The Synagogue Square Memorial for communities that co-existed for centuries in Jurbarkas, western Lithuania, will be unveiled on Friday, the local municipality announced on Tuesday.
The project has been implemented over a course of three years.
"It's a wonderful creation, commemorating the city's history and people who lived here as well as Jurbarkas residents who saved Jews during the war," Jurbarkas Mayor Skirmantas Mockevičius said in a statement.
The project united the Jurbarkas' descendants from Canada, Israel, Russia, Sout Africa, the UK and the United, as well as philanthropists from Lithuania, Germany and Israel.
The place for the memorial was picked by the local municipality, and the monument was created by the Zundelovich family, including sculptor David Zundelovitch, architect Anna Zundelovitch and art director Gregory Zundelovitch, who reside in Israel but have family roots in Jurbarkas.
"We wanted to remind everyone that a community is, first of all, a group of people with their stories and memories. We wanted to underline that all those stories make the story of this place. It has cost us a lot of effort, time and funds, the majority of which has been donated by good people," David Dunzelovitch said.
The memorial was funded by private donations from people all over the world, and also partly funded from the Good Will Foundation. The project's total value stands at 180,000 euros.
The memorial will honor the memory of many Jews who lived in Jurbarkas and the tragic fate of the community. It will be located in Kaunas Street where a wooden synagogues once stood.
It will consist of a number of symbols that will show the historical connection between the Jewish community and the town. Jurbarkas residents who rescued Jews during the war will also be honoured.
