MetroWest Holocaust Education Program

“Thinking about something is relatively useless, but doing something about it determines who and what you are.” – a dedicated Holocaust Council volunteer

Sixty years after the Holocaust, when many survivors are aging or have passed away, it is imperative that its lessons are taught to our children and grandchildren and passed to future generations. Teaching the Holocaust is not only a mandate in New Jersey; it is an imperative that Judaism places upon us and a significant responsibility given the recent increase in worldwide anti-Semitism.

The Holocaust Council of MetroWest is recognized throughout the country as an innovator of effective ways to teach the Holocaust to children, educators and the general public. Through its programs and special events, all of the lessons of the Holocaust are directly related to the modern world. Students, teachers and community members are taught the value of standing up and speaking out in the face of prejudice and injustice. They are taught the value of their individual voice and vote. And they are taught by the example of survivors, liberators, and POWs that human beings can overcome the most difficult of obstacles to lead full, productive lives.

Some of the Holocaust Council’s recent accomplishments include:

• From Memory to History: an exhibit of photo montages, historical Artifacts, video interviews and photos of survivors, liberators, and POWs viewed by approximately 5,000 students and 3,000 additional community members last year.
• Adopt-A-Survivor: a program in which junior high and high school students research the Holocaust and are paired with a survivor, with whom they meet at least three times. Students pledge to tell the story of their survivor and of the Holocaust at a public forum in the year 2045.
• Twinning with a Survivor: B’nei Mitzvot students include their survivor’s story in their dvar Ttrah and share the experience of their Bar or Bat Mitzvah with their twin.
• Council of Holocaust Educators (CHE) and Generations of the Shoah International (GSI): programs fostered along with periodic teacher conferences to facilitate the effective teaching of the Holocaust and broaden knowledge of this tragedy everywhere.

To learn more, contact the Holocaust Council at or (973) 929-3066.