Community-Wide Holocaust Remembrance Day Commemoration at the MJCCA's Besser Holocaust Memorial Garden - Sunday, May 8
Guest Speaker Holocaust Survivor and Author Rabbi Joseph Polak
On Sunday, May 8, 2016, from 3:30-4:30 pm, the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA) will invite the entire community to come together for a special Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) commemoration ceremony at the MJCCA’s Besser Holocaust Memorial Garden, one of the preeminent Holocaust Memorials in the Southeast. The program will feature remarks from Rabbi and National Jewish Book Award-winning Author Rabbi Joseph Polak. The program is free of charge, and will take place at the MJCCA, (5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody). Rain or Shine. For information, visit atlantajcc.829stage.com, or call 678.812.4161.
Guest Speaker Holocaust Survivor and Author Rabbi Joseph Polak
The Yom HaShoah ceremony will feature a presentation by Rabbi Joseph Polak. Rabbi Polak won the 2015 National Jewish Book Award for his memoir, After the Holocaust the Bells Still Ring, about how he and his mother were able to survive two concentration camps and later deal with the past as they tried to reclaim their lives.
Rabbi Polak’s Memoir, After the Holocaust the Bells Still Ring
"It is haunting and melancholic, unforgettable and poignant. Polak is a wonderful writer, proffering a terrifying truth while speculating about the wisdom of the Torah and the apparent absence of God."
-Charles Weinblatt, NY Journal of Books
“Joseph Polak has written a memoir that begins where Anne Frank’s diary leaves off…. We don’t have many books like this one, books that tell what Hell was like for children who were too innocent to understand where they were, and too young to remember it clearly afterwards.”
-Jack Reimer, South Florida Jewish Journal
Additional Yom HaShoah Program Highlights:
- Remember the victims of the Holocaust with readings and memorial prayers;
- Experience the lighting of six torches in memory of those who perished in the Holocaust;
- Meet Rabbi Polak, who will sign copies of his memoir, which will be available for purchase at the program.
About Yom HaShoah
Yom HaShoah (also known as “Holocaust Martyrs'” and “Heroes' Remembrance Day”) - "Shoah" is Hebrew for destruction, and is another name for the Holocaust. This day commemorates the six million Jews who died during the Holocaust. At the same time, it marks the anniversary of the heroic Warsaw Ghetto uprising of 1943. In Israel, a morning siren sounds, stopping all activity; people stand in honor of those who died. Jews around the world hold memorials and vigils, often lighting six candles in honor of the six million Holocaust victims.
About the MJCCA’s Yom HaShoah Commemoration (RAIN or SHINE) – (May 8, 2016)
Each year, a special, community-wide Yom HaShoah commemoration is held at the Besser Holocaust Memorial
Garden at the MJCCA. Holocaust Survivor Abe Besser and his wife Marlene Gelertner Besser built this Memorial
to commemorate that horrific time, and to serve as a valuable teaching mechanism to remind and educate on what
hatred and indifference can do. The Yom HaShoah commemoration is co-sponsored by the Atlanta Rabbinical Association and the MJCCA.
About The Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA):
The MJCCA is committed to strengthening the quality of life throughout metro Atlanta, and is recognized as one of the most highly regarded Jewish community centers nationally. From preschoolers and adolescents, to young adults and seniors, the MJCCA offers unique and engaging programs, events, and services for every member of the community.
Contact Info:
Media inquiries: Lora Sommer, 678.812.4078, lora.sommer@atlantajcc.org
Program info: Rabbi Brian Glusman at 678.812.4161, brian.glusman@atlantajcc.org.
Visit online: atlantajcc.829stage.com.
Photos:
Speaker Rabbi Polak, Holocaust Remembrance Day
Besser Memorial Credit: Chris Savas
