In honor of the Holocaust Memorial and Remembrance Day, Yom Hashoah, the Wesleyan Jewish Community, led students, faculty, and staff in remembering the atrocities that occurred over 60 years ago. The program included a memorial service, words offered by a survivor, and a day-long reading of names of those who perished during the Holocaust.

“It’s important to remember that we made a promise not to forget [about the Holocaust] so it won’t happen again,” said Eli Allen ’09, who organized much of the program. “I think the name readings were very important because six million Jews, 11 million people in general, were killed during the Holocaust. You can’t grasp that number. People don’t realize how big that is, and when you read the names, it makes it more real.”

Volunteers sat outside of the Campus Center from 11 p.m. on Monday until 11 p.m. on Tuesday reading from a list of names of Jewish people who died in Concentration Camps.

Alex Salzberg ’08 said he feels a strong connection to the Holocaust, as his grandfather and uncle are both survivors. He read from 3:30 a.m. until 4 a.m.

“I think that the 24-hour name reading is a good idea,” Salzberg said. “I think it gives a vague sense of the sheer quantity of people who were killed. As I was reading the names, I noticed eight people from the same family, and I read pages from the same town. It was overwhelming to see that many people from one area.”

Roman Catholic Chaplain Father Louis Manzo read from 10 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday morning.

“There have been recently some people denying the Holocaust, that it even happened, and I think in that present contemporary context, it’s important to come forth and participate,” Manzo said. “People of every faith and persuasion must stand up against any kind of abuse even if it’s not against them […] It’s important for every faith group to show compassion.”

Students gathered in front of the reading during lunchtime on Tuesday, but as it began to rain later in the day, the numbers watching waned.

Lillian Siegel ’08 explained that the name-reading ceremony comes from a poem entitled “Unto Every Person There is a Name” by Israeli poet Zelda.

“[Her poem stresses] the importance of remembering not to get lost in numbers but understand there are specific names,” Siegel said. “In reading the list, you can see the mother, father, daughter, their ages, their hometowns…the purpose is to show magnitude, but also detail.”

At the memorial service on Monday evening, participants lit 12 candles: six in honor of the six million Jews who died, five to represent the other five million persecuted minorities who perished, and one for other victims of genocide.

“There have been genocides and attempted genocides since the Holocaust, and I think that if we remember the ones that have happened, we have a better chance to prevent things in the future,” Salzberg said.

Survivor Joe Korzenik spoke about his experiences in several concentration camps in Poland and Romania. He discussed his hardships and the tactics he used to stay alive.

Holocaust Memorial and Remembrance Day occurs every year on the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The University’s commemoration program started in 1989.