Members of Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity and B’nai B’rith International walked Wednesday afternoon for Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day.

The group met at the rock on Front Campus at 12:45 p.m. dressed in all black for a candle lighting that preceded a walk to Risman Plaza. The six candles represented the six million Jewish people who were killed in the Holocaust.

Evan Gildenblatt, sophomore applied conflict management major and Jewish Life chair of Alpha Epsilon Pi, said the fraternity usually plans an activity to honor the day.

“Let this year be the year that we truly make a difference,” Gildenblatt said to a crowd of about 30 at the rock. “Let this year be the year that our pledge of ‘Never Again’ goes fulfilled. The Holocaust was not only a Jewish tragedy, but a human tragedy.”

Gildenblatt said many Holocaust survivors will no longer be able to tell their story, so it is important that this generation keep the memories alive.

“The next generation will not be able to hear the things that we have heard,” he said. “It is therefore our sacred duty to pass those down for the sake of our offspring and for the sake of mankind and the generations to come. May the memories of those who were lost be for a blessing and may they be everlasting.”

Seyera Bavarsky, sophomore architectural studies and Hillel member, said it is necessary to remember this integral part of history.

“We need to know the stories, and we need to know what happened so that we don’t let it happen again,” Bavarsky said. “It is a big part of Jewish history and everyone’s history, so it’s very important for everyone to walk and at least stay educated on the fact it happened.”

Contact Michaela Write at [email protected].