WESTOVER AIR RESERVE BASE, Mass. -- The Airman and Family Readiness Center hosted guest speaker Rabbi James Greene in the wing headquarters building as part of an annual commemoration called “Days of Remembrance: Learning from the Holocaust,” from April 8-15.
Congress established Holocaust Days of Remembrance as an annual commemoration of the Holocaust. It normally coincides with the commemoration of Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day, and runs through the following Sunday.
Rabbi Greene is the Assistant Executive Director of the Springfield Jewish Community Center and the son of a retired Air Force officer. As part of a military family, Greene spent time at Ramstein AB, Germany, where his father led Jewish worship services, so leading the ceremony at Westover was particularly special for Rabbi Greene.
During the ceremony at Westover, Greene recited poetry from Holocaust survivors, chanted a song devoted to victims and shared his personal experience of how the tragic events during World War II left an indelible mark on the collective Jewish memory.
Yom Hashoah, was established by the Israeli parliament and is observed by the Jewish communities around the globe on the 27th day of the month of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar.
Despite the solemn tone of this worldwide commemoration, Yom Hashoah, like the entire story of the Jewish people, is a story of hope “where the good guys ultimately win,” said Greene.