Past Holocaust Awareness Events
JCRC and the Friends of the New England Holocaust Memorial coordinate many programs that help educate the Boston community about the Holocaust.
Click on the links below to learn more about past JCRC and FNEHM events.
Though the atmosphere was characteristically solemn and befitting a day of Holocaust remembrance, the mood inside of Faneuil Hall had a notably hopeful quality as more than 600 people gathered to posthumously honor two families who saved the lives of Jews during the Holocaust.
"Today we mourn not only the tremendous human loss in the Jewish world, but the loss of humanity in our world." said Rick Mann, President of the Friends of the New England Holocaust Memorial and a JCRC board member.
"We must remember this legacy when we say "never forget." However, today we also remember another legacy. Today we remember the legacies represented by the two families with us today, two families that acted with the courage in a time when so many stood by."
The 2007 Yom HaShoah Holocaust Commemoration, organized annually by the Jewish Community Relations Council, CJP, and a coalition of community groups, paid tribute to the memory of Danielius, Ona and Adolfina Žilevičius, and Alexandra Dagarova-Noim. As family members received the official Yad VaShem medals from Israeli Consul General Nadav Tamir, the audience rose to in applause.
Ariadna Kushak accepted the award on behalf of her mother, Alexandra Dagarova-Noim. Dagarova, a non-Jewish woman married to David Epshtein, a Jewish architect, who posed as a farm housekeeper while operating a hideout for groups of Jews smuggled out of Riga. Working with fellow savior Janis Lipke, they smuggled Jews out of various camps, ghettos, and hiding places to safe houses and farms in Latvia. Ultimately, forty of the Jewish refugees hidden by Dagarova and Lipke survived the Holocaust. They constitute one-fifth of an estimated 200 Jews that survived on Latvian soil.
Ted Zilius and Judi Clow accepted the award in memory of their parents, Danielius and Ona Žilevičius and their Grandmother Adolfina. The three are responsible for saving the life of Genia Rudnik, a young Jewish Lithuanian girl from Vilnius. Risking the safety of their family including their own two children, they hid Genia by posing her as their daughter throughout the German occupation.
"We must talk about the men and women who maintained their dignity," said Dr. Wolfgang Vorwerk, Consul General of Germany, who spoke at the commemoration.
"There were few, far too few but we must talk about them, to our youth and to our children to show them that humane behavior was possible, that it existed."
Holocaust Survivor Rosian Zerner thanked her rescuers, describing them as "ordinary human beings who became extraordinary because of their deeds."
"A farmer, a seamstress, a journalist, a housewife....it takes many rescuers to save one child and I had at least nine. How can one ever thank or reciprocate for the gift of life? I am forever indebted in gratitude."
Since 1963, a commission headed by a justice of the Supreme Court of Israel has recognized more than 21,700 people as Righteous Among the Nations.
Individuals recognized as "Righteous Among the Nations" are awarded a medal bearing his or her name, a certificate of honor, and the privilege of having his or her name added to the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous at Yad VaShem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem.
"It is written that he who saves one life save the world entire," said Israeli Consul General Nadav Tamir, quoting the Talmud.
"It is our sacred duty to remember that the heroic men and women who represent the Righteous Among the Nations saved not just one world, but thousands of worlds: The worlds of our children, and the worlds of our grandchildren."
Click here to read the remarkable legacies of the two families being honored.
Click here to read more about the Righteous Among the Nations
To learn more about the Annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration or JCRC's Holocaust Programming, please contact Deborah Donig at (617) 457-8652.
Biographies of Honorees- Righteous Among the Nations
Mrs. Alexandra Dagarova-Noim (deceased)
Award presented to: Ariadna Kushak (Daughter), Rafail Kushak (Son-in-Law)
and Ariana Kushak (Granddaughter)
Survivors:
Grigori Arensburg Mikhail Drizin
Zalman Drizin David Epshtein/ Dagarov
Garri Itsigson Maksim Wagenheim
Herman Noim
At the eve of the Holocaust, Alexandra Dagarova was living in Riga, Latvia and was married to a Jewish architect named David Epshtein. Upon German invasion of Riga, David Epshtein/Dagarov was placed in the Riga ghetto, and then sent to the Kaizerwald concentrationcamp. Throughout his imprisonment, Alexandra strove to find a way to free him.
In her attempts to help her husband, Alexandra met Janis Lipke. Shrewd and seemingly fearless, Janis was drafted to serve in the German Air Force (Luftwaffe), then worked as a longshoreman in the Riga harbor and a recruiter for farm help. Janis used his numerous connections and the opportunity to travel afforded by his recruiting work to smuggle dozens of Jews out of various ghettos, camps, and hiding places to safe houses in Riga and farms that he had rented near the town of Dobele. Alexandra served as a go-between the imprisoned Jews and the outside world.
Subsequently, Lipke and Alexandra collaborated to establish additional farms that could serve as hideouts for Jewish escapees, as the farms that Lipke has been using became too full.
In the spring of 1944, Lipke rented an additional farm named Reshni, also close to Dobele. Alexandra eagerly volunteered to serve as the housekeeper on the farm. In that capacity, she was assisted by Maria Keller, known as a savior in her own right. In a matter of days, a secret bunker under the farm house was excavated to serve as a hideout for a group of Jews smuggled from Riga that included Alexandra's husband, David, as well as other Jewish escapees including Grigori Arensburg, Maksim Wagenheim, Mikhail and Zalman Drizin, Garri Itsigson and Herman Noim. Alexandra and Maria hid the group in the bunker and cared for them until August of 1944, when the Red Army temporarily liberated the area.
Ultimately, forty of the Jewish refugees hidden on Lipke's farms survived. They constitute one fifth of an estimated total of 200 Jews that survived on the Latvian soil.
Mr. Danielius Žilevic¡ius and Mrs. Ona Žilevic¡iene (deceased)
Mrs. Adolfina Žilevic¡iene – Mother of Danielius (deceased)
Award presented to: Ted Zilius (Son of Danielius and Ona)
Judi Clow – Daughter of (Danielius and Ona)
Survivor: Guta (Genia) Gorelik nee Vilnius (Tel Aviv)
In 1942, Genia Rudnik was a young Jewish Lithuanian girl living with her parents and brother in Vilnius, a city with a long tradition of Jewish culture prior to the Holocaust. When the German army invaded Lithuania the Rudnik family was sent to the ghetto where Genia's parents, Yitzchak and Pola Rudnik were sent to work cleaning a tennis court facility frequented by employees of the Ministry of Health. As Lithuania became increasingly dangerous for Jews, Pola Rudnik, concerned about the future of her family, approached Ona and asked Ona to help her daughter.
Together, Ona, Danielius and Adolfina agreed to take Genia into their home. They disguised her as their daughter and sending their own two children to live with Ona's mother outside of the city.
Shortly after, in September of 1943, the Vilnius Ghetto was liquidated by the Nazis and Ona lost touch with Genia's mother. As the Allies approached Lithuania in 1944, Ona moved to stay with her mother and children in the country, leaving Danielius and Adolfina in the city with Genia.
In 1944, the Soviet Army entered Vilnius. Fearing Soviet reprisal, Ona moved west with her children. Genia continued to live with Danielius and Adolfina until 1946. That year she was discovered by a local Jewish community and adopted by a Jewish family. She later learned that her parents and brother were murdered. She remained in touch with the Žilevic¡ius family until Danielius' death in 1963. Through Danielius, Genia found that Ona was living in the United States with her children and stayed in contact with him.
In 2004, the Zilevicius children located Genia through Mr. David Fried, a Jewish Vermont native and acquaintance of Ted Zilius, the son of Danielius and Ona Žilevic¡ius. David had heard Genia's story from Ted, researched her story, and located her in Israel. In January of 2006, Genia delivered testimony to Yad Vashem on behalf of her saviors and of.cially requested that they be recognized as Righteous Among the Nations.
| On December 21, 2006 the Boston community joined together at the New England Holocaust Memorial to light candles in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, to condemn Iran's recent Holocaust denial conference and to expose the danger posed by a nuclear Iran to the entire free world - particularly Israel.
Speakers at the vigil represented a diverse community joining together to denounce Iran's actions. JCRC Executive Director Nancy Kaufman welcomed the audience to the vigil and called for the community to send a message to Ahmadinejad that "We in Boston will not stand idly by."
Israel Arbeiter, President of the American Association of the Jewish Holocaust Survivors of Greater Boston shared his testimony as a witness
to Nazi atrocities and several other important community voices pledged their commitment to Holocaust memory. |
|
Click here to read the Jewish Advocate's Coverage of the Vigil.
Click here to read remarks by Israel Arbeiter, President of the American Association of Jewish Holocaust Survivors of Greater Boston.
Click here to read remarks by Rick Mann, President of the Friends of the New England Holocaust Memorial.
Thank you to our co-sponsors: Combined Jewish Philanthropies, ADL, the American Association of Jewish Holocaust Survivors of Greater Boston, American Jewish Committee, AMIT Women, Boston Israel Action Committee, CAMERA, Christians and Jews United for Israel, Congregation Kehillath Israel, Congregation Mishkan Tefila, the Consulate General of Israel to New England, the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning at Boston College, the David Project, Emergency Committee on the Iranian Nuclear Threat, Facing History and Ourselves, Friends of the New England Holocaust Memorial, GesherCity, Hadassah, JCCs of Greater Boston, the Jewish Federation of the North Shore, JALSA - Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action, Jewish National Fund, the KNOW Genocide Coalition, Massachusetts Coalition to Save Darfur, Merrimack Valley Jewish Federation, the Sephardic Congregation of Newton, Synagogue Council of New England, Temple Emanuel, Temple Shalom of Newton, Union for Reform Judaism, Temple Beth ZIon, Temple Emeth
|
On May 14, 2006, members of the Boston Community congregated inside the Great Hall of Faneuil Hall to
commemorate victims of the Holocaust and to reaffirm
their pledge to pass the story of the Holocaust to
generations after. |
|
|
|
|
Throughout his remarks, Holocaust Survivor Israel Arbeiter underscored the urgency of the commemoration's theme "And You Shall Teach It to Your Children." In his final speaking engagement before retiring from 56 years of serving on the Holocuast Commemoration Committee, Mr. Arbeiter recounted his father's final words to him before they were seperated: "Save yourself, and if you survive, remember to carry on and lead Jewish lives."
Mr. Arbeiter addressed the disconcerting reality that upcoming generations will not have the opportunity to hear Holocaust Survivors speak. |
"There will be a time in the not-so-distant future when the last survivor will be gone. It will then be up to the next generation to carry on the message of human conscience for all time."
Other presenters wove the commemoration's plea to continue Holocaust memory into their presentations.
"We are closer to that moment when the Holocaust will cease to be a living memory – and will become history. That will happen when the next generation will not be able to hear the truth directly from those who lived it. Thus, it is our sacred duty to share their stories, to honor their legacy, and to preserve their memory for our children, our grandchildren, and for the future of mankind," stated Israeli Consul General Meir Shlomo.
German Consul General Wolfgang K. Vorwerk was joined at the ceremony by his son and his peers, representing an upcoming generation of German youth dedicated to learning the history and lessons of the holocaust.
| "It is important for me to have [German youth] with me here today because they stand – as all young people in their age - next in line to pass on to their children what they have heard from survivors about the Holocaust, to pass on the torch that keeps the flame of memory alive, to safeguard your legacy for the next generations," he remarked. "It is important because these young people – third generation – stand next in line to assume responsibility for the consequences of the past: Responsibility not for the Holocaust and what happened over 60 years ago, but the responsibility to make sure that what led up to those monstrous crimes, the Holocaust, will never again be allowed to take root and flourish." |
|
Lois Lowry, author of Number the Stars, a fictional novel about Danish resistance during the Holocaust written for young readers, delivered keynote remarks. Interweaving lessons of the Holocaust and her novel with her own life experiences, she concluded by reminding the audience that
|
"We need to tell our stories, and to listen to theirs, and their stories are as important as ours. We must tell them to our children and our grandchildren, and in the telling try to understand them, to see what they mean and how they connect us to each other. We must remember the past, mourn what we have lost, rejoice for what remains, respect what binds us together, and fight prejudice wherever it exists."
Throughout her remarks, she underscored the need for the community to "bind together" to create a global community. Invoking a major theme of many of her novels including Number the Stars in which a non-Jewish family in Denmark resists the Nazis and saves the lives of the family's Jewish neighbors, Ms. Lowry urged those congregated inside of Faneuil Hall to teach the lessons of the Holocaust and to combat the forces that allowed the Holocaust to happen.
|
|
|
|
Recounting a scene from her novel The Giver, she invoked the need to teach the story of the past to the next generation and to help them learn the lessons of these stories.
"In my book The Giver the young boy, Jonas, the protagonist, begins to realize the truth about his world, and says in surprise, "I thought there was only us. I thought there was only now," she said. Quoting her novel she continued, "It was the great untruth that he had been taught—the one that we are still being taught, the one that some of us are still teaching. But there is no only us in this world. We are all each other's people." |
For a transcript of Lois Lowry's remarks, click here.
For a transcript of remarks by Israeli Consul General Meir Shlomo, click here.
For a transcript of remarks by German Consul General Dr. Wolfgang Vorwerk, click here.
To read the Jewish Advocate's coverage of this event, click here.
|
Despite the rain, a sizeable group gathered at the New England Holocaust Memorial on Wednesday, June 18 2006 to remember those in the GBLT community who have suffered from oppression and persecution through the ages and during the Holocaust. Huddled under umbrellas, the crowd observed a candlelight vigil and joined in commemorative songs and prayers. The vigil featured reflections by Rabbi Howard Berman and Reverend Kim K. Crawford Harvie. Both Rabbi Berman and Revered Harvie spoke about the need for tolerance, understanding. In her remarks, Reverend Harvie invoked the story of Martha and Reverend Waitstill Sharp, Wellesley residents who defied the Nazis and saved the lives of many Jewish children during the Holocaust and who were recently recognized as Righteous Gentiles by Yad Vashem. Reverend Harvie called for witnesses of hatred and intolerance against the GLBT community and other minority groups to follow the example of the Sharps, to act against rather than passively observe present day hatred and intolerance. |
|
Holocaust Event Marked By Warnings Of 'Genocide'By Kevin Rothstein
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Genocide in Sudan and the militant group Hamas' victory in the Palestinian elections this week were somber backdrops to Holocaust memorial services yesterday at the State House.
"Right now as we speak there is an ongoing genocide in Western Sudan," Sudanese refugee David Gai told a packed House chamber. Gai, now studying at UMass-Boston, was invited to speak at the state's Holocaust International Day of Remembrance by Jewish organizers, who said the anti-genocide pledge of "never again" was falling on deaf international ears.
"My hope is having this memorial today we will put an end to all memorials," said Nancy K. Kaufman, director of the Jewish Community Relations Council.
To continue reading this article, click here.
"We know that for the dead it is too late... but it is not too late for today's children, ours and yours."
-Elie Wiesel
Holocaust survivor Israel Arbeiter gets a hug from Iosif Lakman
during a Holocaust memorial service held at the State House
UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 29 (JTA) -- Sixty-one years to the day after the liberation of Auschwitz, the United Nations marked its first-ever Holocaust remembrance day, commemorating those lost in the genocide that was the impetus for the world body's birth.
The acknowledgment was long overdue, said those who attended last Friday's ceremony in a packed General Assembly Hall.
"For us survivors, this commemoration under U.N. auspices is a muted triumph," said Roman Kent, chairman of the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors. "It is imperfect justice, for it took 60 years for the crimes committed during the Holocaust to be properly acknowledged by the United Nations."
To continue reading this article, click here.
Remembering the Righteous: Facing Genocide Today
On Monday, December 12, JCRC and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee held a special celebration honoring the legacy of Rev. Waitstill and Martha Sharp who have been granted the title of Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem.
Rev. Waitstill and Martha Sharp, founders of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, are only the second and third U.S. citizens to receive this distinction.
To view a video news clip of this event, click here and scroll to "Founders of local church honored for WWII work"
Click on this link to read the Boston Globe's coverage of this event.
Click on this link to read the Wellesley Townsman's coverage of this event.
Click here to read a report of the event, or to read a transcript of the address delivered by JCRC Executive Director Nancy Kaufman.
Local Activists Honored for Heroic Work During the Holocaust
When the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee recognized the work of Martha and Reverend Waitstill Sharp yesterday evening at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Wellesley Hills, Rosemary Feigl was present to bear witness.
The organization- whose forerunner organization, the Unitarian Service Committee was founded by the Sharps and their colleagues celebrated the Sharps and their legacy of human rights activism
Feigl, a Holocaust survivor, escaped Nazi persecution during World War II with the help of Martha and Reverend Waitstill Sharp. Speaking at last night's tribute, presented by the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, she expressed her gratitude to the couple that saved her life.
Feigl was one of 29 children provided with exit visas, transit permits, and identity papers by the Sharps. After a tumultuous flight across borders, Feigl was able to emigrate to the United States, where she resides today. 65 years later, she recognized the two people who reached out to her during a time when the world turned its back on Europe's Jews.
Yad Vashem will officially recognize the Sharps in June 2006 by engraving their names in the Garden of the Righteous at the Yad Vashem memorial in Israel, among those of the nearly 21,000 other individuals who have been awarded this title. The Sharps are only the second and third U.S. citizens to be so honored.
The commemoration included remarks by Feigl; Artemis Joukowski, the Sharps' grandson; JCRC Executive Director Nancy Kaufman; and Amnesty International USA Director William F. Schulz. Speakers paid tribute to the legacy of the Sharps, then urged the audience to continue the Sharps' legacy by becoming active in Darfur.
"We must all reflect on the questions [of genocide] as we are all witnesses to the story of Rosemarie Feigl and to the heroic story of the Sharps, and as witnesses, we have an obligation," said keynote speaker Nancy K. Kaufman, Executive Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council.
"While it is important to recognize the legacy of Martha and Waitstill Sharp as righteous among gentiles, we must also remember them by our actions. As Elie Wiesel has reminded us, "We know that for the dead it is too late… but it is not too late for today's children, ours and yours".
