by doing the most Bondi thing imaginable: filling the foreshore with music, bonfires, food, kids laughing and people showing up. For locals who have stayed close and held the suburb together through the past three months, the campaign is an invitation for the rest of Sydney to come back and join them.

All events are free. Full details on The Bondi Feeling campaign and the complete events calendar are available here.

Published 18-March-2026.

Virgin Active Bondi Junction: Inside Elka Whalan’s Fitness Routine at the Social Wellness Club

Virgin Active

Former Olympic swimmer Elka Whalan has shared how she balances fitness and recovery at the new Virgin Active Social Wellness Club inside Westfield Bondi Junction, praising the 2500 square metre facility for its recovery technology, Pilates classes and convenience for eastern suburbs families juggling work, children and training.

Whalan, who competed at the Sydney and Athens Olympics and now lives in the eastern suburbs with her husband Thomas Whalan, a former Olympic water polo player, and their four children, says the Bondi Junction facility allows her to combine shopping with workouts while accessing recovery tools she describes as unexpected inside a shopping centre. The club features an infrared sauna, cold plunge pool, heated marble recovery slab and hydrotherapy spa, alongside specialised Reformer Pilates Towers and Lift Club strength training classes.

The two-time Olympian, formerly known as Elka Graham before her marriage, has six Olympics appearances between her and her husband and describes recovery as just as important as exercise when raising four children while staying active and fit. She says the body needs the best engine, the best fuel and the best care possible, and the Bondi Junction facility delivers recovery technology she would not expect to find in a Westfield shopping centre.

Recovery Focus and Early Morning Classes

Whalan attends 5:30am classes at the Bondi Junction club, maintaining discipline and focus despite no longer training at Olympic level. She describes the flexibility of being able to work out hard while ensuring her body, brain and muscles recover properly as essential for keeping up with children and maintaining fitness around work and family commitments.

Elka Whalan shares her Virgin Active fitness routine — *Photo Credit: Queenhood*

The Virgin Active Bondi Junction club opened on 24 July 2025 as the brand’s first Social Wellness Club globally, replacing the former David Jones Food Hall on Level 1 of Westfield Bondi Junction at 500 Oxford Street. The facility operates as an all-day luxury social wellness destination, combining fitness, recovery, nutrition and social experiences under one roof with membership including access to co-working spaces, a health food café and luxury changing rooms fitted with Grown Alchemist toiletries and Dyson hair styling tools.

Virgin Active co-working space — *Photo Credit: Virgin Active*

The launch event, hosted by television presenter Laura Csortan, featured appearances by Bondi Rescue lifeguards Hoppo and Deano, actor and model Jodi Gordon, television presenter Sally Obermeder, and a message from Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson. Virgin Active Global CEO Dean Kowarski described the space as designed to meet the realities of modern life, bringing together movement, recovery, productivity and connection to address what he characterised as a loneliness pandemic by creating spaces where people can socialise, make friends and form real communities.

Eastern Suburbs Fitness Culture Attracts High-Profile Members

Bondi Beach and Sydney’s eastern suburbs have built a reputation around health and fitness, with elite athletes and recognisable personalities living and training in the area. The lifestyle continues to shape demand for premium training spaces in Bondi Junction.

Virgin Active Bondi Junction has drawn influencers, reality television figures and professional sportspeople with its central location and range of facilities. Members track muscle mass, hydration and body fat through body composition scanning, and train on TechnoGym’s Artis range and Eleiko strength equipment. Programs include Reformer Pilates Towers and Lift Club, a structured six-week strength training block led by coaches.

Recovery Facilities and Member Access

Recovery plays a key role in the club’s offering. Members use Finnish and infrared saunas, a cold plunge pool, hydrotherapy spa and a heated marble slab designed for stretching and relaxation. Semi-private suites provide access to percussion therapy devices and compression boots.

The club also includes a business lounge for members balancing work commitments and an on-site café serving post-workout meals. It operates Monday to Thursday from 5:30am to 10pm, 5:30am to 9pm on Fridays, and 6:30am to 7pm on weekends, with public holidays generally following weekend hours. Introductory membership starts at $99 per week, with access to both the new facility and Virgin Active’s existing Bondi Junction club on Bronte Road, which opened in December 2019. More information is available here.

Published 22-February-2026.

Handmade Bracelet Campaign Raises More Than $40K in Wake of Bondi Beach Terror Attack

@bigmonya/Instagram

Valentine Meyerson, an 11-year-old Year 6 student from Bondi Beach, has raised more than $40,000 for the family of Matilda through a handmade beaded bracelet campaign that began in the days following the 14 December 2025 terror attack at Archer Park and has now reached supporters in Canada, the United States and Israel.

Matilda, aged 10, was the youngest victim of the terror attack on the Chanukah by the Sea Hanukkah celebration that killed 15 people and wounded more than 40 others. Valentine, who lives in Bondi and is close to Matilda’s age, felt compelled to act after watching news coverage of the massacre unfold in her own community. She began handmaking yellow beaded bracelets featuring bee motifs in memory of Matilda and to spread her legacy, with all proceeds going directly to Matilda’s family.

Valentine describes seeing news of the massacre as heartbreaking, particularly because Matilda was around her own age. She says she wants to show the people killed or injured in the terror attack that they are not forgotten and never will be. The attack hit close to home for the Meyerson family, who are part of Bondi’s Russian Jewish community and lost friends in the tragedy. Valentine’s grandfather’s best friends attended the event, and most were shot. He was overseas at the time, or he would have been there too.

Bees on Wrists and a Trip to Disneyland

Valentine’s mother, Lexy Meyerson, says her daughter chose to create the bee bracelets and fundraise for Matilda’s family after being emotionally affected by news reports. The bracelets are symbolic and lasting, with the bee motif a deliberate reference to Matilda’s nickname. What scared Valentine is that Chanukah by the Sea is an event the Meyerson family would normally attend every year. It’s their Jewish Russian community, which makes the tragedy even closer.

Bracelets in wake of the December 2025 terror attack — *Photo Credit: @bigmonya/Instagram*

The family has received support in the form of supplies from community members in Bondi and in the Southern Highlands where they are temporarily staying during construction at their home. Valentine’s friends and school teachers have assisted with the bracelet-making process. Supporters across Australia, from the east coast to Western Australia, have received the bracelets, and organisers have also delivered them internationally to supporters in Canada, the United States and Israel.

Valentine says that while making the bracelets is hard and repetitive, she feels motivated to continue. What gives her the power to keep going is that she is not putting aside what happened. Her goals are to send Matilda’s sister Summer to Disneyland on a holiday and to expand her fundraising and awareness campaign to stop these things from happening again.

Processing Grief Through Action

Lexy and Alan Meyerson say they are proud of Valentine’s work. They will meet the family in the coming days, and the father says the daughter’s efforts have amazed him. She thinks it will be beautiful for Valentine to meet the family.

In the days following the attack, Valentine wept tears through lighting the menorah. Her father Alan says she was watching a lot of live news in the days after the attack and had been looking for a way to process her sadness and anger. To see a girl around her age as a victim, she took it close to home. She still doesn’t understand how people can do this.

The Peace Hive project and the Matilda Bee Bracelet Project, as Valentine’s initiative has become known, represents one of many community-led responses to the 14 December terror attack. The broader recovery effort continues across Bondi Beach and the surrounding area, with embedded support services now operating through local organisations, a Medicare Mental Health Centre at Bondi Junction providing free confidential services, and a $1 million grants program funding 24 organisations to deliver community-designed mental health and resilience programs.

For anyone still seeking support following the Bondi Beach terror attack, the 24-hour support line on 1800 595 212 directs callers to appropriate services, including crisis response, psychological support and family support, and operates seven days a week including public holidays and Shabbat.

Published 20-February-2026.

Bondi Beach Recovery Hub at the Pavilion Shifts to Long-Term Embedded Community Supports

The recovery hub operating at the Bondi Pavilion has transitioned to a streamlined format, marking a new phase in the community response to the 14 December 2025 terror attack at Bondi Beach, with Lifeline and Legal Aid NSW continuing to operate on-site while broader supports embed permanently within local organisations.

The recovery hub opened in the days immediately following the attack, which killed 15 people and wounded more than 40 others at the annual “Chanukah by the Sea” Hanukkah celebration held at Archer Park, just east of the Pavilion. In the two months since, the hub has recorded more than 1,400 visits, seen more than 650 applications lodged with Victims Support Services, and helped more than 400 businesses access support. With the majority of people now registered with available services, the Pavilion continues to operate as the community’s anchor point, but the structure of support has evolved to meet what residents need next.

For the Bondi Beach community, the transition represents a shift from crisis response to sustained care. The hub now offers Lifeline for mental health support and Legal Aid NSW to assist with ongoing Victims Support applications. All other supports are moving into the fabric of local organisations, so that residents, business owners and anyone still working through the aftermath of the attack can access help through familiar, trusted channels rather than a single central location.

What the Embedded Supports Look Like

Community Resilience and Engagement Officers have been placed within eight organisations across the area, including Surf Life Saving NSW and Waverley Council, to deliver tailored long-term support and ensure community voices continue to be heard as needs change over time. Their role spans active outreach, connecting people to appropriate services, and feeding back to coordinators on what the community is experiencing week to week.

A pop-up Medicare Mental Health Centre is now operating at Bondi Junction, providing confidential mental health information and services free of charge. No appointment or referral is needed. A $1 million grants program has funded 24 organisations to deliver their own community-designed programs, including weekly mental health workshops for children and young people, a safe drop-in space for community connection, school-based programs and Jewish community gatherings focused on cultural healing.

Resilience Support Services funding will enable specialised counselling, community outreach and other essential services to continue both in person and by phone, including through local multicultural services and youth organisations.

Coordinators General Michele Goldman and Joseph La Posta are continuing their engagement with the Bondi community to ensure that those affected have access to long-term support for as long as they need it.

Finding Support

For anyone still seeking support following the Bondi Beach attack, the following services remain available. Lifeline and Legal Aid NSW continue to operate at the Bondi Pavilion. The 24-hour support line on 1800 979 676 directs callers to the service most appropriate for their needs, including crisis response, meals, financial assistance, psychological support and family support. The service operates seven days a week including public holidays and Shabbat.

Victims Support Services can be reached through the Victims Services Critical Incident Line on 1800 411 822, available Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. The Medicare Mental Health Centre at Bondi Junction is open to everyone with no appointment or referral needed. For JewishCare’s dedicated Bondi Terror Attack Grant and support services, information is available here. Donations to the Unite for Bondi appeal can be made here and are tax deductible.

Published 17-February-2026.

Hope for Hartley: Bondi Families Come Together to Raise Awareness of CDKL5

Hope for Hartley / Instagram

Residents at The Moreton apartment complex are coming together for a morning of family fun and community activities, bringing hope for Hartley while raising awareness of a rare neurological disorder that affects just 1,500 people worldwide.

Baby Hartley Jayne Gunn, who lives at the Mirvac development on Wellington Street with her parents Jess and Steve and big brothers Reggie and Teddy, was diagnosed with CDKL5 deficiency disorder at just eight weeks old when seizures first began. Her family and neighbours are transforming the building’s landscaped courtyard into a hub of fundraising and awareness on Saturday, February 7.

The event runs from 10am to 12pm and will bring together Bondi families for food, drinks, live music, face painting and children’s entertainment. Residents registered through the TryBooking platform, though bookings have now closed for the community gathering.

A Devastating Diagnosis That Changes Everything

CDKL5 is one of the rarest and most severe genetic conditions, causing hard-to-control seizures that begin in infancy and can occur daily. Children with the disorder face severe developmental challenges, with many never learning to walk, talk or feed themselves independently. The condition also brings vision problems, scoliosis, low muscle tone, and breathing difficulties, often requiring lifelong 24-hour care.

There is currently no cure and no treatment for CDKL5.

Hartley was born on May 6, 2025, and her seizures started when she was just two months old. Since then, her family has watched their tiny daughter endure hospital stays and medical battles while showing remarkable resilience. Her parents describe her as pure light, love and courage wrapped into one tiny soul.

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The family dreams of hearing Hartley’s voice demanding the world like her brothers do, and watching her toes dance in the sand on Bondi Beach.

Community Support Spans Beyond The Moreton

The family fun day represents immediate neighbourhood support, while a broader fundraising campaign has already raised more than $85,000 toward a $100,000 goal through GoFundMe. The Hope for Hartley campaign was organised by Anna Bender from nearby Tamarama, with all funds going directly toward Hartley’s medical care, therapies and CDKL5 research.

Hartley requires extensive physical, occupational and speech therapy, along with specialised medical equipment and ongoing hospital care. The financial burden on the family is immense as they work to give Hartley the best possible chance while continuing to build their life in Australia.

Beyond the February 7 event, community members can support the family through a raffle featuring prizes from local Bondi businesses including Slowhouse, Peaches Pilates and Nimbus. The raffle remains open to those who cannot attend the morning gathering.

Building a Future Surrounded by Possibilities

The Moreton’s courtyard, set among heritage Moreton Bay fig trees between Ocean Street and Wellington Street, provides a green setting for the fundraiser. The building’s communal gardens and outdoor entertainment areas have become gathering spots for the development’s families since it opened in stages from 2017.

Jess and Steve remain committed to giving all three of their children the very best chance in life. They want Hartley to grow up surrounded by possibilities rather than limitations, believing that with enough love, support and hope, she can achieve far more than medical expectations might suggest.

The family fun day and ongoing fundraising efforts reflect the tight-knit networks that define Bondi’s residential neighbourhoods, where apartment communities rally around families facing extraordinary challenges.

You can let the organisers know you’re coming by RSVPing here, or show your support by grabbing raffle tickets here.

Published 6-February-2026.

Bondi Hero Ahmed Al Ahmed Receives City’s Highest Honour

Photo Credit: City of Canterbury Bankstown

A Bondi Beach hero who stopped a gunman during the nation’s worst terror attack has been recognised with the highest honour the City of Canterbury Bankstown can bestow.

Ahmed al Ahmed, 43, became the first person to receive the key to the City of Canterbury Bankstown at an Australia Day awards ceremony, more than a month after he wrestled a gun away from one of two attackers who targeted a Hanukkah celebration on 14 December.

The Syrian-Australian was shot multiple times during his intervention, which authorities say prevented further loss of life during the attack that killed 15 people and injured more than 40 others.

Taking to the stage at the ceremony, Mr al Ahmed said he still carried a “big hurt” in his body, with two bullets remaining lodged in his arm.

“I didn’t expect to receive it but [it’s] something very nice and thank you for everything,” he said outside the ceremony.

Mayor Bilal El-Hayek described Mr al Ahmed as a “true blue local hero” and said the award was fitting recognition of his courage.

“This is the highest honour a city can give and it is the first time it has been presented by the City of Canterbury Bankstown,” Mayor El-Hayek said.

“Congratulations and thank you Ahmed.”

At a separate Australia Day ceremony, Premier Chris Minns also praised the fruit shop owner’s actions.

“I think what Ahmed’s story shows us, and this is often the case … is that some of our most patriotic Australians are the newly arrived,” Mr Minns said.

“Those who’ve decided to become Australian.”

Following the terror attack at Bondi Beach, Mr al Ahmed spent a fortnight in St George Hospital in Sydney’s south, where he underwent surgery for gunshot wounds.

Video footage from the attack, which has been viewed millions of times globally, shows Mr al Ahmed tackling one of the gunmen and disarming him. According to reports, he was shot by the second attacker whilst intervening (NBC News, CBS News).

A GoFundMe campaign established for Mr al Ahmed raised close to $2 million from around 40,000 donors, including American billionaire hedge fund manager William Ackman (CBS News).

The 14 December attack, which occurred during the first night of Hanukkah, has been declared a terrorist incident by Australian authorities. Police identified the attackers as a father and son who were inspired by Islamic State ideology.

Published 26-January-2026

Bondi Beach Memorial Flowers to Become Permanent Museum Artwork

Volunteers have spent weeks carefully preserving thousands of floral tributes from the Bondi Beach memorial at Bondi Pavilion, ensuring the community’s response to December’s terror attack lives on through a permanent commemorative artwork.

The Sydney Jewish Museum commissioned the preservation work after Waverley removed the temporary memorial, with senior curator Shannon Biederman leading the effort to save as much as possible.

The team had just days before Christmas to arrange trucks, find storage that would accept perishable items and secure flower drying solutions—a logistical challenge made more meaningful by what the tributes represent.

More Than Just Flowers

Beyond the thousands of bouquets, the memorial included hand-painted stones, teddies, cards and deeply personal items like a pair of shoes left by 10-year-old Matilda’s family.

Biederman connects to that loss on a personal level. She had tickets to the December 14 Chanukah by the Sea event and takes her kids every year, but changed plans at the last minute. Her daughter is also 10.

The curator has spent more than 20 years working with Holocaust survivors on their testimonies, learning to compartmentalise when the work becomes overwhelming. Sometimes that’s the only way to keep going.

Transforming Tributes Into Art

On Christmas Eve, volunteers gathered at a rented storage facility to sort through the flowers, hanging them on fencing to help with drying. Rain fell as they worked, a moment Biederman found strangely fitting.

Melbourne artist Nina Sanadze, already working with the museum on another exhibition when the attack happened, now leads the artistic transformation. She’s ironing dried petals, pressing flowers by species and colour, and enclosing some in silicone.

Even the decayed portions won’t go to waste—the team plans to turn them into compost for seating at the museum.

Sanadze says the project won’t result in a single artwork but many different pieces, each reflecting how strongly the flowers convey grief.

The work takes an emotional toll. Sanadze copes by burying herself in the project while drawing strength from her community. For her, art repairs the world by turning decay into messages of love and hope.

A Story of Unity

Biederman found reading the handwritten messages particularly difficult. She had to stop when the words became too upsetting.

She also knew Rabbi Eli Schlanger, one of the 15 victims, and remembers him as the most beautiful person.

The Sydney Jewish Museum remains closed for redevelopment, with exhibitions set to reopen in late 2026. The team continues refining their plans for how the commemorative artwork will take shape within that space.

Biederman sees the preserved tributes as evidence of something positive emerging from tragedy—a unity story told through tokens of love and support when the Jewish community needed it most.

The preservation work for the Bondi Beach memorial flowers continues more than a month after the attack, with grief still fresh for many in the community.

Published 20-Jan-2026

Light Will Win: Bondi Rallies as the Roosters Return Ahead of National Day of Mourning

Photo Credit: Roosters.com.au

Bondi Beach knows how to carry a crowd — bright noise, easy movement, sunlight on the waterline. In the wake of last month’s terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, the suburb has been forced to make room for a different kind of togetherness. Not because Bondi has forgotten what happened, but because the community is determined not to let tragedy be the final word.

The Roosters show up on the sand

That spirit was on show this week when the Sydney Roosters brought their NRL squad, coaches and staff down to the beachfront during the school holidays. The club kept it simple: relaxed activities, time with families, autographs and photos, and merchandise handed out along the promenade as kids turned up in red, white and blue.

The visit was driven by head coach Trent Robinson, who wanted the team back at Bondi after the attack — visible, approachable and connected in a place that matters to so many locals.

Club captain James Tedesco said Bondi Beach sits at the heart of the community, and the club shared the devastation felt when the attack took place.

For a few hours, the scene looked like Bondi being Bondi: players stopping for photos, kids tugging sleeves for a signature, parents watching from a respectful distance. The Roosters also checked in with local lifeguards and leaders from the Jewish community, reaffirming the club’s ongoing support for them and their families.

While Bondi has been finding its footing on the sand, the national response has been taking shape on a bigger canvas.

Australia prepares to pause

On Thursday, 22 January 2026, Australia will observe a National Day of Mourning for the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack. The theme chosen by the Chabad community in Bondi is both comforting and resolute: “Light will win — a gathering of unity and remembrance.”

National institutions in Canberra, as well as sites across New South Wales, will be illuminated on Thursday evening as a symbol of light, with institutions around the country encouraged to participate.

A commemorative installation, 15 Pillars of Light, will be displayed in Canberra and across Australia, each pillar serving as a visible marker of mourning, remembrance and national solidarity.

‘Light will win’: the theme of remembrance

At 7:01 p.m. on 22 January, Australians are invited to observe one minute of silence to honour those impacted. The Bondi Beach Attack Memorial Event organised by Chabad of Bondi that evening will be recognised as a National Event; it is invitation only, but will be live streamed on the Chabad of Bondi YouTube channel.

There will be no public holiday, and no formal requirement to suspend events. Instead, the guidance focuses on participation that is personal, practical and respectful.

Australians are encouraged to come together and share a meal with family and friends of all faiths and backgrounds, leave a candle on a doorstep or in a window, and share condolence messages through an online Bondi Beach condolence book.

As a mark of respect, the Australian National Flag will be flown at half-mast on the National Day of Mourning from Australian Government and New South Wales Government buildings and establishments, with other organisations and jurisdictions welcome to participate.

A mitzvah is described as an act of kindness, compassion and moral responsibility. In honour of the 15 people lost, Australians are encouraged to undertake one or more of the “15 suggested mitzvahs for Bondi” — small, everyday actions such as checking in on a neighbour, visiting someone who is unwell, volunteering time, donating to organisations that serve others, or teaching children stories that show them the good in the world.

Bondi’s way forward: joy with remembrance

Bondi’s recovery won’t be measured by a single morning at the beach or one night of illuminated buildings. It will be shaped by the smaller decisions made afterwards — to keep showing up for each other, to keep gathering, and to make space for joy without letting go of remembrance.

In that sense, the Roosters’ visit and the National Day of Mourning are part of the same story: local and immediate on the sand, national and symbolic after dark. Both carry the same message — Bondi is not alone, and light will win.

Published 20-Jan-2026

Bondi Beach Community Backs Inspector Amy Scott After Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Photo Credit: Australian of The Year Awards

A fundraising appeal connected to Bondi Beach has drawn widespread support after NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer.

Service Record And Incident History

Inspector Amy Scott has served with the NSW Police Force for 19 years and is based at Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command. She became widely known following her actions during the fatal stabbing attack at Westfield Bondi Junction in April 2024.

On 13 April 2024, Inspector Scott confronted the offender during the mass casualty attack inside the shopping centre. The incident resulted in the deaths of six people. Her actions were later recognised with the Commissioner’s Valour Award, and she was subsequently named a 2025 NSW Australian of the Year nominee.

Health Diagnosis Confirmed

Inspector Scott has been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer. According to statements from police leadership and NSW Police Legacy, her family and colleagues have been aware of the diagnosis for several months.

She has requested privacy while undergoing treatment. Despite this, she has continued to support colleagues affected by the Bondi Junction incident, including regularly attending the station to provide reassurance and assistance.

Fundraiser And Community Response

An appeal facilitated by NSW Police Legacy was established to help ease the financial burden on Inspector Scott and her family. The response has been substantial.

Within just over 24 hours, the appeal raised more than $350,000. At the time captured from the fundraising page, total donations had reached $432,572, surpassing the original $25,000 goal. More than 7,600 people had contributed to the appeal.

Supporters have described Inspector Scott as compassionate, selfless and dedicated to public service, with messages reflecting strong community regard for both her professional actions and personal strength.

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Bondi Beach Link

Inspector Scott’s diagnosis has been referenced alongside a separate Bondi Beach terrorism event held on 14 December, where officers involved were described as drawing inspiration from her example and leadership during the 2024 attack.

What Happens Next

The fundraising appeal remains active as Inspector Scott continues treatment with the support of her family, colleagues and the wider community. NSW Police Legacy has indicated that community backing will remain important in the months ahead.

Published 19-Jan-2026