That the streets surrounding Belsize Square Synagogue had been daubed with antisemitic graffiti mere days before, only made our members and guests more determined to attend their our Kristallnacht service (on Thursday 4 November) to commemorate the November pogroms.
Following the hiatus of 2020 when the second Covid lockdown forced the service online, this year around 100 friends were welcomed in person, with many others able to watch from their homes thanks to the Belsize Square Synagogue live-streaming service.
Among the dignitaries welcomed by AJR chief executive Michael Newman were representatives from the German, Austrian, Slovak and Czech embassies, as well as Her Excellency Tzipi Hotovely, Lord Ian Austin and Sally Sealey, Head of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation.
This was the first AJR commemoration led by newly-appointed Rabbi Gabriel Botnick, who joined the synagogue earlier this year from California. Rabbi Botnick made reference to the recent vandalism in the area ending with the words, ‘Enough! No-one should live in fear.’
AJR member Peter Summerfield, BEM born in 1933, shared his early memories of life in Berlin and explained how his family had been Saved by a Stranger, their caretaker, as depicted in the BBC programme of the same name. The ‘Sommerfeld’ family arrived in the UK as penniless refugees, Peter clutching the only belonging which hadn’t been taken away, his beloved teddy bear. But this didn’t stop both Peter and his twin brother George winning scholarships to study at Oxford university and military medals while carrying out their national service in Egypt. Peter also ended with words of warning: “The Holocaust began with indifference and with racism. We must continue to be vigilant.”
Judith Hayman’s mother and aunt arrived from Austria thanks to a permit arranged by the Quakers, but not all the family were so lucky. Many of her relatives perished in the Lodz ghetto and Judith tells her family story as a speaker for Generation 2 Generation to teach about the dangers of being a bystander and not acting when evil things are happening in society.
AJR members Helen Grunberg and Sue Arnold, who attended in person, said, “Thank you AJR and all those who organized the moving Kristallnacht Service at Belsize Square Synagogue. Also, for arranging the speakers and Ministers and many familiar faces who SO appreciate your organization, and have done for many years. The Tea was ample and beautifully served too. We can’t praise you enough.” While Holocaust educator Caroline Slifkin, who watched online, described the service as “powerful and moving”.
If you missed the service you can catch up here
Images by Adam Soller Corporate Photography © AJR
