When most Holocaust survivors are no longer with us or because of their extreme age they can hardly engage in Holocaust remembrance, the task in recent years has shifted mainly to the second generation, the children of the survivors, who did not experience the Holocaust itself, but suffered the trauma of their parents.
Thus, Efrat Hagalili (58), a second-generation Holocaust survivor, a resident of Kochav Yair, feels that she must take action to commemorate the Holocaust and the 43 members of her family who perished.
On Holocaust Day two years ago, when the state was under Corona closure, it decided to light six soul candles in memory of the six million murdered by the Nazis, and to write on each of them the name of one of her murdered family members.
Citizens who sent Efrat the six candles they lit in their homes,
"This is something that came out of me," said Galili.
"Two years ago, Holocaust memorial ceremonies were forbidden because of the corona. And I had a strong feeling that something had to be done, that it was impossible to go through Holocaust Day just by watching television. The Holocaust, to spread the light of memory. "
She said, "We live on a street where people pass. I wanted people to see the candles on Holocaust Day. On one of the candles I wrote the name of my grandfather, and on four other candles I wrote the names of other family members who perished. On the sixth candle we wrote the name of a perished person we do not know. And we found it on the "Name and Candle" website. "
Galili photographed the candles and sent the photo to her friends.
Last year she repeated the custom, and this year she has already shared with her friends the “Mothers with Essence” community in the locality where she lives, and many of her friends have also lit soul candles and written names of perished on them.
"Soon only a second generation of the Holocaust will remain here to continue the memory,"
"My parents went through the Holocaust as children. My father, Joseph, was born in Hungary, and many of his family members perished in the Holocaust. When he was 16, he immigrated to Israel on the illegal immigrant ship Exodus. My mother, Leah, was born in northeastern Romania and deported when she was 5 years old.
Her father died, and she and her mother immigrated to Israel together.
My parents were sent to Kibbutz Kfar Masaryk, where they met and got married, "she said." For all those years, they did not talk about the Holocaust.
My mother, who died at the age of 54, never talked about the Holocaust, and even when I was in tenth grade writing an essay she prevented my father from telling me what had happened to them, and I was able to extract only three or four sentences about each of them.
It was because they both came to Israel very young, and really wanted to become Israelis as soon as possible. "
She said, "Only as an adult could I understand how the Holocaust was present at home. How my mother wanted to swallow the world, to have time, to do, to sing, to dance, to paint. And my father who was a total family man. He passed away four years ago, at the age of 86, on Independence Day. "The 70th anniversary of the State of Israel. Not a week earlier, on Holocaust Day. It was another victory of his," she said.
Galili says that she is very excited about the fact that many people send her photos of the candles that were lit on Holocaust Day.
"It excites me very much to see everyone put out the candles outside, on the street, or in a dream facing the street. It's such a simple and easy act to do.
I believe anyone can connect to it.
The idea is to spread the light of memory, and anyone can do it.
Even those who do not have a family who perished in the Holocaust can find the names of anonymous victims and write their names on the candles.
I was glad everyone would do it.
It's a small idea, but very substantial. "
Were we wrong?
Fixed!
If you found an error in the article, we'll be happy for you to share it with us
