The large number of people who came to the service commemorating the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in January 2005 showed that the Holocaust impacted on the lives of many New Zealanders, not just within the Jewish community, but right through New Zealand society. The Holocaust was not just the story of Jewish survivors, it was a New Zealand story that reverberated across generations.

The commemoration was followed by radio and television programmes on the Holocaust, and the few remaining Holocaust survivors fielded many questions about their experiences. It was this interest in the Holocaust that prompted a small group within the Wellington Jewish community to set up the Holocaust Centre.

Two years later the Wellington Holocaust Research and Education Centre was opened on 15 April 2007, with the generous support by the Wellington City Council, the Deckston Trust, the Wellington Jewish Community Centre, and a number of businesses and individuals

The Governor General, Anand Santyanand looks on as Rabbi Dovrat affixes the mezzuzah to the doorpost of the Holocaust Room, 15 April 2005

The aims of the Holocaust Centre were; a) to preserve the memory of the Jewish victims of  Nazi persecution who came to New Zealand, b) to foster Holocaust research; c) to teach the Holocaust.

We are collecting accounts of the experiences of Holocaust survivors and recording interviews with those who are still alive.

We welcome visits by the general public and arrange special programmes for school groups and other interested groups.

We ran seminars for teachers on how to teach the Holocaust and developed a special educational programme on how to teach the Holocaust within the New Zealand school curriculum.

Over the last few years the Holocaust Centre reached out to many who are rediscovering their Holocaust background.

The Holocaust Research and Education Centre is a member of the Diversity Action Programme supported by the Office of the Race Relations Conciliator.