Submitted by Rabbi Susan Abramson, Temple Shalom Emeth
The towns of Burlington and Bedford are collaborating on the annual Interfaith Holocaust Service at Temple Shalom Emeth, 16 Lexington Street in Burlington, at 7:30 pm on Friday, May 2.
To commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day (Yom Hashoah), the service is designed to memorialize the people who died during World War II, and to ‘never forget.’ Rabbi Susan Abramson of Temple Shalom Emeth said last week that “we keep alive the story of the Holocaust so it will never happen again, and so we can be mindful of how much bigotry and hatred still exist in our world today.”
Robert Trestan, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, will speak on “Anti-Semitism, its dangers if left unchecked and how Anti-Semitism and Racism can impact a community.”
Also speaking will be Joe Hess, a survivor of Kindertransport. Hess was born in Germany in 1932, and was transported to London in 1939, where he was placed with a British family who raised him until he came to America in 1948.
Guests include Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan, State Rep. Ken Gordon (Bedford/Burlington), Bedford Chair of Selectman Margot Fleischman, Bedford Superintendant Jon Sills, Bedford High School Principal Henry Turner, Burlington Town Administrator John Petrin, Bedford Police Chief Robert Bongiorno, Burlington Police Chief Michael Kent and Christine Shruhan, director of the Burlington Community Life Center.
Members of the Interfaith Clergy Associations in Bedford and Burlington will conduct the service with Rabbi Abramson. The temple’s confirmation class will also participate by reading stories about the Holocaust, and lighting candles in memory of Holocaust victims.
The service is co-sponsored by Bedford’s First Parish, Unitarian Universalist; First Church of Christ, Congregational; and St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Burlington co-sponsors include St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, St. Malachy’s Catholic Church, St. Margaret’s Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church, the United Church of Christ and the Hindu community.
The service begins at 7:30 p.m. There will be refreshments following the service. For more information, contact Rabbi Abramson at 781-272-2351 or [email protected] .
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