Lives honored, stories shared at Holocaust remembrance event

Saturday marked 73 years since prisoners at Auschwitz concentration camp were liberated.

Every year, people around the world come together to remember the horrors of the Holocaust with the International Day of Remembrance.

Sunday, the Gerald Ford chapter of Mensch International Foundation gathered in Palm Springs to honor those who lost their lives and share stories from survivors.

Rickie Taras is one of those child survivors.

“Close to a million and a half children were killed during the Holocaust,” Taras said. “It’s by sheer providence that I’m here, and I intend to speak about this and what hatred does to people. What people do to people. There are very few of us left as long as I can I am going to speak so it doesn’t happen again.”

Many gathered to listen to speakers at Palm Springs High School, who said hate is never okay.

“My whole theme is to stand together and not leave anyone to fight oppression,” Angie Rodriguez Verdin said. “We all need to unite, and together we can get over any barriers.”

“We are incredibly divided, and understanding each other and attempting to make connections beyond what might seem obvious, or what might seem like surface differences to us, is really important for our future,” PSHS Teacher Erin Graham said.

Organizers said in the wake of the current political climate, Sunday’s program was dedicated to the memory of Heather Heyer of Charlottesville, Virginia, and George Zander of Palm Springs.