From the Auckland Holocaust Memorial Trust…

The Auckland Holocaust Memorial Trust are now just a few short months away from completing the Holocaust Memorial Garden on the corner of Remuera and Ranui Roads, just above the Kosher Deli at the Auckland Jewish Community Centre in Remuera.

The Holocaust Memorial Garden couldn’t be reaching completion at a more important moment for New Zealand and for the world at large.

In the months following Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, antisemitic incidents have increased substantially around the globe and at home, but even before the Israel-Hamas War antisemitism was on an alarming rise.

For all Jews, the resilience and rise of antisemitism engenders fear, pain, sadness, frustration, and intergenerational trauma going back to the Holocaust and beyond.

In New Zealand, antisemitism was highlighted in a 2022 survey by the New Zealand Jewish Council, with 63 per cent of respondents agreeing with at least one antisemitic viewpoint.

The re-emergence of classic antisemitism in our country – particularly during the pandemic and now the Israel-Hamas War – has also led to Holocaust denial and October 7 denial becoming conflated with conspiracy theories and alt-right and far-left politics.

The Holocaust Memorial Garden is an opportunity for New Zealand’s Jewish Community to invite all New Zealanders to stand with us against antisemtism.

There are two main features of the Memorial Garden – the original bronze Memorial sculpture that was on display at the Greys Avenue site, the former home of the AHC, Kadimah School and the Kosher Deli and the cobblestones origination from the Warsaw Ghetto.

The Memorial sculpture has been removed from Greys Ave and is currently being restored and cleaned. It will be mounted on the curved wall in the Memorial Garden.

Along the Memorial Garden’s circular path, we have laid the approximately 200 Warsaw Ghetto cobblestones that were gifted to the AHC some 15 years ago by Auckland War Memorial Museum who in turn received them from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.

Near to the entrance, there is a band of cobblestones laid on the path to resemble a street in the Warsaw Ghetto as well as individual stones placed around the circle leading towards and away from the sculpture wall. These stones are symbolic of the resilience of the Jewish people.

The Auckland Holocaust Memorial Trust, chaired by child Holocaust survivor Bob Narev, has received generous donations from individuals and other Trusts and interested parties from within and without the Jewish community over the past twelve years.

Some of the funds were spent investigating the possibility of the Memorial Garden being built in the Auckland Domain. Since moving to the AJCC site, we’ve used these funds in order to complete some of the work. We are in conversation with a generous donor to support the completion.

We will also soon be reaching out to survivors and second and third generation groups with more information about opportunities to remember loved ones who perished in the Shoah at the site of the Memorial Garden.

And of course we will continue to update the community at large. We look forward to welcoming you into the Holocaust Memorial Garden.

Any assistance appreciated!