Westport Library Postpones Introduction To The Shoah Memorial Event: UPDATE

From the Westport Library: Due to the likelihood of heavy snow during the day on Sunday, we are postponing the Shoah Memorial event scheduled for Sunday, January 25, at 2 pm. Please check back to The Westport Library website and e-news for the rescheduled date.

WESTPORT, CT — A new Shoah Memorial planned for Fairfield will be the focus of a public program offering an early look at the project and its educational goals, organizers said.

The event, "Fighting Antisemitism and Celebrating Community: An Introduction to the Shoah Memorial," was scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 25, at the Westport Library, but has been postponed (see above). It will include a conversation between Dr. Mindy Hersh and her mother, Judy Hersh, a Holocaust survivor, followed by a moderated panel discussion. Panelists are scheduled to include memorial artist Victoria Milstein; Shelly Krieger, founding educator of the Holocaust Research Center; Holocaust survivor Michell Schell; and Marla Felton of the dialogue-based organization Common Circles.

Organizers say the Shoah Memorial Fairfield project is intended to honor the victims and survivors of the Holocaust while encouraging education and discussion about antisemitism and other forms of hatred.

The project began after Paul Burger, chair of Shoah Memorial Fairfield, Connecticut, attended the unveiling of Milstein’s sculpture She Wouldn’t Take Off Her Boots at LeBauer Park in Greensboro, North Carolina. Burger said he was moved by the work and sought to bring a version of the memorial to Fairfield.

Fairfield University was selected as the site for the memorial. The Jesuit Catholic university is home to the Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies and offers a Judaic Studies program within its College of Arts and Sciences. University officials and project leaders said they view the memorial as a resource for education, reflection and dialogue for students and the wider Connecticut community.

Event Details

Registration and additional information: https://westportlibrary.org/event/fighting-antisemitism-and-celebrating-community-an-introduction-to-the-shoah-memorial/

Speakers

• Paul Burger, Founder and Chairman of the Board, Shoah Memorial Fairfield University Project
• Bill Harmer, Executive Director, The Westport Library
• Dr. Mindy Hersh and Her Mother, Judy Hersh, Holocaust Survivor
• Marla Felton, Founder and Executive Director, Common Circles
• Shelly Kreiger, Founding Educator, the Holocaust Resource Center of Greater Fairfield County
• Victoria Milstein, Artist, She Wouldn’t Take Off Her Boots
• James Naughton, Actor and Advocate
• Michael Schell, Holocaust Survivor
• Lauretta Webb, Executive Director, Shoah Memorial Fairfield University Project
• Rabbi Jeremy Wiederhorn, The Community Synagogue

— Flyer from Shoah Memorial Fairfield and the Westport Library