Mennonite Memorial 2009

On Saturday, October 10, 2009, the International Memorial Committee for the Former Soviet Union, in association with the city of Zaporizhia, will unveil a monument "To Mennonite Victims of Tribulation, Stalinist Terror and Religious Oppression."

Commemorating the tragedy that swept away a third of all Mennonites in the Soviet Union and tore apart families and communities is at the heart of the Committee's mission since it was founded ten years ago.

In its design and location, the memorial has three complementary objectives:

1. To honour the memory of all Mennonite victims of discrimination and terror in the Former Soviet Union through a permanent memorial in the one-time Mennonite village of Upper Khortitsa;
2. To acknowledge the faith and relationships that comforted and sustained many throughout this horrific ordeal;
3. To share the story with a larger audience, including families of victims and people around the world. It is a call for the elimination of conditions that trigger similar tragedies today.
   

The monument will be located on the main square of the one-time Mennonite village of Khortitsa, centre of the first settlement of Mennonites in tsarist Russia.

The weekend of October 9-11 will include:

• The opening of a special exhibit in Zaporizhia's main museum
• Unveiling the monument in an existing park un Upper Khortitsa village, now in the Lenin District of the City of Zaporizhia. The memorial is designed by Paul Epp, Professor of Art & Design, Ontario University College of Art and Design.
  
• A naming by descendents of those who perished and a lighting of candles in their memory
• A worship service with Mennonites, Ukrainians and international visitors four continents
• A public concert

The registration fee for the weekend is $150 US. Passengers on the Mennonite Heritage Cruise have the fee incuded in their tour package. Information on the Heritage Cruise can be obtained at: http://home.ica.net/~walterunger/2009.html

Donations to the memorial can be made to the Mennonite Historical Society of British Columbia or the Center for Mennonite Brethren Studies, Fresno, California.