28-01-2025
Families of survivors urge education on Holocaust Remembrance Day
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Relatives of Holocaust survivors, state leaders, and other community members gathered at the Ohio Statehouse on Monday to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The day is commemorated on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the deadliest concentration camp, with 2025 marking the 80th anniversary.
'It's a poignant memorable day for me and it's full of emotion and his whole family was murdered there, he was the only survivor. It's not an easy day,' Debbi Sugarman said.
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Sugarman's father Morrish Dach survived the Holocaust after spending more than two years in Auschwitz.
'We can't forget the 6 million Jews and almost 5 million other marginalized communities,' Sugarman said. 'I'm not going to forget my family. I'm not going to let my father down so it's very important to me.'
Sugarman's father, who died about 20 years ago, would often speak to others about his experiences. Now, Sugarman does to make sure people never forget what happened.
Monday's commemoration, organized by the Ohio Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission (OHGMEC), started inside the statehouse, then ended at the Holocaust memorial outside.
'I was thinking how we're all complaining about the cold and how 80 years ago today, my dad was on a death march in the forest after surviving over two years in Auschwitz,' Sugarman said. 'I have an employee today that told me he didn't know what the holocaust was and he's in his 20s and had never learned about it, so that makes it even more important to me.'
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As time passes, more and more survivors are not alive to tell their own stories, so there is a focus on keeping their stories alive.
'The world must know and we gather to tell the stories like Debbi's father's story and so many countless others that every time I hear one of the stories, I am in awe of the strength and the will that so many people were able to find to survive,' Congregation Beth Tikvah Rabbi Rick Kellner said.
OHGMEC is planning other events around the state for later this year.
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