On September 9, descendants of the Jews of Nemenčinė will gather by videoconference to remember a community murdered eighty-five years ago. I will address the commemoration and name what the memorial does not.

On Wednesday, September 9, 2026, descendants, relatives, and friends of the Jews of Nemenčinė will gather by videoconference for the eighty-fifth anniversary commemoration of the destruction of the town’s Jewish community.

Participants have been asked to bring a candle and to join in the recitation of Kaddish. I will speak about the history of the community, its destruction, and the people who carried it out. The account rests on survivor testimony I published in 2022.

The date is significant. The Jews of Nemenčinė were murdered on Saturday, September 20, 1941, corresponding to 28 Elul 5701. It was the final Shabbat of the Jewish year, two days before Rosh Hashanah. The 2026 commemoration falls on 27 Elul, one day before the Hebrew anniversary and eleven days before the civil anniversary.

Before the war, approximately 110 Jewish families lived in Nemenčinė. They maintained a Hebrew elementary school, a Yiddish-Hebrew library, a community bank, a free-loan society, and two study houses. The town also sheltered the Mezritsh yeshiva, led by Rabbi Panitz. Rabbi Gedalye Snapir served as the town’s rabbi.

German forces entered Nemenčinė on June 24, 1941. A Lithuanian civilian administration and police force followed. Jews........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)