When Adir Mesika’s loved ones were invited to a memorial marking two years since he was murdered at the Nova music festival, the invitation arrived in his own handwriting.

That poignant touch was enabled by the Ot Hayim project, by a group of graphic designers who have been working for the past two years to turn the handwriting of victims of Hamas’s October 7 attack into publicly available fonts.

“I think there’s really something about handwriting that is so personal, like a personal stamp,” Mesika’s mother, Sheerie, told The Times of Israel. “They say that through someone’s handwriting, you can know a person’s personality.”

A sea of memorial projects has engulfed Israel since the worst terror attack in the country’s history, with loved ones paying tribute to those slain via stickers, tattoos, Torah scrolls, musical creations and much more. Ot Hayim – which is Hebrew for “sign of life,” and a play on the Hebrew word ot, which also means a letter of the alphabet – is providing families with a uniquely personal way to see a piece of their loved one live on in perpetuity.

For the Mesika family, being able to use Adir’s handwriting on invitations, on his memorial website and as part of other memorial efforts in his name – including donating engagement rings to young couples – “really connects to him,” said Sheerie. “It’s like he’s the one doing the inviting. It’s very compelling.”

When the font was completed and uploaded to the website earlier this year, “I was so moved, we were really emotional.”

To date, there are more than 70 fonts available on the Ot Hayim website, for........

© The Times of Israel