This summer, CWB reached out to the Wheeling, West Virginia community. The result was the participation of an additional 30 teachers and students on the Poland Seminar, together with teachers and students from Pittsburgh and Columbus. Dr. Jeff Rutherford joined the teachers with a group of his students from Wheeling Jesuit University, adding yet another layer to the trip.
As in the past, the seminar was accompanied by Howard Chandler and his family.Having a survivor with our participants adds a vantage point – experientially and educationally – that cannot be replaced by a lecture in a classroom. The participants were divided into two groups, each on a separate bus with a different scholar. Dr. Gur succeeded in bringing in a top-notch educator – Mark Lazar – to work with the youth, while CWB scholar-in-residence Avi Ben-Hur guided the teachers. Another important addition to the Seminar this year was having Rabbi Beth Jacowitz Chottiner from Temple Shalom (in Wheeling) on board. Rabbi Beth was instrumental in empowering the participants to feel comfortable with Jewish rituals and making accessible – for those who wanted it – spiritual aspects of the trip.
The Seminar started with a visit to the Jewish cemetery in Warsaw and the only surviving pre-war synagogue; Nogyk. One of the highlights of the seminar included our first visit to a special theater program located in Lublin dedicated to remembering the lost Jewish population there. The site was established by local non-Jewish Poles who seek to commemorate the past. In their own words, at the entrance to the site: “Jews who come here ask us: Why do you do this? After all, you are not Jewish. You are Poles and the Jewish town is not your history. Poles ask us, why do you do this? Afterall, you are Poles and the Jewish town is not your history. Or maybe you are Jewish? We explain patiently that it is our common, Polish-Jewish history. To remember the murdered Jews you do not have to be Jewish.”
As always, visiting the Camps leaves an indelible impression on the participants’ souls. In Auschwitz, we were able to spend quality time at a new exhibit hall that was designed by Yad Vashem and only recently opened.
Another powerful experience was the recognition of the murder of 4500 of its Jews that the town of Wierznick-Starochowiche agreed to provide. This came in the wake of more than three years of ongoing negotiations between Howard Chandler (representing the Survivors of his town) and the municipal authorities. Three CWB Poland Seminars witnessed this drama, which finally culminated in the town’s commitment to erect a memorial. This final act actually transpired while we were there.
Margaret Weber, a student, commented how the Jews and other prisoners had their identities taken away and were given numbers. In school, the total number of six million is emphasized, yet “When we are hearing their stories [diary excerpts used by Mark or Howard’s story] it makes them human again. It is very powerful.”
Brian Pohland, a teacher commented, “Those were massive sites we saw and the planning that went into it [Final Solution] makes me want to continue learning so I/We can prevent it.”Rabbi Beth Jacowitz Chottiner said upon her return home that “The study seminar to Poland was educational, emotional and impactful. I believe participants learned not only the history of the Holocaust, but also how important it is to do their part to make our world a better place.”