United Congregation of Israelites of Kingston, Jamaica plants six trees at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus in memory of the Six Million Jews murdered by the Nazis during WWII
(L-R) Eva Pinchas, student of Hillel Academy; Mr Ainsley Henriques, past president of The United Congregation of Israelites (UCI); Michael Matalon, spiritual leader, UCI; Israel Pinchas, president of the UCI and Mickel Hylton, member of the UCI, looks on as Immanuel Knight, student of Hillel Academy and Eva lead the planting of the trees.
February 1, 2021: On Thursday, January 28, 2021, The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus hosted the Tree Planting Ceremony of The United Congregation of Israelites (UCI), where they planted six (6) trees in memory of the 6 million Jews who were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust during World War II.
The Tree Planting Ceremony was led by Mr. Ainsley Henriques, past president of The United Congregation of Israelites, Honorary Consul of Israel in Jamaica, and Vice President of the Commonwealth Jewish Council. Mr. Henriques thanked The UWI Mona for granting the space necessary to mark the special occasion. Speaking on behalf of the Jewish Community, he also thanked the Jamaicans who gave their time and their service for these refugees.
The Gibraltar Camp Site (located on Gibraltar Road, Mona) was created to house the civilian population from the Rock of Gibraltar by the Royal Navy near the beginning of WW2; it became the home for 600 Jews who were saved from the Holocaust who were cared for by Jamaican people during the war. The Camp was also home to children, women, and men past the age of active service to the military authorities in Gibraltar.
On January 28, the Georgian Calendar marked the Holocaust Memorial Day, the anniversary of the liberation of the death camps of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest of the Nazi death camps during World War 2. Coincidentally, on this day, in the Hebrew calendar, it is also Tu B’Shevat, the celebration of the first blossoming of fruit trees. Mr Henriques highlighted the fact that these two days rarely coincide, and so to celebrate both anniversaries, the UCI saw it fit to have the Tree Planting Ceremony and at the most appropriate location, the Mona Campus, at the Old Library on Gibraltar Road, home of the Gibraltar Camp Site.
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