Apil 16, 2015

27 Nissan 5775

 

Dear Parents,

 

It's hard to believe that a little more than a week ago, we were sitting around our Seder tables recounting the story of the Jews being slaves in Egypt. Three days back at school, and we are once again retelling another dark story in our history. Through music, film, poetry, theatre, prayer, and perhaps most important - first-hand accounts by survivors -our children have been learning all week (and in some cases, all year) about the Holocaust. Today, all their learning culminated in the emotional, and at times, empowering, commemoration of Yom Hashoah.

 

It's not easy to convey all the programming that took place in each of the divisions, but we wanted to share some highlights with you:
 

Lower School

  • Grade 4 students began their day with a moving Tekes with singing and reflection on a history of difficult times and remarkable courage. They then hosted a Holocaust survivor, Toby Levy, whose family was hidden in a barn for two years by a Polish customer of her father's store.
  • Grade 3 watched Hannaleh's Rescue, a video created for young children by Yad Vashem, which focuses on a teacher telling his students the story of a girl and her family's escape from the ghetto.
  • Grade 2 heard the story The Tattooed Torah by Marvell Ginsburg, which is a true story of the rescue and restoration of a small Torah from Brno, Czechoslovakia. 

Middle School

  • The entire Middle School attended an assembly that included singing by the choir, a tefillah for all the lives lost, and a candle-lighting ceremony ("Linking the Shoah") where six students gave a brief description of the life of a child who was killed in Holocaust, and lit a candle in his or her memory.
  • Grade 8 hosted Holocaust survivor, Rabbi Jacob Jungreis, whose family had become part of the group that was sent to Bergen-Belsen and ransomed to the Jewish-American community in December 1944 for $5 million.
  • Grades 7 and 8 saw the moving play, "From the Fires" performed by the Theatre Three company.
  • Grade 6 saw excerpts of the movie Paper Clips, about the children of the Whitwell, TN Middle School who tried to collect 6 million paper clips representing the 6 million Jews killed by the Nazis. The program was moderated by co-producer, parent, and alumnus, Matthew Hiltzik '90.
  • Grade 5 learned about the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon z"l, whose mother and grandmother were survivors of Aushwitz. On his mission to space, Ilan brought a miniature Torah scroll that was given to him by a survivor of Bergen Belsen.

Upper School

  • All students attended a school-wide assembly that was run by the seniors who shared profound experiences from their Senior Journey to Germany, Poland, and Israel. The program was divided into four parts (Life in Poland and Germany before WWII; Extermination by the Nazis; Resistance; and Aftermath=Israel). The presentations were enhanced by performances by the Choir, Chamber Chorus, and a soloist who sang in Yiddish.
  • Juniors visited the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
  • Sophomores participated in the memorial candle-lighting program, "Linking the Shoah."
  • Freshmen and Sophomores hosted three Holocaust survivors, Mrs. Rosa Strygler, Mr. Ezra Berkowitz, and Mrs. Rachel Roth.

Click here to see some photos of the students throughout the day.
 

May we always remember the Holocaust and be inspired from the stories of courage, kindness, resilience, and gratitude.

 

We look forward to commemorating Yom HaZikaron and celebrating Yom Ha'atzmaut next week.

 

The Ramaz Administration 
 

The Ramaz School