People invited to pause and reflect to mark Holocaust Memorial Day 2024

Chesterfield Equality and Diversity Forum and Chesterfield Borough Council are joining forces to host the event – which will focus on the national theme of the ‘fragility of freedom’ – on Friday 26 January from 10am to 11.45am.

Melanie Martin from Holocaust charity, Generation 2 Generation, will be welcomed as this year’s speaker. Melanie will talk on behalf of her mother, Tootje (Cato) Granaat, and the experiences she had as a Jew who was born in Amsterdam in 1926.

Life in occupied Amsterdam, resistance activities, deportation, death marches, Auschwitz-Birkenau and Sobibor are amongst the hard-hitting subjects which will be covered in her talk, as well as some acts of supreme kindness which contributed to the survival of Melanie’s mother, her aunts and uncle.

A Holocaust Memorial Day Book of Remembrance will be available for people to sign as part of the local activities to mark the day. This will be available in the Town Hall Reception area from Monday 15 January until Friday 2 February, and an online version is also available.

Councillor Judy Staton, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for governance, said: “Holocaust Memorial Day is an important opportunity for people across our community to pause, reflect and commit to working together to create a safer future.

“We are grateful to welcome our guest speaker, Melanie Martin, and are thankful to her for telling her mother’s poignant story and answering questions which people may have.”

The virtual event will be hosted on Microsoft Teams. It is open to all and is free to attend, but places must be booked in advance – to book a place please email policyteam@chesterfield.gov.uk