As Holocaust Memorial Day 2023 approaches, the Board of Deputies has revealed that more than 150 of its Legacy Boards have been delivered to synagogues, Jewish secondary schools, youth groups and communal organisations all over the UK.
The Legacy Boards are intended to serve as a continuing reminder to present and future generations.
In conjunction with the Chief Rabbi and major synagogue and communal organisations, the Board of Deputies, through its Yom HaShoah UK Legacy committee, launched the UK Jewish Community’s “Legacy from the Holocaust” project in 2022. This asks the Jewish community to make three pledges: To Remember – Zachor, To Tell – Haggadah and To Life – L’Chaim.
The symbolic Legacy Boards have been produced and donated to synagogues, Jewish secondary schools, youth groups and communal organisations in the UK. The Legacy Boards are being displayed prominently by each recipient as a visible and continuing symbolic reminder of “our responsibility to pass on this legacy from generation to generation” and to observe Yom Hashoah every year.
Harrogate Synagogue recently received its Legacy Board. Arek Hersh MBE, a survivor of the Holocaust and a synagogue member, said: : “I am delighted that Harrogate shul, together with all synagogues and communal organisations, supports the Legacy Board where it is prominently displayed in the shul hall. It is important that all members and visitors see it clearly so the Holocaust is never forgotten.”
Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl said: “The Holocaust is our greatest tragedy. The Legacy Board project is crucial to ensure that the memory of the Holocaust is observed in every synagogue and communal organisation throughout the country.”
Photo: Deputy for Harrogate Hebrew Congregation Alan Sanders, Arek Hersh with his wife Jean, Roma Cohen (Vice President/Chair of Harrogate Hebrew Congregation) and Bernard Cohen (President of Harrogate Hebrew Congregation) standing in front of the Yom HaShoah Legacy Board at Harrogate Hebrew Congregation.