The
Mayor of Peterborough, Councillor Paula Thacker MBE, will lead
civic dignitaries and members of the community in an act of
remembrance for Holocaust Memorial Day on Thursday 26
January 2012.
The 30-minute service in St John's Square will
include the blessing of a new temporary Holocaust memorial, which
will remain in place until there is a permanent memorial. The stone
has been provided and paid for by Set in Stone in Bourne,
Lincolnshire.
Prior to the service at 11.45am, St John
Fisher Catholic High School pupils will perform street theatre at
the Guildhall in Cathedral Square, followed by Jack Hunt School's
clarinet ensemble performing 'We Are Here' by Rosalie Gerut.
The Mayor's procession will leave the Town
Hall at 11.50am and make its way to St John's Square where there
will be a ceremony lead by the Mayor at 12noon. Chuck Salamon
representing the Hebrew Congregation will read ‘What Is Man?’, a
selection of verses from various Psalms, as the Mayor's procession
arrives.
The service will begin with prayers from Canon
Gordon Steele of St John's Church, followed by readings and
contributions from Brian Gascoyne of the Millfield and New England
Regeneration Partnership, King's School pupils Molly Feely and Emma
Ward, Sukaina Manji representing the Muslim community, Dr Dennis
Guttmann of the Liberal Jewish Community and Joy Childs on behalf
of Survivors Fund (SURF). Elisabeth Walker will read a poem by
Lotte Kramer entitled 'On Shutting the Door'.
Following the readings the temporary Holocaust
Memorial will be dedicated by Canon Gordon Steele. The memorial is
a rectangular granite stone with an inscription (see notes to
editors). The service will conclude with the laying of a wreath at
the memorial.
After the ceremony refreshments will be served
in St John's Church. Pupils from St John Fisher Catholic High
School, Ormiston Bushfield Academy, The Deepings School and
Stanground College will also present an hour-long drama
performance. The event is free and will start at 12.45pm.
An exhibition providing a unique perspective
on the Holocaust will be on display in St John’s Church, which will
be open to the public following the service and at other advertised
times that week.
Mayor Councillor Thacker MBE said: "Holocaust
Memorial Day is an important date in the city's calendar. The
events taking place in Peterborough city centre will give us all a
chance to remember the victims of the Holocaust and other
genocides. We must never forget these atrocities and the people
that died as part of them.
"I am also pleased that we have been able to
provide a temporary Holocaust memorial. It is only right that we
have a memorial in this city which is a lasting reminder of the
victims of the Holocaust and other genocides.
"I would also like to say a huge thank you to
Lorraine Cunningham of Set In Stone in Bourne who has provided the
memorial stone, met all the costs, and will install it for us in St
John's Square."
Holocaust Memorial Day was established in
memory of victims of Nazi persecution. However, the
commemoration provides an opportunity to remember victims of other
genocides, such as those in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Kosovo and
Darfur. The theme from the Holocaust Memorial Trust for 2012 is
Speak Up, Speak Out.
Ends.
Additional information:
The wording of the Holocaust memorial was
decided by members of the Peterborough Holocaust Memorial Group and
is as follows:
Holocaust Memorial
Remembering those who perished in the
Holocaust in Europe 1939 - 1945 and subsequent episodes of genocide
and racial intolerance, including India 1947 - 1949, Cambodia 1975
- 1979,
Bosnia 1992 - 1995, Rwanda 1994, Darfur
2004,
It shames humanity
NO MORE!