Holocaust victims remembered at Kidderminster ceremony

The event took place on Sunday at the Holocaust memorial outside St Mary’s and All Saints Church.

Ex-servicemen and women, civic dignitaries, including the Mayors of Kidderminster, Bewdley and Stourport, representatives of Wyre Forest’s faith communities as well as school pupils were among more than 100 people to attend.

Wyre Forest District Council chief executive Ian Miller read the Holocaust pledge, followed by speeches from Honorary Polish Consul for West Midlands Fran Oborski and Wyre Forest MP Mark Garnier.

A speech was also made by Sarah Cobon, whose grandmother came to the UK in spring, 1939 with Kindertransport - a rescue mission which brought Jewish children to Britain from Nazi Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland before the Second World War broke out.

Mr Garnier said: “Events like this are getting more and more important because as the days and years go by we have fewer and fewer people left who survived these atrocities and these are memories and lessons which we must never forget.

“I spoke about my experience of visiting Auschwitz with a number of school kids and about the impression it left on me visiting a place where 1.1 million people were left to die.”

King Charles I School head boy Daniel Brennan and head girl Rachael Stone laid a wreath on behalf of child victims of the Holocaust.

Mrs Oborski said the event was getting bigger and bigger each year.

“I think it is absolutely wonderful to see the community coming together to commemorate the Holocaust and to keep alive the memory of those atrocities in the hope all humankind can learn from them,” she added.

“I was really pleased to see so many people there and, hopefully, it will go from strength to strength.”

Standards were carried by Polish ex-combatants, the Royal Naval Association, representatives of the Mercia Regiment and the Cadets as well as ex-servicemen and women.

The event marked the 68th anniversary of the liberation of Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau.