Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Nathan Beard | NORFOLK, Va. – Rabbi Mitchell Schranz, a retired naval chaplain, speaks about the...... read more read more
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Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads service members and international allies gathered at the POW/MIA Chapel to observe a Days of Remembrance ceremony honoring the six-million Jewish people killed during the Holocaust.
This year's theme is "Behind Every Name, A Story: The Women." This particular theme highlights the bravery of women during the Holocaust, including Irena Sendler, a Polish social worker who helped rescue 2,500 Jewish children from the Warsaw Ghetto.
"Every year, our military gets a new generation of young service members. It's important that they understand the world's history and its challenges," said Chief Hospital Corpsman Alicia Barkers, the Multi-cultural and Heritage Committee lead assigned to Commander, US Second Fleet (C2F). "During this ceremony, we are reliving history, and that allows us to understand where we came from. More importantly, we understand a place we would never like to revisit."
Guest speaker, Cmdr. Lara Bollinger of C2F recounted the story of her grandmother, Rosalie Bollinger, who lived a three-hour walk from the German border in a small Belgium town. Prior to the war, Rosalie heard the stories of the many Jewish refugees fleeing Germany.
“This took place for a couple of years, and the stories my grandmother would hear became more terrifying. Hearing about fellow Jews being forced to live in ghettos, being rounded up and sent to these mysterious camps where few survived,” said Bollinger to the ceremony’s audience. “My grandmother started hearing whispers that there could be a German invasion coming. She had heard enough.”
Bollinger's grandmother, Rosalie, left her home with her family in 1940 to escape the war. During a particular bold interaction at her synagogue, Rosalie removed a small Torah scroll from its ark, placed it in her suitcase, and pleaded with her rabbi to leave. This act inspired nearly one hundred Jewish refugees in her community to leave Belgium and relocate to France and England.
In honor of those who lost their lives during the Holocaust, a Torah, which originated from Central Europe and is on loan to the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), was present for the ceremony.
This Torah had a similar history as records indicate it was brought to the United States in the 1930s amid rising anti-Semitism and worsening European political conditions.
"This Torah is the closest we could find to a survivor of the Holocaust to join us for this ceremony," said Bollinger. "It represents and connects us to so many communities in Europe that were displaced and destroyed. We are grateful to have such a meaningful reminder to serve alongside our Sailors at sea as we fight to preserve human dignity in this world. So that we too may remember."
This year marks the 78th anniversary of the liberation of the concentration camps by Allied Forces during the final days of World War II.
Days of Remembrance was established by the U.S. Congress to memorialize the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, as well as the millions of victims who were targeted for racial, political, ideological, and behavioral reasons.
| Date Taken: | 04.20.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 04.23.2023 20:35 |
| Story ID: | 443170 |
| Location: | NORFOLK, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 66 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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