Each year the Albuquerque Jewish community hosts a special event to honor survivors of the Holocaust. This year the event will be held at the Jewish Community Center, 5520 Wyoming Boulevard NE from 2 – 5 pm on Sunday, April 23. Co-sponsors are the Jewish Federation of New Mexico, the New Mexico Holocaust and Intolerance Museum, and the JCC.

Known colloquially in Israel and abroad as Yom HaShoah (יום השואה) and in English as Holocaust Remembrance Day, this day commemorates the approximately six million Jews and five million others who perished in the Holocaust as a result of the actions carried out by Nazi Germany. In Israel, it is a national memorial day and public holiday. Yom HaShoah begins at sundown on Sunday April 23.

The event at the JCC will be one of solidarity with the remaining Holocaust survivors in our community and the rescuers who risked their own lives to help Jews survive. The afternoon will include a candle lighting prayer ceremony, remarks about the role of rescuers, comments from survivors, refreshments and a special performance of “Corrie Remembers.”

“Corrie Remembers” is a powerful one-woman dramatization featuring Susan (‘Susie’) Sandager who takes the stage in tribute to the legendary Dutch Christian Holocaust rescuer, the late Corrie ten Boom. She was a woman who left a special legacy, born out of her experiences in the Dutch Resistance and her nightmare at Ravensbruk concentration camp.

Ten Boom was one of those rare individuals motivated to act because of her beliefs. She and her family helped hundreds of Jews escape the Nazis. While her family perished in Nazi concentration camps, Corrie was released by mistake. She spent the rest of her life speaking to the world about faith, hope, love, forgiveness and reconciliation.

Convincingly attired as the stooped, grey-haired 85-year old Corrie, Sandager recounts her harrowing true story. It is a riveting tale woven with humor, faith and heartbreak – and ultimately a triumph over evil. The play has been performed hundreds of times around the globe, with Susie portraying elder Corrie ten Boom, remembering her younger years. The story presents the simple courage and love that Corrie ten Boom embodied.

Directly following the performance the audience will hear from Andy Holten, who as young Jewish boy in Holland was rescued and hidden by a Christian family who lived near the ten Booms.

Though there is no charge for this afternoon, the JCC would appreciate reservations. Please call Ellen Goldstein at 505-348-4518, visit Member services or www.jccabq.org.

Tags: Holocaust, Yom HaShoah