International Holocaust Day 2016 — Association of Jews of Vilna and vicinity in Israel

On International Holocaust Day, the 27^th of January, 2016,  a memorial service for the Jewish soldiers of the Lithuanian 16^th division was held at Bet Vilna in Tel Aviv.

The Association of Jews from Vilna and Vicinity in Israel, some of whom are sons and daughters of the division fighters, chose to perpetuate their memory on International Holocaust Day. During the evening, they spoke of the division and its Jewish soldiers, some of whom came from Vilna. The fighters (both male and female) recalled the work of the division including descriptions of the terrible battle at Alexeyevka and the letters they had written. The event was held jointly with the seafaring vessels unit of the Navy that the Association of Jews from Vilna and Vicinity had adopted. For the past five years soldiers from the Navy have been participating in events and listening to the stories and memoirs.

There was also an unveiling ceremony for a memorial corner at Bet Vilna for naval soldiers who were killed in battle. The project was the brainchild of members of the Association; it was conceived, designed and constructed by the creative artist of the shipyard Leonid Sklair and the indefatigable Major Sivan Rom who does the utmost to develop and foster the reciprocal connection. Colonel Shmulik Shahak, Head of Seafaring Vessels of the Navy and Colonel Dudu Yosef –Commander of the Naval Shipyards were totally committed to all the stages of the project. In conjunction with the members of the Association, Dr. Aharon Einat, Zeev Leviatan and Hannah and Aharon Shiloh, the representatives of the Navy brought to Bet Vilna a monument for the perpetuation of the memory of the soldiers in the Navy who died on active service for their country and its values. The unusual artistic design of the monument symbolizes the uniqueness of the strong connection between the Navy unit and the heritage of the Vilna community that was annihilated during the Holocaust and its descendants; it will remain a presence in our activities forever and a day!

An exhibition paying tribute to the valiant fighters of the 16^th division who fought the Nazis was displayed at the event; it was set up by Hannah Shiloh from the Association and Dr. Carol Hoffman.

At the end of the evening, one of the commanders of the unit told the story of the sinking of the Dakar, an Israel naval submarine (whose doctor, Dr, Shabi Maor, who was born in Vilna, also perished) and the efforts to find it. This was accompanied by a documentary film about the engineering research of the submarine's sinking.

Panu Derech (Clear the Way) –the anthem of the Prisoners of Zion (1942-1956)- was written by Yehezkel Fullerwitz (Shabi Maor's father). Nehama Lifshitz sings accompanied by the IDF orchestra conducted by Yitzhak Graziani.