Ohio Holocaust Commission to Commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day at Statehouse
COLUMBUS, OH — The Ohio Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission (OHGMEC) will host a poignant commemoration for International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Monday, January 27, 2025, at the Ohio Statehouse. The event, scheduled from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the largest Nazi death camp, where over 1.1 million Jews were murdered.
Andrea Brookover, Executive Director of the Commission, emphasized the importance of the day, stating, “It is crucial for us to honor those we have lost and to honor the lives of the survivors, many of whom made Ohio their home in the years after the war. It is our mission to ensure the memory of the victims live on through remembrance and education.”
The ceremony will include the participation of Holocaust survivor families and a candle lighting ceremony led by OHGMEC Commissioner Robbie Friedman, whose grandparents survived the Holocaust. Reflecting on his family’s legacy, Friedman shared a powerful message from his grandmother: “Survivors don’t need to remember. We spend our lives trying to forget. It’s YOU who needs to remember for us.”
Key speakers will include Major General Deborah Ashenhurst (U.S. Army, retired), Director of the Ohio Department of Veteran Services and OHGMEC Commissioner, and Dr. Barry Jackisch, Associate Professor of History and Philip Markowicz Endowed Professor of Judaism and Jewish Biblical Studies at the University of Toledo. Both will offer historical and educational perspectives on Auschwitz's liberation and the broader significance of Holocaust remembrance.
In addition to the Statehouse commemoration, the Maltz Museum in Beachwood will host its annual Holocaust remembrance event on Sunday, January 26. The program, organized by the Friends of the Maltz Museum, includes a screening of the documentary Lost Town and a discussion with Dr. Katya Oicherman. Topics will include Czech Memorial Torah Scrolls looted by the Nazis and the Holocaust-inspired textile art of Judith Weinshall Liberman. The in-person event requires registration, with tickets priced at $5 for general admission and free for members.
The Statehouse ceremony will conclude with a solemn procession to the Ohio Holocaust and Liberators Memorial on the Statehouse grounds. Attendees will lay stones in memory of the six million Jews who perished during the Holocaust, a Jewish tradition symbolizing the permanence of memory and legacy.
The program at the Statehouse will also be livestreamed on the Ohio Channel, allowing a broader audience to participate in this day of reflection and commitment to remembrance.
