A special memorial event dedicated to reflecting on the tragedy of the Holocaust and its significance for shaping students’ identities took place at the Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Jewish Lyceum No. 144, the leading educational institution of the Dnipro Jewish Community.
The initiative to conduct the ceremony was undertaken by the leaders of the student self-government “SLESH.” They prepared and conducted a memorial program that united students and educators around the idea of preserving the names and fates of those whose lives were destroyed by the Nazi regime. The atmosphere of the event was filled with a special silence, which resonated louder and more weightily than the most poignant words.
Students lit memorial candles, which symbolized the light of souls that departed too soon but continue to live in the memory of the Jewish people and all humanity. The entire lyceum bowed their heads in a moment of silence, honoring the memory of six million Jews and millions of other victims of Nazism. This symbolic gesture became for the students not a formality, but an expression of personal involvement and connection to their shared history.
At the lyceum, the theme of memory is always given special attention as an important component of Jewish education, as it concerns not only historical knowledge but also an internal personal experience, the ability to feel the pain of the past as part of one’s own history and responsibility. It is precisely through such events that students form a living connection with the fate of their people, an understanding of the value of human life, and an awareness that preserving memory is a personal mission for each individual.
“For us, the youth, it is important not just to know the facts but also to understand that behind every number there are people, families, unfulfilled dreams, and we light these candles to promise that we will not forget,” noted SLESH activist Nelli Proshchenko. “The fact that we ourselves prepared such an event is very important, because not only teachers but we ourselves are responsible for our spiritual-moral education. We must help ourselves and other lyceum students feel the connection between generations and take responsibility for preserving the memory that shapes the future of the entire Jewish people and our native Dnipro Jewish Community.”
