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KMC members came together at the Ramstein Southside Chapel to attend a Holocaust remembrance event April 20.
“We learn about events like the Holocaust so we don’t repeat mistakes of the past,” said Chaplain (Capt.) Gary Davidson, 86th Airlift Wing rabbi. “The Holocaust forces us to think about deep issues such as good versus evil, justice versus injustice and love versus hatred.
If we internalize the powerful lessons of the Holocaust, we realize that we all have a choice as to how we live our lives and that choice affects not only ourselves but those around us,” he said.
This year’s remembrance event featured a documentary presentation on the history of the Holocaust, a violin performance and closing remarks by Col. Stephen Lambert, 86th Airlift Wing vice commander.
“The Holocaust ended only 67 years ago; it’s recent history,” said Davidson. “It’s so recent that some victims and their tormentors are still alive today.”
For Dr. Eva Iszak Djordjevic, a survivor of the Holocaust, the opportunity to speak at remembrance events was her chance to share her story and teach everyone about the hardship she went through.
“Speaking at events like this gives me the opportunity to teach people about those terrible things we went through,” said Djordjevic. “The young people of today don’t know what happened to us, but I’m here to share my story.”
Djordjevic and other Jewish women were forced to march between 40 and 50 kilometers a day to the Austrian border where they were transported by train to Ravensbrück, a concentration camp 90 kilometers north of Berlin. After having to do hard labor throughout the day, Djordjevic was transferred to Burgau, then eventually Türkheim, two camps away from Dachau. Djordjevic and others from the concentration camps were liberated in 1945. With tears in some audience members’ eyes, Djordjevic was given a standing ovation by the more than 100 service members and families that attended.
“Thank you (Djordjevic) for returning to Germany to share your
moving story with us,” said Lambert at the event. To show appreciation, Djordjevic was presented with a Star of David necklace, and a donation of $360 to the American Holocaust Museum was made in her name.
“While planning the event, I felt it would be successful if it inspired even just one person,” said Davidson. “As I watched the crowd’s teary reaction to Djordjevic’s speech, I could tell that just about everyone was moved by her touching story.”
