Handover of The Oborniki Community Torah Scroll
Julius and Adele Lemchen arrived in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1938, leaving Hitler’s Europe at the urging of their son Dr Georg Lemchen. Dr. Georg Lemchen and wife Dr. Ruth Lemchen had arrived in New Zealand in 1935 with their two small children after Jewish physicians were denied by law to practice medicine under the Third Reich.
Upon his leaving, a Torah was given to Julius by his congregation in Czarnikau, Poland, to bring with him to Wellington. The Torah was gifted to the Beth El congregation of Wellington (Wellington Jewish Community Centre/WJCC). It was in regular use for services until recent years when it was identified as no longer able to be used for services.
Julius’ granddaughter Susi Williams, a member of both the Beth El Congregation (WJCC) and the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand, initiated that the WJCC give the Torah to the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand on long-term loan to use in our educational programmes and to ensure its safe-keeping. This Torah scroll is part of the very little evidence of the existence of the Jewish community of Czarnikau, Poland, a community lost to the Holocaust. It bears silent witness.
On April 4th a very special event took place in Wellington, as the Torah scroll was handed over to the Holocaust Centre for its next journey.
The Holocaust Centre of New Zealand is privileged to have the honour of guardianship of this Torah scroll, to be entrusted to care for it and to share it in line with our strategic priorities to witness, remember, educate and act. We look forward to having it on display and sharing this treasure for Holocaust education and remembrance, with students and visitors.
Thank you to all who came on to the event, to participants Claire Massey for the WJCC, and Sam Hart, for HCNZ Education Director Kris Clancy and HCNZ Chair Deb Hart, to Simon Woolf, to those who made donations towards the preservation of the Torah, and special thanks to the WJCC, Susi Williams (nee Lemchen) and Hannah Templeton (nee Lemchen).
Photography by Woolf
(L - R) HCNZ CEO Gillian Wess, Dr. Susi Williams, HCNZ Education Director Kris Clancy, Hannah Templeton, HCNZ Chair Deb Hart.