Dignitaries set to mark Holocaust Memorial Day

Chorley will mark its Holocaust Memorial Day on Saturday, January 23, with people from different faiths and cultures invited to take part in a special service.

Holocaust Memorial Day, on January 27, is a national event in the UK dedicated to the remembrance of the victims of the Holocaust. It was first held in January 2001 and has been on the same date every year since.

The chosen date is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp by the Soviet Union in 1945.

The theme this year is ‘Don’t Stand By’, as the Holocaust and subsequent genocides took place because people allowed persecution to take root by doing nothing.

Councillor Peter Wilson, deputy leader of Chorley Council, said: “Holocaust Memorial Day is held every year to remember all the victims of the Holocaust, genocide and other atrocities across the world.

“It is important we keep the memory alive so that we can help build tolerance and understanding of different faiths and cultures. Learning from the past can help us create a safer better future.”

The service will be held at the cenotaph in Astley Park. Anyone who would like to attend is asked to meet at Astley Park gates, Park Road, at 10.45am.

Kinga Gray-Grzeczynska, director of the Holocaust Memorial Service, said: “The ceremony in Chorley has always been well supported in the past and I hope it will be again this year as everyone, whatever their faith and culture, is invited to join us in remembering the victims of the Holocaust and acts of genocide or victims of terrorism.”