Roamer: Jewish siblings escaped from the Holocaust to Ulster farm
This page has recently been featuring Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) and whilst it’s marked annually on 27 January, it’s an ongoing commemoration with numerous events and initiatives before and after that date.
The result of a six-month HMD project goes on display this afternoon at Down Cathedral - an intriguing commemorative candleholder crafted by the Downpatrick Presbyterian Women’s group.
The candleholder is part of the HMD Trust’s ‘80 Candles for 80 Years’ initiative, marking this year’s 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau. The Holocaust is central to HMD, when the world remembers six million murdered Jews.
HMD also commemorates millions more people murdered in the Nazi persecution of other groups and in recent genocides such as in Darfur and in Bosnia 30 years ago.
Downpatrick’s candleholder honours 15-year-old Edith Jacobowitz and her 11-year-old brother Gert, two young Jews from Berlin who fled Nazi persecution on Kindertransport. More trains and several ships later they arrived in Northern Ireland to a hearty greeting from Barney Hurwitz, president of the Belfast Hebrew Congregation. Edith later recalled that Barney “gave us a bear hug and in Yiddish welcomed us to freedom.”
They moved into the Jewish Refugee farm in Millisle, County Down. After visiting the farm the Downpatrick women’s group designed a unique candleholder inspired by what they saw there, like the 1939 Millisle Primary School roll book where they discovered Gert’s name.
They also read excerpts from Edith’s diary, begun at 14 prior to leaving Berlin, recounting her traumatic experiences.
The candleholder, shaped like one of the ships they sailed in, is adorned with painted stones, artwork depicting the farm and its children, and extracts from Edith’s diary. It also incorporates historic documents, suitcases, and relevant words and phrases spelt with Scrabble letters - collectively, a profoundly meaningful tribute.
Cared for by relatives - their parents were in a Nazi prison - Edith’s diary recounts the siblings’ heartbreaking exodus: “The morning of our departure arrived, and so did a letter from my mother...I sat reading it with a kind of numbness which follows a crushed hope. We were not to see our parents again.”
Inscribed on one of the candleholder’s painted stones is this quote from Edith: “There I was with four suitcases and Gert!” Her words resonated deeply with the women’s group, helping them empathise with the children’s harrowing journey and inspiring their heartfelt tribute.
A group-member reflected: “It’s amazing how a small farm in a County Down village could have such a big impact on many children’s lives. Visiting the farm made the whole thing so real and helped me to see Gert’s story in a new light.”
Another said: “Visiting Millisle and learning about the children who had no choice in leaving their families and homes - and no choice in where they were being sent to be ‘safe’ - has made me, a mum of five, understand the enormity of the desperation, fear, and grief those parents must have felt.”
Shirley Lennon, Holocaust Memorial Day Trust Northern Ireland consultant and a member of the group, commented: “It has been especially moving to see how reading Edith's diary entries has impacted the ladies and clearly resonated with them.”
What did the ‘80 Candles for 80 Years’ Project entail?
In May last year the HMD Trust invited communities and schools across the UK to design and create 80 candleholders, each honouring Jews murdered in the Holocaust, or non-Jewish people from other communities targeted and persecuted by the Nazis.
The focus of the project was, and is, a commitment to learning from the past, for a better future, by illuminating the experiences of those affected by one of the darkest chapters of human history. Participants from schools, craft groups, prisons, and faith communities submitted a wide range of creative and thoughtful artwork, expressing their understanding of the Holocaust and its enduring lessons.
The ‘80 Candles for 80 Years’ project was made possible with support from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.
The Downpatrick Presbyterian Women’s candleholder launch is this afternoon at 3pm and the candleholder will remain displayed in Down Cathedral for several weeks for visitors and worshippers to view.
This afternoon’s launch features readings from Edith’s diary, poetry from award-winning poet Linda McKenna, and music. More information about Edith and Gert is on the HMD website’s pages