Jewish Community Partners

“The children of Holocaust survivors are collectively referred to as the Second Generation. Not since the biblical flood and the start of a new world with Noah had there been a second counting of generations. Our parents’ entire world was destroyed, and with us they had to begin anew.”

Anna Salton Eisen, author and daughter of Holocaust survivors, writes these powerful words in the introduction to her memoir “Pillar of Salt: A Daughter’s Life in the Shadow of the Holocaust.” She’ll be delivering the keynote address at this year’s 63^rd Annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration, “Echoes of Liberation: Intergenerational Implications,” hosted by the Memphis Jewish Federation on April 23.

Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, serves as a crucial moment for communities worldwide to honor the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust. This year, the annual event will explore intergenerational responsibility and resilience through the lens of Anna Salton Eisen’s family’s story.

The daughter of two Holocaust survivors, Eisen never heard her parents speak about the horrors they endured in Europe as children – until she accidentally discovered two watercolor paintings by her father depicting his brutal experiences and embarked on a journey as an adult to finally break their silence.

“I had never heard my father speak about the Holocaust before,” she said. “It always seemed like something forbidden to talk about in my childhood. But I think he was waiting to be asked.”

As the first generation of Holocaust survivors grows smaller, Eisen’s presence at the event brings a unique and powerful dimension to the commemoration. In addition to “Pillar of Salt,” Eisen co-authored her father’s Holocaust memoir, “The 23rd Psalm: A Holocaust Memoir” and has been featured in numerous major news outlets, including CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Fox News.

Eisen, a founding member of Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, was already a prominent Holocaust education speaker when her synagogue was targeted by a terrorist in a hostage crisis in January 2022. In the years since, Eisen has spoken repeatedly to media and her audiences about the importance of Holocaust awareness in light of rising anti-Semitism.

“The Holocaust and antisemitism used to be history, but now they are current events,” she said.

The theme of “Echoes of Liberation: Intergenerational Implications” highlights the ongoing relevance of Holocaust remembrance in today’s world. Eisen’s presentation will focus on the ways that the experiences of survivors continue to resonate through their children and grandchildren, shaping their identities and perspectives. She will discuss the responsibilities of subsequent generations to carry the torch of remembrance and to combat the rising tides of antisemitism and hate.

Eisen’s perspective will address the complex questions of how to honor the past while building a future free from prejudice. She brings a message of hope and resilience, emphasizing the importance of education, empathy, and dialogue in fostering a more just and compassionate world.

In addition to Eisen’s keynote, the Commemoration will also feature an original Holocaust musical selection performed by violinist Diane Zelickman Cohen and clarinetist Rena Feller, written by Dr. Stanley Friedman; Rabbi Cantor David Julian of Or Chadash Conservative Synagogue leading the national anthem with the Fourth Generation Choir; greetings and personal message by Co-Chairs Harry and Michelle Diament, survivors and second generation survivors lighting memorial candles, featuring Shoshana Cenker and her children reading the biographies of those who perished; prayers by Rabbi Micah Greenstein of Temple Israel and Cantor Ricky Kampf of Baron Hirsch Congregation with second generation survivors leading the community memorial Kaddish; Rabbi Sarit Horwitz of Beth Sholom Synagogue delivering the closing benediction; and all clergy leading the Hatikvah joining with Memphians who served in the IDF.

The Memphis Jewish Federation’s Yom HaShoah Commemoration is a crucial opportunity for the community to come together in solidarity and remembrance. It provides a space for reflection, education, and a collective commitment to ensuring that the lessons of the Holocaust are never forgotten.

Pre-registration is required to attend the Yom HaShoah Commemoration. Location will be provided upon registration. To register, visit jcpmemphis.org/yomhashoah.