The Catholic-Jewish Dialogue of Collier County (CJD) invites the community to its annual commemorative service of Kristallnacht or “Night of Broken Glass,” which historians consider the beginning of the Holocaust.
The free public event takes place at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, at St. John the Evangelist Parish, 625 111th Ave. N., Naples.
Kristallnacht recounts the attacks on Jewish communities throughout Germany on Nov. 9-10, 1938. The Kristallnacht commemorative event memorializes the six million Jews who were exterminated during the Holocaust.
“The Catholic-Jewish Dialogue of Collier County has collaborated for more than 20 years in search of a deeper understanding of the ties that unite, not divide,” said Ginny Segaloff, chair of the commemoration program. “And while it’s been 86 years since Kristallnacht, the lessons of the Holocaust remain as vital and necessary as ever.”
The guest speaker is John Koenigsberg, who will share his Holocaust survival story. In the spring of 1943, 5-year-old John was brought to the home of Johannes and Anna Snijckers by the Dutch resistance. The Catholic family protected John despite the risk of great personal danger by the occupying Nazis. Koenigsberg was lovingly accepted by “Mama and Papa” Snijckers as their fifth child and was welcomed by the couple’s other four children as their little brother. He attended the same Catholic primary school as the other children and was reunited with his parents at the end of the war.
The CJD is affiliated with Jewish Federation of Greater Naples and the Collier County Parishes of the Diocese of Venice. Its purpose is to engage Catholics and Jews in understanding history and advancing the cause of mutual understanding and appreciation of differences as well as commonalities.
The event, which is marking its return to in-person gatherings after several years as virtual-only, is sponsored by CJD, the Diocese of Venice in Florida, the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, GenShoah of SWFL, and the Holocaust Museum & Janet G. and Harvey D. Cohen Education Center. The host location rotates annually between Jewish temples and community centers and Catholic parishes.
All are welcome, and advance registration is requested at https://jfgn.regfox.com/kristallnacht-2024. A reception will follow the talk.
