Shoah Ceremony
By Avi Bernat-Kunin and David Schimmel
The ceremony commemorating the Holocaust took place on April 28 in the sanctuary of the temple building. Led by the 8th grade class, students learned about the tragedies and horrors brought to the Jews, homosexuals, Poles, gypsies, and Jehovah’s Witnesses in Europe by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party. The ceremony began with Aaron Feldman introducing the program, followed by a moment of silence. When silence broke, David Schimmel led the school in the Memorial Prayer, El Malei Rachamim, in memory of the 6 million Jews killed during the Holocaust. After the prayer, Noah Mermelstein introduced his great-aunt, Klara Wizel, a Holocaust survivor who spoke about her experience during the Holocaust.
Soon after, Zack and Sam Hirschhorn, responsively recited "At My Bar Mitzvah and His" by Rabbi Howard Kahn. This writing shares a comparison between a Bar-Mitzvah during the Holocaust and today. Followed by the recitation, students went on the stage to light six candles in honor of the six million. While the students exited the bimah, Ms. Isenberg and artist in-residence Josh Warshawsky led the school in “Halicha Le’ Kaisariah (Eli, Eli).” Ms. Pardo’s 8th grade English class compiled quotes from Anne Frank’s diary that enlightened the students on life in hiding. Directly after, Miriam Schweiger and Talia Goldberg spoke about the other types of people who were killed during the Holocaust. They focused on the 5 million non-Jews who fell before the Nazi regime.
To introduce the Mourner’s Kaddish, Daniel Lorell talked about the meaning of words such as Dachau and Auschwitz. A call and response for the Mourner’s Kaddish then took course with a group of boys reciting the Hebrew, and a group of girls reciting the English. The students then turned to their right to face the flag of Israel, the community sang “Hatikvah” (“The Hope”) in honor of the state of Israel.
Ms. Isenberg, the Holocaust teacher and coordinator of the program, says, “The 8th grade students have been thoroughly engaged in our studies of the Holocaust this year... I am very proud of the serious attention the students gave to this important day and feel confident that they will continue to honor the memory of those who perished by teaching others what they have learned.”
May the memories of these lost souls who suffered the evil and wicked Nazi regime during the Second World War be preserved and commemorated for the rest of time. Amen.