Members and friends of our shul can expect to find yellow candles delivered to their mailboxes or doorsteps in early April. Once again, our shul is planning to participate in the Yellow Candle Project, a global program to commemorate the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust. Men’s Club president Tom Byrne, coordinator of the shul’s participation, met with his team for a packing party on March 26 to ready the candles for delivery. Included in each package is a yellow candle and also a card with the name, age, date and place of death of a child who perished in the Holocaust, he said.

The Yellow Candle Project is a communal memorial to Jewish Holocaust victims on Yom HaShoah. For many participants, the glow of the candles “broadens understanding of the Holocaust in the safe space of our own homes,” Tom Byrne said, noting that many participants share images of their lighted candles on social media, creating a collective memorial.

This year’s observance will be held on Monday, April 17, at 7:30 p.m., when we will gather on Zoom to light our candles together. This year, our shul has invited the North Fork Reform Synagogue to join our congregation in a shared observance.

Although the candles are distributed without charge, recipients can make a charitable contribution to the shul, designated for an educational project at Greenport High School. Contributions will finance a bus to transport students to the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City. It is hoped that this program will provide young people with a deeper understanding of the events that led to the Holocaust and the tragic aftermath of intolerance.