Report on the ceremony awarding the Righteous medal to Pastor Pierre Gagnier and his wife Hélène
January 18, 2012
Speech by Victor Kuperminc (Delegate of the French Committee for Yad Vashem)
Madam Mayor,
Madam Member of Parliament,
Elected representatives,
Members of the Gagnier family,
Dear friends,
Created by a law of the Israeli Parliament in 1953, the YAD VASHEM memorial, on the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem, aims to perpetuate the memory of the six million Jews who died as martyrs, murdered by the Nazis and their accomplices.
The name Yad Vashem comes from a verse in chapter 56 of the Prophet Isaiah, which says: “And to them will I give in mine house and within my walls a memorial (YAD) and a name (SHEM)” – in Hebrew Yad Vashem (a memorial and a name) – “that shall not be cut off.”
On January 18, 2007, exactly five years ago today, on the initiative of the President of the Republic and of Mrs Simone Veil, the Righteous of France entered the Panthéon. In the crypt where France honours its great men, these words were engraved: “Under the cloak of hatred and darkness that fell over France during the years of occupation, thousands of lights refused to go out. Named Righteous Among the Nations or remaining anonymous, women and men of all backgrounds and all walks of life saved Jews from antisemitic persecution and from the extermination camps. Defying the risks, they embodied the honour of France and its values of justice, tolerance and humanity.”
The mission of the French Committee for Yad Vashem is to honour these RIGHTEOUS AMONG THE NATIONS and to express to them the gratitude of the Jewish people and of the State of Israel. Made up mainly of volunteers, the French Committee examines the files of the Righteous submitted by the people they saved. The decision is taken by an Israeli commission chaired by a Supreme Court judge. The Committee also helps to pass on the history of the Shoah by organising or taking part in seminars, travelling exhibitions and talks in schools and cultural institutions. Finally, the project to create a network of the towns and villages of France that have honoured Righteous Among the Nations will be up and running in 2012.
A plaque bearing the name of the Righteous will be unveiled in the “Garden of the Righteous” on the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem. The name will also be engraved on the wall of the Mémorial de la Shoah in Paris, alongside the names of some 3,400 Righteous of France.
For me, this ceremony is of very special interest. Pierre and Hélène GAGNIER, whom we are honouring today, took part in the rescue of more than 500 Jewish children in the Nice area. A little girl of 9 was one of these children; much later she would become the mother of my children and therefore the grandmother of my grandchildren. This is the story of the Marcel network, which Mrs Andrée Poch-Karsenti, President of our association “Enfants & Amis Abadi”, will now summarise for you.
Thank you for your attention.
Victor Kuperminc
French Committee for Yad Vashem