This year, Yom HaShoah begins at sunset on Wednesday, April 23 and continues through sunset on Thursday, April 24. All members of the Elon community are invited to join in two powerful moments of remembrance, organized and sponsored by Jewish Life at Elon and Jewish Studies.

Ceremony of Remembrance: The Next Generations

• Sacred Space, Numen Lumen Pavilion
• Thursday, April 24 | 9:50 a.m.–10:20 a.m.

In this moving ceremony, attendees will gather for readings, music, personal reflections and historical context to honor the memory of the victims and the resilience of survivors.

Created and led by Jewish Educator Boaz Avraham-Katz and Associate Professor of History Andrea Sinn, this program reflects on the legacy of the Holocaust and spotlights the bravery of the Righteous Among the Nations—those who risked their lives to save others.

Faculty are encouraged to bring their students to this special event during the Numen Lumen hour.

Reading of the Names

• Front steps of the Moseley Center
• Thursday, April 24 | 11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.

Throughout the afternoon,  the names of Holocaust victims will be read aloud—a tradition observed by communities around the world. This act of remembrance helps preserve their identities, stories, and humanity in the face of historical erasure.

We invite students, faculty, staff and classes to stop by, listen, reflect, or even participate. Every name read is a reminder: behind every number was a person with a name, a family and a story.

This tradition takes its name from the powerful poem “Unto Every Person There is a Name” by Israeli poet Zelda, underscoring the importance of memory in resisting the forces of hate and indifference.

Come together as a campus community to remember, reflect and reaffirm the Elon community’s commitment to justice and human dignity.

Renée was one of thousands of children who were hidden during the Holocaust. In 1941, when she was four years old, Renée was taken in by a Catholic family, with whom she remained for the duration of the war. Her parents were murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp.

Join us as Professor Rich Landesberg engages Renée in conversation. There will be an opportunity for questions following Renée’s talk.

RSVP is required:

Elon has hosted Holocaust survivors annually for more than eight years. Generous funding has enabled Professor Richard Landesberg and his Holocaust Journey course to collaborate with Jewish Life, the Jewish Studies department and the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Live to bring these speakers and their powerful stories to Elon.

The exhibition, simply called “October Seventh,” opens Monday, Oct. 7, at 11 a.m. in the McBride Gathering Space in the Numen Lumen Pavilion. It includes curated works by 25 artists whose creative activity reflects the atrocious times Israeli society has been facing since the Oct. 7 attacks. Some of these artists are still living and some are deceased – either murdered on Oct. 7 or having died during the ongoing war. Others are residents or former residents of the southern areas of Israel who suffered the loss of their loved ones, their homes or whose families were affected by the horrors of the massacre.

The “October Seventh” exhibition is accompanied by a soundtrack by Israeli musicians who were among the first to give voice to the collective grief felt by so many. They performed impromptu concerts for evacuees, families of the hostages in hospitals and at funerals. The exhibition’s soundtrack is comprised of songs heard since Oct. 7. Many are familiar songs that the war has charged with new meaning.

On Oct. 7 at 5 p.m., join community members in the Sacred Space to remember Oct. 7 together. Led by Dara Kurtz P’22 P’25, a contributing author to the anthology “On Being Jewish Now,” the event will feature different voices on campus on how lives have been changed since that day. A reception will follow. can receive a free copy of “On Being Jewish Now,” set to be released on Nov. 1.

The art exhibit will remain open to the Elon community in the McBride Gathering Space through Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 8 p.m.

Every year, the Elon community gathers to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust through the Reading of the Names and a Ceremony of Remembrance, to remind us all of the terrible deeds that can be carried out when bigotry, hatred, and indifference are regarded as normal. “Shoah” is the Hebrew word used to describe the Holocaust, meaning destruction, catastrophe or disaster. Communities and individuals worldwide commemorate Yom HaShoah.

All community members are invited to participate in one or both of the events open to the wider Elon community.

Reading of the Names
The front steps of the Moseley Center
Tuesday, April 18 | 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Reading the Names helps to ensure that the memories of those murdered in the Shoah are never forgotten. This annual tradition emphasizes the depth of loss and will be occurring in communities around the world on this day. We encourage members of the Elon community to participate in this act of remembrance by joining us to listen to the names of just some of the many victims who perished in the Holocaust.

Faculty and staff members are also encouraged to bring their classes and students during this time to witness the readings. Bearing witness to the stories and names of those people who suffered under Nazi brutality is an important reminder of that terrible time, the atrocities committed by the Nazis, and the powerful acts of resistance and efforts to preserve human dignity on the part of victims and survivors.

The Reading of the Names is an important way to memorialize the victims of the Shoah. The name of the ceremony is derived from the poem, “,” written by the poet Ěý(1914–1984).

Commemoration Ceremony of Remembrance: The Next Generations
Sacred Space at the Numen Lumen Pavilion
Thursday April 20 | 9:50 a.m. to 10:20 a.m. 

Join us to mark Yom HaShoah with this powerful and meaningful ceremony, which  brings together readings, songs, stories, and personal reflections in an intimate format designed by Jewish Educator Boaz Avraham-Katz and O’Briant Developing Professor and Associate Professor of History Andrea Sinn.

Elon students, faculty and staff will remember the lives of those who died as a result of the racial purity measures in German-controlled Europe during World War II, to honor those who survived, and to remember their experiences during this dark time. This ceremony, which focuses on the next generations of remembrance, will take place during the time set aside for Numen Lumen, and we ask that you invite your students to be present for this important commemoration.

“To be able to share this story with Elon students is so special to us and so vitally important. This is the last generation to have the opportunity to hear a first-hand account of the Holocaust from a living survivor,” shares Ann Arnold.

Join us as they share Mark’s story of survival and their journey to create a Foundation which helps inspire students through expanding and supporting Holocaust Education.

Due to limited seating, . Ann Arnold’s book about her father’s experience, , will be available for purchase after the event.