FAIRFIELD — World War II U.S. Army veteran Alan Moskin, who served in the 71st Infantry Division led by General George Patton and participated in the liberation of a Nazi death camp, will be featured speaker at the Town of Fairfield 36th Annual Holocaust Commemoration, to be held Wednesday, May 15, 7:30 p.m., at First Church Congregational, 148 Beach Road in Fairfield. The commemoration is co-chaired by Fairfield resident George Markley and Father Charles Allen, Fairfield University chaplain and special assistant to the University president.

Born in 1926 in Englewood, New Jersey, Moskin will share his dramatic experiences engaged in combat in France, Germany and Austria, and will talk about the bigotry and racism he witnessed as a young soldier. He will also tell his haunting, first-hand story of the liberation on May 4, 1945 of Gunskirchen, a subcamp of the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp in Austria. 

A graduate of New York University School of Law, Moskin is a resident of Nanuet, New York. He has spoken all across the country to thousands of students and adults since he first began sharing his story more than 20 years ago. He is also featured in the Discovery Channel documentary “Liberation Heroes: Last Eyewitnesses” which premiered on May 1. 

In addition to Moskin’s address, the commemoration will feature the Chamber Singers of the Fairfield County Children’s Choir and the Chamber Orchestra of Fairfield Ludlowe High School. Holocaust survivors and their families will take part in a candle-lighting ceremony to honor the memories of the millions of Jews and non-Jews who died at the hands of the Nazi regime during the Holocaust.

Admission to the Holocaust Commemoration is free and open to the public. A reception will follow the program.