Twelve Asia Pacific nations honor Holocaust survivors

A pastor from Singapore holds banquet in Jerusalem for 500 survivors, Asian Christians visiting.

By ESTERA WIEJA
flowers (photo credit: Courtesy)
flowers
(photo credit: Courtesy)
In recent years, Pastor George Annadorai from Singapore has faithfully brought Christians from the Asia-Pacific region to Israel every year. But after learning more about the Holocaust from survivors and then visiting Auschwitz, he decided to do something more.
Last month, Annadorai gathered representatives of 12 nations from the Asia Pacific region for a banquet in Jerusalem to honor some 500 Holocaust survivors. The event was coordinated with Leszek David Lazowski of the Helping Hand Coalition and Daily Israel, and was held at Jerusalem’s Ramada Hotel. That evening, Asian Christians not only had the opportunity to learn more about Jewish history, but also to express their love for this misunderstood nation.
“The nations of the East want to support Israel. Coming from Singapore, we know we owe it to the Jews,” said John Tay. “When our country was established, Israel was the only nation to stand with us. Now we can show Israel that they can count on us, too.”
Tay and his wife Ivy shared a table with a couple of survivors from The Ukraine and one from Moscow. Despite the language barrier, they managed to establish a connection. “I respect them so much and want to honor them, if just by enjoying this evening together,” said Ivy Tay.
It was not the first event of its kind for Leszek David Lazowski, president of the HHCoalition, and its general manager Andre Gasiorowski. Their humanitarian organization strives to better the lives of survivors living in Israel. As he shared his life story that evening, Lazowski stressed the importance of caring for those who managed to survive the Nazi genocide. Showing the faces of survivors to the world is publicly stating that we cannot change the past, but we can make a better future for us all – by looking after one another, explained Lazowski.
Eti, a survivor from The Ukraine, said she enjoys such events. She knows that the hosts are Christians, and was impressed with how many countries they represented.
“Slava Bohu” (‘Praise God’ in Ukrainian), exclaimed Eti. “I’m alive and I’m here. People like Andre [Gasiorowski] are a huge blessing to us. He makes our hearts grow, as we say in Ukrainian,” she added cheerfully.
Every survivor received a special gift from their Asian friends; a symbolic picture of friendship depicting hands holding 12 national flowers, arranged in geographical order. The flowers represented the 12 countries at the event, which included Australia, China, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Tahiti.
“The flowers speak loud and clear. We present to you who we are so you know you are not alone,” said Annadorai.
Annadorai said he wants to continue this project in years to come. “This is the first step, and we hope many more will follow,” he assured his Israeli guests. “We want to serve you, so we ask you to open your hearts to us. We will continue to serve you until Yerushalaim becomes a praise in all the Earth.”