Voices Spring 2023

VoiCes Remembering the past, inspiring the future.

Spring 2023 The magazine of Melbourne Holocaust Museum

MHM BOARD Co-Presidents

Sue Hampel OAM

Michael Debinski OAM Vice-President

Simon Szwarc Treasurer

Richard Michaels Secretary

Mary Slade Board Directors

Abram Goldberg OAM

Helen Mahemoff OAM

Prof. George Braitberg AM

Melanie Raleigh Natalie Siegel

Dr Natalie Bassat

Karen Katz

MHM FOUNDATION Chairperson Trustees

MHM STAFF

Helen Mahemoff OAM Allen Brostek Jeffrey Mahemoff AO Joey Borensztajn AM Nina Bassat AM Phil Lewis

Cover: Tram permit card permitting travel in carriages designated for Jews, issued to Zelda Goldszwarc, Warsaw, July 1942. MHM Collection, donated by Halina Cukierman.

The Melbourne Holocaust Museum (MHM) exists to amplify the voices of Holocaust survivors as a catalyst for greater understanding and acceptance of difference, to inspire a better future.

From the

Presidents

In this issue

03. From the Presidents 04. Editor’s note Jayne Josem Navrutti Gupta 05. Farewell Pauline ORGANISATION SUPPORT 06. Creating a museum with meaning Head of Operations Gary Pianko Administration & Facilities 10. Working with Thylacine Operations and Facilities Coordinator Georgina Alexander 12. Not just a Hollywood name Projects Officer Daniel Feldman Receptionist Luke Martin 14. Preserving memory through artefacts Receptionist Manda Rozen-Flannery Receptionist Tegan Anderson 16. Lodz boys reunite after 80 years Finance 18. Transcendent reunions: Finance & Cyber Security Manager Roy John Graduate Accountant Minoli Fernando The Czestochowa Synagogue model People & Culture 20. Anniversary of the Eichmann trial People & Culture Manager Anna Berhang Survivor Welfare Officer Rae Silverstein 22. Creating relevancy at the Holocaust Museum Audio-Visual 24. Building our future with the generosity Manager of Audio Visual & Digital Storytelling Robbie Simons Digital Production Specialist (consultant) Sean Meltzer of our supporters Visitor Experiences 25. Gifts in Will Senior Visitor Experience Officer Charlotte Hooper Visitor Experience Assistant Eva Zeleznikow 26. Uncovering rare documents ENGAGEMENT & PHILANTHROPY 28. Miriam Lederman Head of Engagement & Philanthropy Aviva Weinberg Communications & Marketing Specialist Meg Hibbert A Child Survivor of the Holocaust Fundraising Coordinator Margot Holt Events Coordinator Maya Feder 30. Meet Karel Fracapane PROGRAMMING & EXHIBITON 32. Sala’s Story Head of Programming & Exhibiton Dr Breann Fallon 34. To honour and remember Education Manager of 5-12 Education, Tracey Collie 36. They don’t want to remember, Curriculum & Programs Manager of Adult Education & Academic Simon Holloway we don’t want to forget Pedagogy Specialist Lisa Phillips Education Officer Fanny Hoffman 37. In Memory of Gary Gray Education Officer Melanie Attar Education Officer Soo Isaacs 42. Yiddish OFFICE OF THE CEO Chief Executive Officer Executive Assistant

Education Administrator

Sue Hampel OAM & Michael Debinski OAM MHM Co-Presidents

Sarah Virgo-Bennett

Collections & Curatorial Melbourne Holocaust Museum Manager of Collections & Research Anna Hirsh Senior Curator Sandy Saxon PO Box 1018, Elsternwick VIC 3185 Librarian & Information Manager Julia Reichstein T: (03) 9528 1985 Creative Director for Multimedia (consultant) Arek Dybel Collections Assistant Alice McInnes mhm.org.au Curatorial Assistant Fiona Kelmann VOICES Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in Voices are those of the authors and do not necessarily Editor Lina Leibovich reflect those of the magazine editor or editorial committee. While this magazine welcomes ideas, Yiddish Editor Alex Dafner articles, photos, poetry and letters, it reserves the right to accept or reject material. There is no Graphic Design Jacqui Klass automatic acceptance of submissions.

The expansion of this Holocaust centre should go on a more professional basis... I believe it’s just the beginning. We [should] establish a highly professional organisation with people who have the skills to understand how to run a Holocaust centre in the future, that there be an educational [...] centre and some younger people to take it over within the next 10 to 20 years. They have to run it for a different generation, for Melbourne people... and they will do it in the best interests of the community and Holocaust memory.

These prophetic words from Bono Weiner z”l were inspiring in the 1990s. This is the legacy we at MHM have inherited.

There is a buzz of excitement in the air. With our Hidden

Pauline remains on the board and in celebration of Pauline’s

and core exhibition completed, we are set to open to the

extraordinary contribution to MHM, she was made a Life

public shortly.

Governor. We welcome Michael Debinski OAM as copresident, and three new additions to our board: Natalie

In June, Sue attended the IHRA plenary in Dubrovnik, where

Bassat and Karen Katz as new directors as well as co-opted

Professor Yehuda Bauer was farewelled. World leaders

director Natalie Siegel – all will bring knowledge, expertise

sent messages of gratitude and admiration, underlining the

and energy to the board.

impact of Professor Bauer’s work.

It has been an extraordinary journey from a small grassroots Mazal Tov to Board Director Elly Brooks OAM for receiving a

volunteer run organisation to the professional institute

well-deserved Medal of the Order of Australia in the King’s

we present today. This is a result of our dedicated board

Birthday Awards. Elly is stepping down from her role on the

directors; CEO Jayne Josem and her team; the fundraising

board and we are so grateful for her tireless work at MHM.

efforts of Helen Mahemoff OAM with support of the MHM Foundation and government and communal assistance.

We say thank you to Pauline Rockman OAM as she steps

This has enabled us to achieve what our founder Bono

down from the co-president role. She has been an integral

outlined in his vision. Now more than ever our relevance is

part of the MHM for close to 30 years. Thanks to her

critical, as is your continued support.

leadership, the museum is positioned for exciting growth.

Chag Sameach, Sue and Mike

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Feature

Lina Leibovich

Editor’s note This edition of Voices focuses on survivor artefacts, showcasing Andy Factor OAM and Paul Grinwald’s remarkable stories of survival, and the artefacts that will be displayed in the MHM’s new permanent exhibition spaces. We feature interviews with our passionate team who worked tirelessly to bring the new museum concepts to life.

We are excited to share a feature on Holocaust survivor Chaim Sztajer’s model of the Treblinka extermination camp - a key artefact within the new core exhibition Everybody Had a Name. We also bring you a highlight from our Yom HaShoah evening where student and poet Ezra Faigenbaum delivered a moving poem that deeply touched the audience.

We would like to thank Pauline Rockman OAM for

We express our extreme gratitude to Pauline Rockman OAM as she steps down from the co-President role, a significant part of her almost 30 years volunteering at MHM. In early 1994 Pauline joined the museum as a volunteer in the testimonies department.

In 2006 Pauline became co-president alongside Shmuel Rosenkranz.

She then went on to become president in 2007 until 2015, when Sue Hampel OAM joined her as co-president.

Congratulations Pauline Pauline’s passion was driven by her mission to keep alive the memory of the Holocaust and amplify the voices of survivors.

MHM Co-President Sue Hampel OAM

The first woman to serve on the MHM Board, Pauline’s contributions to the community were publicly acknowledged in 2010 when she was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM). She continued her service by representing Australia at the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) and she was an influential advocate for March of the Living Australia, building awareness and public support for this important initiative.

Pauline has ensured that the legacy bequeathed by those survivors – who, decades ago, created the memorial that we now know as the MHM – will continue to be passed on to future generations and the. Commenting on her vision for the museum in 2014, Pauline said: “I see the JHC [MHM] as a significant player within the wider…landscape…the lessons of the Holocaust are so timely – lessons about the dangers of unchecked hatred,

her invaluable contribution to the MHM for the last

the power of personal responsibility and the consequences

30 years. Her vision and leadership has helped to

of indifference. But… we, the second, third and fourth

bring the museum to a world-class standard.

generation[s] are the links that preserve the past, but also join the past to the present and the future.”

We hope you enjoy this edition of Voices and we look forward to opening our doors to welcome you back very soon.

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Right: Sue Hampel OAM, Jayne Josem and Pauline Rockman OAM. Photographed by Jon Moss.

With much gratitude we are thrilled to acknowledge Pauline’s tireless work with the honour of becoming the fourth Life Governor of the MHM. In true trailblazing spirit, she will also be the first woman to hold this important distinction.

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by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

Creating a

museum with

meaning Not many will be aware of the intricacies involved in bringing a

MHM staff have been working tirelessly on creating not one, but two, new exhibition spaces: our core exhibition Everybody Had a Name and our youthfocused exhibition Hidden: Seven Children Saved.

Jayne Josem Role: MHM CEO & Lead Curator Exhibition: Everybody Had a Name

Role: Senior Curator How does the new core exhibition differ

Exhibition: Everybody Had a Name

from the previous?

The new exhibition continues to be chronological – starting

What sets this exhibition apart from other

with life before and ending in Australia. The main difference

Holocaust museums?

is that we have expanded pre- and post-war life as powerful

Walking through Everybody Had a Name will be an

bookends to this difficult story. This provides visitors with

immersive experience for the visitor as they journey through

a greater understanding of who the Jewish people were

the different themes of the exhibition. Running parallel to the

before the Holocaust – exploring both their similarities to the

main narrative – a history of the Holocaust – are personal

wider community as well as their distinctiveness.

stories of our Melbourne survivors told through their objects and testimonies. Through a multimedia overlay, visitors

museum exhibition to life. From conceptualisation phases, artefact procurement, and importantly, working closely with survivors

We decided to start and end with the image of one survivor:

can follow ‘in the footsteps’ of individual survivors as they

and their families to create an authentic experience, it truly is a

Tuvia Lipson z”l. Every week he would ask students

traverse the exhibition, and gain insights into their personal

momentous undertaking.

“what does six million mean to you?” As part of his answer

experiences at each stage of the war. The exhibition also

he would say “everybody had a name, nobody had a grave”.

celebrates the tenacity and achievements of survivors who

Everybody Had a Name is an exploration of the Jewish experience

He taught the students to go from abstract numbers and

ultimately made Melbourne their home.

of the Holocaust, commencing with pre-war Jewish life, and

think about the impact on one person. This exhibition starts

concluding with how survivors rebuilt their lives in Melbourne.

with an image of 12 year old Tuvia from before the war,

The exhibition facilitates reflection. Visitors are asked to

and ends with a video of him taken not long before he

consider questions about the nature of prejudice, what

Hidden: Seven Children Saved is an innovative exhibition

passed away. As he looks out across the bay, the viewer

it means to be a bystander, and how understanding the

designed to provide children aged 10 – 14 years old with a safe

is invited to consider the events from one person’s

events of the past can inform our actions today and

and meaningful interaction with the Holocaust, by following the

perspective: a survivor who lost his family but rebuilt a

into the future.

experiences of one of seven child survivors who were in hiding

life far away in Melbourne.

Like many Holocaust exhibitions, Everybody Had a Name

during the war.

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Sandy Saxon

Our ending provokes thoughts about the difficulty of

is also a memorial to those who were murdered. However,

With MHM staff dedicating themselves to these thought-

re-establishing lives in the wake of the Holocaust, a

its uniqueness lies in its specificity, presenting the

provoking, museum spaces over the past four years, they were

challenge that is enduring. It celebrates the successes

experiences of the Melbourne survivor community closely

thrilled to share their insights into the development process.

while acknowledging the trauma.

connected to our museum.

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Arek Dybel Role: Creative Director of Multimedia

Lisa Phillips

Exhibition: Everybody Had a Name

Role: Curator and Education Specialist Exhibition: Hidden: Seven Children Saved

Fiona Kelmann

How has technology been used throughout the exhibition

Role: Assistant Curator

to enhance the user experience?

Jennifer Levitt-Maxwell

What impact do you hope this exhibition

Exhibition: Everybody Had a Name

My general approach to the use of technology in museum

Role: Lead Curator and Creative Director

will have on students?

contexts is that technology should be invisible. The story

Exhibition: Hidden: Seven Children Saved

With this interactive exhibition, we hope students will come

Can you please share an element of the exhibition that you

and the relation to the object should always be the main

connected with while working on the project?

focus. Within this exhibition, technology has been used

Why was it important to create interactive personal

Honestly, I connected with the entire exhibition. I know

as a tool to elevate engagement with the stories.

experiences within the exhibition?

With such a difficult topic to communicate to younger

When we designed Hidden, and we were thinking about

audiences, we used our Learning Framework – developed

Our Czestochowa room explores the work of artist Perec

transformative learning experiences, we started by placing

and conceived by the MHM and finalised in partnership

Willenberg and his unique synagogue ceiling polychromy,

the learner at the centre. Understanding that we all learn

with the University of Melbourne – to explore the concept

One significant new installation that really speaks to me

which tells us of the rich culture of Jewish life in Europe

differently, we looked at how we can apply lots of different

of choices, and how we can all make an impact in

is the “Desperate Letters” multimedia station. It features

before the Holocaust. Having only fragmented traces of

learning styles within the exhibit, whether it’s audio, visual,

people’s lives.

original, handwritten (some typed) correspondence, of

survivors’ memories and limited visual materials from the

interactive or otherwise.

three separate families that manage to leave Europe, by

period, the team was able to recreate an imagination of

“the skin of their teeth”, prior to World War Two.

the ceiling as an artwork. Digital media technology allowed

One of the major things that we looked at when developing

lessons of the Holocaust, with key character strengths and

us to reveal the ceiling’s deep symbolic meaning and

a transformative learning experience, is linking back to

ultimately, it engages our students and visitors to take action

The letters, of a highly personal nature, between emigres,

build a connection to the narrative which would not be

people’s prior knowledge. For example, in the “pre-war”

in their own lives.

and their relatives trapped in Europe, tragically impart the

possible otherwise.

section of the exhibit, there is a photo of Holocaust survivor

that everyone will feel the same, no matter what level of knowledge they have.

powerlessness of European Jews against incremental

away looking at the light in the Holocaust.

The MHM Learning Framework brings together the

Sonia Kempler on her first day of school, standing next to

Within the museum, we explore those people who

persecutory policies of the Nazis. They beckon us to

A well-developed narrative and artistry focusing on survivor

her brother, Heini. We exhibited that photo, knowing that

made choices and helped those seven children – seven

question the passivity of the world, and its callous,

stories and related artefacts will always overshadow any

most students, and visitors, can relate to that relationship

survivors – to survive the Holocaust. We aim for students

xenophobic refugee policies. These themes reverberate

technology. The benchmark of a good quality experience is

with a sibling or, the experience of their first day of school.

to come away with the knowledge that the choices they

in our own world today. The sudden cessation of

when technology remains unnoticed and compliments the

Using these narratives in the exhibition, allows our visitors

make can have a positive impact on other people’s lives.

correspondence is haunting. A final explanatory paragraph

sole power of the MHM Collection, which is embedded into

to make strong personal connections from the beginning,

Empowering students with this message will provide them

in the museum voice details the fate of those who

a good narrative context, and ultimately, stays forever in the

which then encourages empathy to build and supports

with the agency to know they can do good things in

remained behind.

visitor’s memory.

positive action.

the world.

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9

by Lina Leibovich The sensitivities surrounding the content required meticulous attention to detail, from the macro to the micro level. Careful consideration was given to architectural forms, colour palettes, display of sensitive collection objects both in form and meaning.

Senior Creative Designer, Lucy Bannyan

Thylacine project team.

Top: Lis Cherry, Lucy Bannyan, Shaun Kirby.

Bottom: Laila Christie, Josie Parkes, Melinda Rolfe.

Working with

Thylacine

The MHM curatorial team engaged with interpretive design specialists Thylacine to develop the new core exhibition Everybody Had a Name.

Thylacine chose to elevate certain

hiding place for escapees, glimpses

items (e.g. paper and textiles) housed

storylines as three-dimensional

to freedom for the imprisoned and the

in an almost continuous horizontal

installations, “offering moments

way atrocities were hidden from view

ledge along the perimeter walls where

of atmospheric interest, beauty or

by the perpetrators.

visitors can dig deep into the content in an intimate way.

constraint”. Some examples include: Lucy explains “The main concept Gallery 2: Rights Removed

throughout the exhibition is to remind

The emotional impact of the exhibition

The November Pogrom of 1938 or

visitors of the lives lost. Fibre optic

was a major consideration for the

Kristallnacht is represented as a

points arranged in a Star of David

Thylacine team, and communicating

smashed glass monolith in the centre

diminish in number as visitors move

the traumatic content to visitors

of the space to focus visitors’ attention

through the space, representing the

affectively posed a challenge that

on the start of the atrocities.

six million Jewish lives lost.”

they addressed alongside our team of Holocaust experts.

Our curatorial team drew upon the

that physically and personally connect

Making it a reality required project

Gallery 3: Freedoms Lost

The team were faced with some

MHM Collection of over 12,000

them to the space. The team boasts

management and coordination of

Subtle manipulation of the exhibition

challenges in terms of the limited size

We hope to take the audience on an

historical artefacts and 1300 survivor

an impressive list of clientele including

the construction of all aspects of

gallery space to restrict in size,

and restricted shape of the gallery.

emotional journey, one of empathy

testimonies, and worked with Thylacine

the Western Australian Museum, the

the exhibition fit out, working with

represents the restrictions on life as

Lucy explains that the “exhibition

with Holocaust survivors and their

to develop the interpretive methods,

National Archives of Australia, and Arts

specialists and contractors to ensure

freedoms were lost.

design uses the perimeter of the

stories. Starting with the quality of

and thematic and physical structure

Centre Melbourne.

all the bespoke elements of the design

space to create a rich ‘mosaic’ of

life before the war and gradually

were made to strict specifications. An

Gallery 4: Life Unworthy of Life, and

information, objects and experience

descending into disbelief, fear, horror,

Thylacine Senior Creative Designer

important part of this process was the

Gallery 5: Liberation

as visitors flow through the exhibition

and devastating loss during the

Lucy Bannyan describes the MHM

development of a tailored exhibition

A birch “forest” made of birch tree

from start to end in one direction.”

Holocaust, then emerging into the

With over 20 years’ experience in

project as a real “team effort” as her

graphic style guide that the Thylacine

trunks was installed to represent a

interpretive design, Thylacine had

colleagues and the MHM team

team created to assist the MHM in

They created the design works at two

new life with the message that this

a wealth of experience in making

worked closely together to bring these

preparing and selecting text and

levels; the experiential, that surrounds

was real and must never be allowed

museum exhibitions “accessible” to

survivor stories to life through every

images for the exhibition.

visitors; and the detailed – stories,

to happen again.

all visitors through interpretive displays

phase of the project.

words, images and smaller collection

of the exhibition space, to create a powerful visitor experience.

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light of hope, empowerment, and

– Lucy Bannyan

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by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

The Factors flee Nazi Germany

people related to us, out of Germany.”

A pioneer of cosmetics –

Andy Factor was born in Plauen,

- Andy Factor.

including foundation creams,

Germany in 1924. He was nine years

false eyelashes, and compact

old when the Nazis came to power

When the situation became more

powder – Maksymilian

in 1933.

severe in Germany following

Faktorowicz (Max Factor)

Melbourne Holocaust survivor Andy Factor holds a business card for his relative Max Factor.

Photographed by Jon Moss.

Kristallnacht, Max’s son, Davis,

became a household name in

When the antisemitic laws were

organised for these provisions to be

Hollywood when his business,

introduced in Germany, he

distributed to family members to leave

Max Factor, was established in

experienced isolation and humiliation.

Germany for Australia immediately.

1909. Though his vocation of

During this period of persecution, Andy

Davis believed Australia would afford

“beautifying” the stars on the big

was attacked by a German student at

his family members the opportunity

screen is well known, what may

school one day and was forced to fight

to build a new life, far away from the

be lesser known to the public,

back. The next day, the German boy

impending war in Europe.

is the part he played in saving

was given several strikes with a cane

the lives of Jewish people living

for being “beaten by a Jew,” indicating

“My father was released from

in Nazi Germany prior to the

to Andy just how severe the situation

Buchenwald and received news that

outbreak of World War Two.

had become in Germany.

Davis Factor had secured visas for France. So, we left within two weeks.”

Not just a

Hollywood name

My father was released from Buchenwald and received news that Davis Factor had secured visas for France. So, we left within two weeks.

Maksymilian Faktorowicz (Max Factor) was born in Zdunska near Lodz, Poland in 1872. While working as a cosmetics expert within the Tsar’s palace in Russia in the early 20th century, Max witnessed the escalation of revolutionary sentiment fueling antisemitism among the population. Max was forced to flee. He obtained a visa and, at age 30, immigrated to America. He soon became a prominent figure in the Hollywood scene. Among his first clients were Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton.

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Our new core exhibition,

The day after Kristallnacht (“The Night

Everybody Had a Name,

of Broken Glass”) in 1938, Andy and his

Andy and his family obtained visas

will explore Max Factor’s

father, Chiel, were arrested. Andy was

to France, where they lived for

contribution to saving Jewish

released after a week, but his father

several months during which time

lives in the lead up to the war,

was sent to Buchenwald concentration

the war broke out. They arrived in

and feature one of his historic

camp, where he remained for six

Australia in 1940.

business cards (1938), which

weeks, until he was released.

his great, great nephew and

Today, Andy shares the story of his

Holocaust survivor Andy Factor

His release was secured through

escape from Nazi Germany with

OAM loaned to the museum for

Andy’s great great uncle, Max Factor.

students and visitors to the MHM to

the permanent display.

Max Factor died in 1936, some three

remind them of the importance of

years before the beginning of World

being a good person for people

War Two. With a concern for the rising

in need.

antisemitism and growing tensions in Europe, Max had the foresight to make

“Davis Factor acted on the instructions

provisions in his Will to support his

of Max Factor before he died, to help

relatives who were desperate to

any of our families who were stuck in

leave Germany.

Europe, who wanted to get out. He did bring out quite a number of our close,

“Before he died, he put a note in his

and even distant family members, to

Will that he would like money reserved,

Australia. There are some good people

and every effort should be made to

that go to any lengths to save people

get people, Jewish people, and Jewish

and be kind to them.”

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On his sixth birthday, his aunt Chana Milechman

An emotional discovery

gifted him a cutlery set – a fork, knife and spoon –

Paul was certain his treasured cutlery had

engraved with his initials. He still remembers the day

been lost during the war.

by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

Their memory will live together with that cutlery.

clearly – his aunt and her children were all present at the luncheon.

In 1978 when Paul’s mother Malka passed away, Paul’s wife Sarah and his sister Suzanne emptied his

“I loved it [the cutlery set], I used to eat with it all the

parents’ apartment. “My wife brought home a box

time until I was nine years old.”

of odd cutlery which she put under the sink and forgot about.”

In 1942 Paul and his family made the difficult decision to flee their apartment in Paris and cross the

In 1993 Sarah re-discovered the box under the sink

demarcation line to Vichy France.

and “found the two items [spoon and fork] which were totally black. She polished them up and found

“When I was nine years old, we had to leave Paris in a

my initials on them.”

hurry. We were told to leave everything behind, we were not to take anything with us, because we would

“I was sure that I had left them in Paris in 1942. And yet,

be crawling under barbed wire for quite a while, and

there they were. I got most emotional about it, and

we did not want to be weighed down by anything.”

I treasured them until I decided to give them to the Melbourne Holocaust Museum.”

Preserving

memory

through artefacts

Paul left his possessions behind in Paris, including the cutlery set that he had received from his aunt.

Paul was overcome with emotion because this cutlery set is not just a cutlery set to him - it is a

He treasured the cutlery, but knowing they

symbol. It serves as a memorial to “my aunty and

would weigh them down, he left them behind.

her children, who were gassed in Auschwitz. Their

Or so he thought.

memory will live together with that cutlery.”

For approximately one year, Paul and his sister

Although Paul found it difficult to part with his

Suzanne were placed on a farm in France where

cutlery, he was “honoured” to donate the set to the

they worked, pretending to be Christians. When the

MHM to ensure that his family’s memory would live

money their parents supplied the farmers to care for

on through every visitor who walked through the

them ran out, they went into hiding with their parents

museum doors. When asked what he hopes people

until liberation.

will take away from viewing the cutlery within our Hidden: Seven Children Saved exhibition, he said:

After the war, Paul found out that his aunt and

Holocaust survivor Paul Grinwald was born in Paris, France in 1933, to a traditional family who observed Jewish holidays. Paul attended kindergarten in Paris from age three and went to government schools later. He loved school and was an avid reader.

14

her children were murdered in the gas chambers

“I think it will make them aware of the Holocaust, and

of Auschwitz.

of artefacts that relate to the Holocaust; not only the dramatic side of it, but the hopeful side of it, of the

The family moved back to Paris for a brief period

people, and the things that have survived.”

before immigrating to Australia in November 1946.

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80

by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

Lodz boys

reunite after

years

Class of students in the Lodz Ghetto dated October 1941. Wolf is sitting fifth from the right in the front row. Marian is sitting second from the right in the front row. Of the students pictured, it is believed that Marian and Wolf are the only ones still alive today. Students within the class were the “cream of pre-war Jewish students in Lodz”.

Connecting long-lost friends Wolf and Marian were connected through the Marek Edelman Dialogue Centre in Lodz — an institution dealing with the history of the city, with an emphasis on Jewish Lodz. Wolf’s son, John, contacted the centre’s director, Joanna Podolska.

While corresponding, Joanna sent John a photograph of a class of students in the Lodz Ghetto dated October 1941, in hopes the family could identify Wolf. Sure enough, there he was, sitting in the front row with his knees crossed, staring nonchalantly into the camera.

Wolf could identify several of his classmates within the photo, including Marian who was sitting in the same row. Joanna was delighted to share with the family that Marian was still alive and living in Warsaw, and she could put the pair in contact.

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In July 2021, at the height of the COVID 19 pandemic, the Deane family – Holocaust survivor Wolf and his wife Asya – sat in their home in Camberwell (joined online by their son John and daughter Leanne) eagerly awaiting a Zoom call. But this was not just any Zoom call – this was a reunion, a reunion of survivors: Wolf Deane (Walek Fabiszewicz) and Marian Turski (Mayer Turbowicz).

Wolf and Marian attended the same high school in the Lodz Ghetto until October 1941 when the school was shut down.

As the Zoom call lit up Wolf’s computer screen and Marian’s face appeared, Wolf’s anticipation turned to delight as he and Marian reminisced, in Polish, on the days spent at school and the lives they had led in the 80 years since they had spoken. Until they were reconnected, they each believed they were the only one alive from their classmates.

Wolf Deane on Zoom call with Marian Turski and Joanna Podolska, 2021.

Wolf Deane’s Holocaust experiences

Wolf was deported with his parents

construction of the previous Jewish

Wolf was 13 years old when the

and extended family to Auschwitz-

Holocaust Centre building, and

German army invaded Poland. In

Birkenau, arriving on 20 August 1944.

sharing his message with visitors to

March 1940 Wolf’s family was forced to move into the Lodz Ghetto.

the museum.

“With the movement of his thumb, the SS officer separated men from

“The horrors and suffering that I

Life was difficult in the ghetto,

women and children. This was the

experienced in my youth made

however, Wolf and his friends were

last time I saw my mother, who,

me realise that family, love and

still able to attend school.

together with my aunt Chana Fayga

affection are the most important

and her young son Shmulik, were

things in life. We should cherish and

Immediately after the ghetto was

sent straight to the gas chambers.”

appreciate this every day. People in

formed, some teachers from pre-war

– Wolf Deane.

society should be more tolerant and

Jewish schools organised a high school in the ghetto.

understanding.”

Wolf and his father remained at Auschwitz until they were eventually

Being recognised in the

The school was referred to as “Ghetto

selected to work in a factory near

Lodz Survivor Garden

High School”. Wolf said “one of the

Braunschweig. On 5 March 1945

In 2021 Wolf was recognised with

advantages of being at school was

Wolf’s father died from typhoid

a ceremonial tree planting at the

that we got additional food – a bowl

and exhaustion.

Survivor Garden in Lodz.

Weeks later, Wolf was taken on

As the family were not able to attend,

The school closed when the Nazis

a death march to Wattenstadt.

Marian received the certificate of

commanded all “able-bodied” Jews

From there, he was transported to

appreciation on Wolf’s behalf.

in the ghetto into forced labour to

Wobbelin, where he was liberated on

produce materials for their war effort.

2 May 1945.

of soup and a ration of bread”.

A tree within the Lodz Garden serves as a physical dedication to the

On 18 August 1944 it was announced

Wolf immigrated to Australia in 1955.

Fabiszewicz/Deane family history and

Lodz Ghetto would be liquidated. Wolf

He married Asya in 1961. They have

represents the enduring inspiration

sustained permanent hearing loss

two children and four grandchildren.

Wolf has passed on to younger

when he was hit with a metal club by

Wolf has been involved at the MHM

generations, to build a brighter future.

one of the German soldiers facilitating

for many decades, contributing his

the liquidation.

expertise and time advising on the 17

Transcendent reunions:

The Czestochowa Synagogue model

by Dr Anna Hirsh Manager of Collections & Research

Feature

Chaim Sztajer and grandson with model, MHM Collection.

Image courtesy of Malka Zylbersztajn.

Our new permanent exhibition, Everybody Had a Name, features two significant models created by Holocaust survivor Chaim Sztajer z”l in the mid-1980s, exemplifying a duality of individual and collective memory.

In the absence of a camera, Sztajer’s models represent his 3D manifestations of destroyed sites of memory. They also represent the extremes of Jewish experiences. One model is of the Treblinka extermination camp, where over 925,000 people were murdered, and the other is of the Old Synagogue of Czestochowa, a site of celebrations and divine ritual. Embedded with Sztajer’s memories and emotions, the models invite the viewer to project their own personal responses, transforming the space into a communal site of memory.

18

Feature

The Czestochowa Old

between the Czestochowa

of the ceiling layout as a

and Bronka Fajgenblat

Synagogue model located

Synagogue and the death

guide, I recreated a version

and recently donated by

in The World that Was gallery

camp. His father was

of the synagogue ceiling.

their sons Mark and Len,

space, depicts Jewish life

renowned artist, Professor

The initial concept was

features as the sole original

in pre-war Europe, while the

Perec Willenberg, who

to merely colourise the

artefact in this space. The

Treblinka model dominates

redesigned the interior

drawing, but I quickly felt this

parochet’s metallic threads

the Life Unworthy of Life

of the Old Czestochowa

lacked many of Willenberg’s

and lustrous silk shimmer in

gallery. This reunion of

Synagogue in the 1920s.

wondrous details. I began a

the low light: necessary for

the two models provides

Perec added magnificent

reconstruction based on the

its preservation, evocative of

a counterpoint, of the

modernist flourishes through

fragments of information we

a candlelit Erev Shabbat.

synagogue’s sublime

his inventive Hebrew

had, digitally manipulating

Heaven to Treblinka’s

typography and trompe

the original photographs

A multimedia display created

Hell. The synagogue

l’oeil iconography, alongside

and painting over pieced-

by Creative Director of

model extends beyond

earlier religious murals. Both

together printouts on heavy

Multimedia Arek Dybel,

Czestochowa in Poland,

spiritually and aesthetically

watercolour papers.

explores Czestochowa,

providing a touchstone to

sublime, Perec’s designs

all synagogues and further

embodied G-d’s words that

The resultant collage was

sites of Jewish communities

created the world, to be

expertly photographed,

destroyed by the Nazis and

explored by the congregation

then meticulously realigned,

These artefacts from the

their collaborators.

below. But the enhanced

through photographer Mark

Old and New Czestochowa

interior existed only briefly

Ashkanasy’s post-production.

synagogues signify many

Chaim Sztajer grew up near

before its destruction in the

MHM CEO Jayne Josem and

old and new layers of

the Old Synagogue, and

early years of World War Two.

Senior Curator Sandy Saxon

meaning, hidden and

it had been central to his

The MHM’s curatorial team

worked with Thylacine, the

revealed, much like Judaism

early life. Chaim, along with

came up with the idea to

museum’s interpretive

itself. The transcendent

his pregnant wife and child

imagine what the ceiling

designers, and added

reunion of Sztajer’s

were deported to Treblinka,

might have looked like for

geometric undulations to

synagogue model with his

where only he survived. After

the new exhibition, and

the ceiling panels to signify

Treblinka model is enduringly

nearly a year working as a

I offered to work on this

fragmentation.

bittersweet.

sonderkommando, Sztajer

meaningful project.

The vivid ceiling contributes

Thank you to Ada Willenberg

From the few existing

a jewel-like cover to the

and Orit Willenberg-Giladi,

monochrome photographs

treasure chest (or reliquary)

Alon Goldman of the Society

The Czestochowa

of partial views of the

of the Czestochowa

of Czestochowa Jews,

Synagogue ceiling

ceiling, a painted remnant

room. The rare parochet

Malka Zylbersztajn, and to

Samuel Willenberg, another

from Willenberg’s mural

(ark curtain), from the

Grimwade Centre for

survivor of the Treblinka

in Poland’s Piotrkow

Czestochowa New

Cultural Materials

Uprising, also has a

Synagogue, now library,

Synagogue, brought to

Conservation for the

significant connection

and the post-war drawing

Australia by survivors Chaim

outstanding preservation.

escaped after the Treblinka Uprising of August 1943.

the Willenberg family and Perec’s artistic legacy.

19

of the Eichmann trial One of the most famous trials in legal history, and one that most contributed to a growing awareness of the Holocaust, was the trial of Adolf Eichmann in 1961. This trial has generated – and continues to generate – great debate. Who was Eichmann? How important was he to the organisation that he served? And what might his trial mean for people today?

When we consider the role of Adolf

Polish ghettos languished while the

Eichmann, our story begins in 1938,

occupying authorities deliberated on

for it was in the newly-annexed Austria

what a final solution to their “Jewish

that he first distinguished himself in

problem” might be.

by Dr Simon Holloway Manager of Adult Education & Academic Engagement

Anniversary

Below left: Former Jewish partisan leader Abba Kovner testifies for the prosecution during the trial of Adolf Eichmann.

Below right: Defendant Adolf Eichmann takes notes during his trial in Jerusalem in 1961.

the eyes of his superiors. By uniting all the different agencies that Jewish

With the invasion of the Soviet Union

emigrants needed to visit, he greatly

in 1941, such a solution presented

expedited their departure. This was

itself with brutal simplicity. In January

very much in line with Nazi policy,

of 1942, Adolf Eichmann chaired

but it was his subsequent failure

a meeting on the shores of Lake

at achieving the same goal in the

Wannsee at which this new solution

Sudetenland that led him to propose a

could be presented by Heydrich to

new one.

senior members of the SS and state

How does one exact justice for crimes

That this trial was in the name of

It was in the involvement of survivors

bureaucracy. A “final solution”, it would

of this nature? For Gideon Hausner,

the victims became evident to a far

that the Eichmann trial was most

Known as a “territorial solution”, this

involve combing Europe from West to

who headed the team of prosecutors

greater degree than it had with any

impactful, and it is in relation to the

involved moving large populations

East, murdering all of the captive Jews.

at Eichmann’s trial in 1961, this

of the previous trials conducted in

testimony of those survivors that it

question loomed large. There is no

Germany. For the first time, Holocaust

most deserves to be remembered

of Jews to a reservation in the East.

In the interest of expediting this plan,

Eichmann himself had only a very

punishment that can possibly match

survivors were given the opportunity

today. Eichmann, for all of his criminal

Reinhard Heydrich authorised the

minor role in the actual development

the enormity of Eichmann’s crimes,

to testify – not solely in relation to

deeds, was but one part of a large

creation of ghettos into which Jewish

of this process. A “desk murderer”,

but by prosecuting those crimes one

Eichmann’s crimes, but in relation

and sprawling machine, too complex

populations should be moved as a

he headed the Jewish Office within

might at least give voice to his victims.

to the crimes perpetrated by the

to be summarised and too varied to

preliminary measure. He ensured

the Gestapo. It was only with the

As Hausner declared in his opening

organisation of which he was a part.

be completely understood. It is to the

that these ghettos would all be close

occupation of Hungary in 1944 that he

speech, he did not feel that he was

Over one hundred survivors took the

experiences of those men and women

to railway lines, to better facilitate

was given the authority to supervise

standing alone in the courtroom that

stand during the trial, speaking of their

who were subjected to its horrors that

deportations.

matters directly, and it was largely due

day. “With me,” he announced, “are

experiences in innumerable ghettos

we should be attuning ourselves if we

to his supervision that the Germans

six million accusers… Their graves are

and camps. They had hidden, they

really wish to engage with the legacy

For all that Eichmann’s idea had

succeeded in eradicating so much

scattered throughout the length and

had fought, and they had suffered;

of the Holocaust.

seemed feasible, it was poorly thought

of what was the last major Jewish

breadth of Europe… and in their name I

together, they provided an indictment

out and ultimately impractical. For

community left within the German

will unfold the terrible indictment.”

of Adolf Eichmann far greater and

over a year, the residents of the

sphere of influence.

more terrible than might have otherwise been possible.

20

21

by Jennifer Levitt-Maxwell Chief Experience Officer

The MHM Learning Framework.

Many museums create relevancy

Building a framework based on

Mapping character strengths to the

by linking their programs and

character strengths

lessons of the Holocaust

exhibitions to contemporary issues,

To build our holistic Learning

When we began to map character

other genocides, or human rights

Framework we explored the

strengths represented in Positive

issues. Though this helps build a

Learning Power Approach: a

Psychology to the lessons of the

connection between the past and the

method responsible for a shift in

Holocaust, we found an incredible

present, we believe creating relevancy

education worldwide, underpinned

connection. From there, the Learning

in these ways bears the risk of diluting

by a move toward wellbeing and the

Framework was born.

the Holocaust.

development of character along with academic success.

We took this audience insight as a

and its wide-reaching implications, we

driving force to find the answer to

In many ways, our education

engaged the University of Melbourne

the questions:

programs were already aligned with

(UoM), Centre for Wellbeing Science,

this approach, but to truly ensure

to ensure this project could reach

How can we create relevancy while

relevancy at MHM, we wanted to

its full potential. We began working

not diluting the Holocaust?

increase our capacity for change by

alongside wellbeing and education

We began researching this, drawing on

emphasising the role of character

experts Rachel Colla, Bianca Venuti-

a wide range of sources, including:

strengths that underpin the lessons of

Hughes and Erica Frydenberg from

•M HM and Department of Education

the Holocaust to everyone who walks

UoM, who were instrumental in

resources for teachers as part of

through our doors.

scientifically grounding the refinement

mandated Holocaust education in

Creating relevancy at the Melbourne Holocaust Museum By bringing together Holocaust knowledge, the foundation of our Learning Framework, with key character strengths, we can ensure the lessons of the Holocaust that we teach at MHM influence meaningful and relevant shifts in individual thoughts and actions today.

22

In 2021 MHM undertook a comprehensive audience research project with visitors, teachers, donors and volunteers. The purpose? To investigate each group’s experience with MHM, our impact on their lives presently, and the potential to impact their lives in the future.

One of the key insights from the research across all audience groups was that the same question was being asked: How will MHM ensure the Holocaust remains relevant for visitors and students?

Realising the weight of this project,

of the Learning Framework.

Victoria in 2021

To practically implement our Learning

•2 021 MHM audience research

Framework, we drew on the science

The framework is a crucial component

•A cademic research projects on the

of Positive Psychology. One of

of MHM across not only education but

impact of Holocaust museums and

the core components of Positive

in every interaction we have with the

their relevancy to the 21st century

Psychology is character strengths.

public. It is one of the future-forward

Character strengths constitute a

projects that will assist in long-term

While completing this comprehensive

family of positive traits that are often

sustainability and relevancy for MHM.

research, a key takeaway began

considered to be “values in action.”

to emerge: We determined six character strengths Relevancy exists within the

grounded in the science of Positive

lessons of the Holocaust and our

Psychology, seen ubiquitously

agency as individuals through the

in our survivors’ testimonies and

choices we make.

students’ post-program reflections.

The project called on all MHM staff

By combining these strengths with

to get an inclusive perspective

core Holocaust knowledge, we can

from Holocaust experts across our

stimulate several capabilities in all

organisation as to what they felt were

visitors and equip them with the

the core lessons of the Holocaust.

tools and motivation to actively make a difference.

MHM Learning Framework was developed by: Jennifer Levitt Maxwell Chief Experience Officer Jayne Josem CEO Simon Holloway Manager of Adult Education and Academic Engagement Lisa Phillips Pedagogical Specialist 23

by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

Building

our future with the generosity of our supporters

Gifts in Will We acknowledge the following people for leaving a gift in their Will to the MHM or MHMF. May their memory be a blessing.

Regina Adelfang

Rita Greiner

Don & Sonia Marejn

Helen Sharp

Henrietta (Kitia) Altman

Arnold Hacker

Anna Mass

Otto Shelton

Erika Bence

Eugene Hacker

Sonia Mrocki

Marianne Singer

Abraham Benedykt

Bessie Heiman

Victor Muntz

Sara Smuzyk

Elza Bernst

Mendel Herszfeld

Robert Newman

Oscar & Lisa Sokolski

Albert & Lena Newmann

Mary Starr

Since then, Elaine has been an

For Elaine, leaving a gift in her Will to

invaluable volunteer at MHM. She

MHM was a personal decision that

Susan Blatman

Anita Jaffe

has developed a deep connection

expresses her deepest-held values:

Gitla Borenstein

Sabina Jakubowicz

Peter Boss

Betty Janover

Kalman & Elka Bajla Parasol

to, and understanding of our survivors’

Samuel Stopnik

experiences through her work

“By including the Melbourne Holocaust

transcribing testimonies.

Museum in my Will, I am contributing

Joseph Brown

to its work to keep the voices of

Basia Kane

Edith Peer

Hyman & Malcha Brown

Berta Strom

Thea Kimla

Elizabeth Peer

Sonia Suchodolski

Lola Kiven

Esther Poelman

Geoffrey Tozer

Leslie Klemke

Lillian Renard

Joseph Tyler

Eva Rivka Knox

Joe Ronec

Izabella Krol

Gerda Rogers

Chana Annette Uberbayn

Chaim Feldman

Pinek Krystal

Betty & Rose Rosalky

Emanuel Wajnblum

John Fox

Nona Lee

Szymon & Hadasa Rosenbaum

Claire Weis

Currently, Elaine is undertaking a

Holocaust survivors alive, long after

project assisting in the creation

my lifetime.

of ‘survivor profiles’ for our website

Majer Ceprow

redevelopment project, enabling our

The MHM is dedicated to this,

Jenny Chaenkel

MHM Volunteer Elaine McTaggart

audiences to connect with survivors’

providing extensive education

Elaine McTaggart began volunteering at the MHM in 2015. Newly retired and looking for community involvement, a chance meeting with Holocaust survivor Phillip Maisel OAM z”l – the then director of the testimonies project at the museum – motivated Elaine to take on a volunteer position transcribing survivor testimony.

experiences online.

programs and resources, as well as

Richard Charlupski

24

Georgette Steinic

permanent and temporary exhibitions.”

“I find hearing survivors’ stories deeply

Bertha Fekete

moving and a privilege. It is absolutely

Gifts in Will to MHM ensure our mission

vital that their experiences are told

to remember those murdered and

as widely as possible so that the

combat racism, antisemitism, and

Jakob Frenkiel

Ivor Leiser

atrocities of the Holocaust are never

prejudice, is carried into the future.

Cecilia Freshman

Ruth Leiser

Romana Frey

Wilhelm Lermer

forgotten and never repeated.”

“I’m so very grateful when someone

Shmuel Rosenkranz Szmul Rostkier Bencjan Rozencwajg

Piry Weiss Kathe Weisselberg Ludwik & Rita Weisz Jadwiga Wiener

Elaine not only volunteers her time at

lets me know about their decision to

Sara Frucht

Charlotte Lesser

the museum but has happily shared

leave a gift in their Will to the museum.

with us that she has made the very

It’s very comforting to know that the

Walter Geismar

Kurt Lewinski

Ignacy & Irene Rozental

personal and generous decision to

museum’s future is ensured through

Paul Gere

Sara Liebmann

Leslie Sandy

Ludwik Winfield

leave a gift in her Will to the museum.

the generosity of the community.” –

Fania Gitein

Ada & Julek Lipski

Josef Scharf-Dauber

Chaya Ziskind

Chaskiel Gliksman

Abram Malewiak

Raymond Schiller

Sophia Zitron

Samuel Gnieslaw

Janina Marcus

Marianne Schwarz

CEO Jayne Josem.

If you have any questions or if you wish to have a confidential conversation about leaving a gift to MHM in your Will, please email donate@mhm.org.au or call (03) 9528 1985.

Pinkus Wiener

For all gifts in Will or general fundraising enquiries, please contact donate@mhm.org.au

25

Do you own an item that you could not bear to part with? Maybe it is something that’s been in your family for generations, relating to your heritage, or an item passed on to you from a loved one, that holds immeasurable sentimental worth.

Imagine, then, a family possession that is so important that you feel you must part with it.

by Meg Hibbert Communications & Marketing Specialist

Uncovering rare documents

Rabbinical teaching certificate written and signed by Rabbi Moses Sofer Chatam Sofer for Rob’s great great great grandfather Rabbi Meir Klein Stroh. It says he is able to teach at the highest levels of learning, and also congratulates him on his forthcoming wedding to the daughter of Rabbi Daniel Prossnitz, the Rosh Beth Din of Pressburg and Rob’s great great great great grandfather. Courtesy of Robert Lehrer.

In 2017 Robert Lehrer discovered approximately 250 documents written in Yiddish, Hebrew and Hungarian while cleaning out his family home. As Rob shuffled through the papers, he realised they were religious documents. After some self-led investigation, Rob understood that these documents were too significant not to be shared with the world.

Rare documents dating back hundreds of years

The Chatam Sofer was one of the

took the Judaica to the MHM to discuss

“It was such a privilege to see these

leading Orthodox rabbis in Europe in

where and how these documents

documents up close, to understand

the early-mid 19th century.

could be shared with the world.

their significance, and to contemplate

Rob’s great-grandfather Dr Martin Singer was forced to flee

how lucky it is that they survived.

Austria in 1938 with his family, including his son and Rob’s

After visiting with Melbourne-based

MHM CEO Jayne Josem, Collections &

grandfather, Kurt. They packed their belongings, including

Judaic historian Rabbi Shimon Opman,

Research Manager Dr Anna Hirsh and

Rob’s family agreed and decided

clothes, personal items, and a parcel of important documents.

on the advice of his helpful neighbour

visiting scholar Dr Michael Berenbaum,

to donate most of the documents,

They made their way to Hungary, with a final destination of

Joel May, Rob discovered he had

provided Rob with their expert opinion

including the certificate signed by the

Sydney, Australia, where the family arrived later that year.

multiple rare documents penned

on where the most appropriate place

Chatam Sofer. In May 2022 Rob took

and signed by the Chatam Sofer,

was to house these items, and where

the documents to Israel and delivered

Generations passed, and almost 80 years later, Rob

and his son known as the Ksav Sofer in

they would have the most impact.

them to Dr Yoel Finkelman, curator of

rediscovered these historical family documents, dating from the

his possession.

late 1700s to the mid-to-late 1800s, while helping his mother arrange her belongings.

the library’s Judaica collection.

The MHM Collection focuses on

We grow up hearing so much about

historical items from Holocaust and

These rare documents can now be

our Jewish heritage that knowing you

immediate post-war eras and therefore

accessed by researchers, students

Among his mother’s documents were Jewish religious writings,

have uncovered a unique piece of

was not the appropriate institution to

and the general public to further their

such as sermons, Halachic notes, and teachings, as well as

that heritage in the form of primarily

house 19th century Judaica.

understanding of history, and religious

letters between Lehrer’s family members and others, including

religious writings, largely of the many

several hand-written notes by his great great great great

Rabbis of my family and the Rabbis

One of the recommendations was to

grandfather Rabbi Daniel Prossnitz.

they corresponded with is very

offer this material to the National Library

impactful on a personal level.

of Israel.

practices and ensure the preservation

Rabbi Daniel Prossnitz was the head of the Pressburg Beth Din Head of Manuscripts Dr Yitzchak Gila, former Head of the Judaica Collection Dr Yoel Finkelman, and Rober Lehrer at the National Library of Israel. Courtesy of Rob Lehrer.

26

of Jewish culture for future generations.

If you have important historical items that you wish to contribute to the

for over 40 years and often described as the closest confidant

Where are the documents now?

CEO Jayne Josem was grateful to Rob

of the highly regarded Rabbi Moshe Schreiber, also known as

With an understanding of just how

for bringing the documents into the

the Chatam Sofer.

significant these documents were, Rob

museum, recounting:

MHM Collection, please contact Dr Anna Hirsh for further information at collections@mhm.org.au 27

by Helene Spigelman

My mother Miriam was a true survivor. Miriam was born in 1934 in Warsaw, Poland. She lived with her parents, Herschel and Justina, and younger brother, Sol. Herschel was an excellent shoemaker and had a successful shoe business. As war began to loom many friends left Warsaw, however, as Herschel had a very profitable business the family remained.

Miriam Lederman A Child Survivor of the Holocaust In 1940 my mother’s family were

eight years old, didn’t want to go as

Fearing for her life, she forced herself

the cellar at all times. She thought that

A Russian soldier approached and

forced to move into a tiny flat in the

she was terrified she would never see

to make a choice and approached

dying would be an easy way out but

offered to help her. Miriam was taken

ghetto area. My mother would tell

her parents and little brother again.

one of the men. He took her hand and

she wanted to live. Her eyes eventually

to a home for Jewish children where

me of the horrible conditions of living

She was told by her mother not to

walked away quickly. Miriam felt relief

got used to the darkness of the cellar,

she was joyfully reunited with her

in the ghetto. Her parents became

move when the furniture was being

when they entered a residential house.

and the rats that lived there. There

little brother, Sol. Her mother, Justina,

aware of plans for an uprising in the

lifted to help avoid detection.

was no floor, just earth. Each day she

had escaped the ghetto through the

She was told she must remain hidden

would receive some water and one

sewerage tunnels towards the end of

ghetto and decided that the children

Miriam at the end of the war preparing to come to Australia

28

Miriam’s daughter Helene holding a painting that Miriam did after the war representing herself cuddling her mother as they said goodbye before Miriam was placed in the cupboard to be smuggled out of the Warsaw ghetto.

must be smuggled out. With help from

Once the furniture had reached its

in the cellar under the house during

cooked potato. She lived in constant

the uprising. Her father had been killed

members of the resistance, Herschel

destination she was instructed to wait

the day to avoid detection. One night,

fear. How she survived alone in this

fighting in the ghetto uprising. Justina

and Justina planned to secretly get

until it is dark, climb out and then go

as she looked out of the window, she

small dark cellar for 20 months was

began frantically looking for her

their children out of the ghetto to the

onto the street. Miriam was told to

saw the sky was red and flames were

quite remarkable.

children and miraculously found both

other side of the wall to be looked

then look for a man wearing a grey

coming from the ghetto. She was

after by Polish people.

coat, carrying a suitcase. After a while

told that there was an uprising. This

One day the potato and water did not

she felt the cupboard being lifted and

went on for 3 weeks. Each night she

arrive. Nor did it arrive the next day.

Eventually they were offered

The key was the knowledge that, each

she instinctively stretched her arms

fearfully watched the burning through

The Polish people who were hiding

sponsorship from a family in

day, the German soldiers stole furniture

and legs out so as to not move her

the window and thought of her parents

Miriam, had abandoned her as Warsaw

Melbourne. They arrived in Australia

from the ghetto to be transported to a

body as the cupboard was placed on

who she believed were probably still in

had been liberated.

in 1947. Miriam married and had two

warehouse outside the walls.

a wagon.

the ghetto.

at the children’s home.

children. Her extraordinary courage Miriam said it wasn’t the hunger but

and determination to survive was, and remains, an inspiration.

My mother remembered one dark early

Miriam waited until it was dark, climbed

The Polish people who were hiding her

the thirst that forced her to leave the

morning dressing in her best clothing

out of the cupboard, and began

became worried for their own safety

cellar. Her legs could barely stand

and being placed in a cupboard that

looking for the man with a grey coat

and told her that she must remain in

but she managed to stagger out.

was to be transported. Miriam, then

and suitcase. She saw two.

29

We are all witnesses and actors of bias, injustice and structures of discrimination; sometimes unwittingly, or naively, we spread disinformation and dangerous ideas online. Therefore, we must constantly remain aware of our societies’ potential to descend into the worst possible abyss of violence, and never lose sight of the personal and societal values and, more importantly, the civic behaviours which can help prevent group-targeted violence.

Meet

Karel Fracapane

I believe that long-term prevention starts on the benches of schools.

This year we are pleased to announce our Betty & Shmuel Rosenkranz Oration will be presented by Karel Fracapane – Leader of hate speech issues within the Division for Peace and Sustainable Development arm within the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

We train teams of dedicated senior

Secondly, Karel also advocates

Working in the field for over 20 years,

civil servants and NGO leaders

Holocaust education is “not like any

Karel has seen the development of

to work together nationally and

other type of education” due to its

new challenges in the fight against

develop ambitious Holocaust and

propensity to empower individuals

antisemitism and discrimination,

genocide education projects in their

and nations, with values that foster

notably through the rapid spread

countries. We seek changes at the

behaviours to counter the threat

of hate speech, disinformation and

national policy level based on the

of violence.

conspiracy theories. He addresses the

understanding that the genocide of

current state globally, positing:

the Jewish people and Nazi crimes

The challenges at a national level

have partly shaped the world we

Karel outlines that genocide

“We can see political forces at work

live in today and that education is

prevention is the responsibility of

that seek to divide societies, erode

a central feature of dealing with

governments and the international

trust in the rule of law, scapegoat and

the past and a fundamental pillar

community. His work in Holocaust

threaten vulnerable groups, online

of genocide prevention. We are

education is grounded in his

and offline, and fragilise the pillars of

currently working with countries as

position that “atrocity crimes are not

the most solid democracies. These

diverse as Brazil, Cambodia, Ecuador,

spontaneous acts of violence: they

are new challenges, which require

Greece, India, Nigeria and Serbia.

are rooted in specific conditions

new education policies, creative

- Karel Fracapane.

and develop over time. The main

pedagogies and renewed training for

responsibility of governments is to put

educators so that coming generations

The importance of Holocaust

measures in place to address

are better equipped to face the

education on a global scale

the root cause of violence, tackle

interconnected and global challenges

Karel understands the potential for

the risk factors and create the

of today and become active and

effective education to inspire change.

preventative frameworks.”

responsible citizens more capable to stand.”

Karel has dedicated his professional

A pioneer in global

In 2015 Karel partnered with the

He believes Holocaust education is

Some of these frameworks include

life to combatting antisemitism and

Holocaust education

United States Holocaust Memorial

essential firstly, as a responsibility

respect for human rights and a fair

We look forward to welcoming Karel

racism, Holocaust remembrance and

In 2018 Karel pioneered a program

Museum (USHMM) to launch the

to remember all that taken for the

economic, political, and judicial

to the MHM in November to share

the prevention of genocide, and violent

aimed at combatting antisemitism

International Program for Holocaust

Jewish population.

system, ensuring the free flow of

his insights locally so we can learn

extremism. Currently, he is focused on

worldwide. This program, in partnership

and Genocide Education. The program

ideas and pluralistic media, and any

more about how to address these

global citizenship issues, including hate

with European human rights bodies,

enables countries to build effective

“I think it is a responsibility we have

others that support a diverse society

challenges at an individual, national

speech, post-Holocaust issues, and

saw Karel and his team create a

genocide prevention frameworks with a

towards the Jewish people, first

and ensure some protection to the

and global level.

addressing contemporary forms

suite of capacity-building activities

foundation in education.

of all, and its heritage, to preserve

most vulnerable groups.

of antisemitism.

and resources for educational

and cultivate what could have been

authorities globally.

irremediably lost.”

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by Lilly Harris & Michael Salzberg

Sala’s Story

Sarah (Sala) Szental and Chaim Shlomo Salzberg.

When the war broke out in September

Back in Germany, she met Chaim who

other prisoners were transferred to

daughter Lilly, in 1953. Chaim died of

1939 Sarah was a schoolgirl, two

was her second cousin. Liberated

Hessental. He was then one of several

pancreatic cancer in 1965 at age 54.

weeks from her 14th birthday. The

from Dachau, he was a displaced

hundred prisoners who in April 1945

family somehow escaped the Warsaw

person living in Munich. They married

were marched from Hessental to the

Sala, a widow at 40, remarried in 1973.

Ghetto, joining relatives in Dzialoszyce.

in 1947 and migrated to Australia by

Allach subcamp of Dachau – one of

Her second husband, Michal Szental,

ship, the SS Derna, in 1948.

the so-called “death marches” – a

also a Holocaust survivor from Poland,

journey of over 200 kilometres with

was himself a widower, the father of

many dying or murdered on the way.

two adult boys. In marrying Michal,

There Sala endured a further series

Sarah, known as Sala, was born in Warsaw in 1925 to an orthodox Jewish family consisting of her parents, Golda and Mordecai, and brothers, Yaakov and Shlomo. They lived in a two-room apartment in a tenement in the Jewish quarter.

32

of trials and horrors including the

Chaim, born in 1910, grew up in

Dzialoszyce Ghetto, the roundup and

Pinczow in southern Poland. His

deportation of Jews in September

orthodox family lived in a two-storey

He was liberated at Allach on 19 April

of a large and growing stepfamily:

1942 and the murder of several

residence facing the central square:

1945. Chaim’s wife and son both died

two stepsons, Stephen and Richard

members of her family by a non-

their printing works occupied the lower

during the war, presumably during the

Szental, their wives, children and

Jewish Polish farmer who had taken

level, the family home the upper. In

deportations in late 1942. With the help

grandchildren.

money to hide them from

1935 he married Chaya Korman and

of UNRRA he recovered physically,

the Germans.

moved to Radom.

reunited with his brother-in-law and

Michal died in 2004. Sala was a

a niece, Sonia. His parents and four

longstanding, active member of

Sala became a beloved matriarch

After a period on the run, hiding in

He and Chaya attempted to make a

brothers and their families had all

WIZO and a generous donor to a

haystacks and in forests, she was

life in Palestine, but returned after a

perished, apart from Sonia, who

range of causes.

captured and sent to the Plaszow

year or so. They had a son, Eliezer.

had endured an extended period

concentration camp in Krakow. There

Soon after the German invasion, he

in Auschwitz.

she endured almost two years of slave

was forced into slave labour in an

labour before being sent to Bergen-

armament factory. In 1944 he was

On arrival in Australia, Chaim and

she was very pleased that this would

Belsen via Auschwitz. It was there,

one of 2000 Jewish men who were

Sala lived in various places: a

go towards the new building and, in

starving and near death, that she was

transferred via Auschwitz to Vaihingen

boarding house in St Kilda, another

particular, that the library would be

liberated on 15 April 1945.

in southern Germany where they

in Carlton, then a small apartment in

named in honour of Chaim. Sadly,

After a period of recovery, Sala made

performed gruelling physical labour in

Beaconsfield Parade, St Kilda. Chaim

she did not live to see this. Michael

her way back to Poland to seek family.

a quarry.

was quickly involved in making a living,

and I are very proud of our mother’s

establishing a successful women’s

involvement with the MHM.

All had perished except one maternal

Sala died in 2021. She had made a wonderful donation to the MHM, and

aunt, Bluma Balitzky (Rafalowicz),

When Vaihingen was abandoned

shoe factory and later a store. A son,

whom she found in Lodz.

because of Allied bombing, he and

Michael, was born in 1949, and a 33

Dola’s wedding, 1931.

Only five people in the photo survived.

As Helen says,

To honour and remember

Stefa and Rubin Rutman in 1991.

by Helen & Jeffrey Mahemoff and family

Lena and Tolly Mahemoff, Jeffrey’s parents, together with their extended families, arrived in Melbourne from Russia in 1927. Helen’s parents, Stefa and Rubin Rutman, were Holocaust survivors each with very different stories of survival. Rubin came from a small immediate family, with a very large, yet close, extended family, where almost no one survived. Stefa from a smaller family where almost all survived.

After writing my dad’s story, learning the fate of my family, and reflecting on him as a joyous and happy person determined to live life to the full while enduring the pain of loss and trauma, I knew I had to honour the memory of both his loss and his experiences. This led me to volunteer at the MHM shortly after his death.

Together, Jeffrey and I are passionate about its mission and efforts. We are totally committed to Holocaust education and memory. We feel privileged and proud to be deeply involved with the MHM as both financial supporters and volunteers.

For over 50 years, neither of Helen’s parents spoke about

In September 1939, Rubin left his family and went east as

Rubin worked hard, was successful, appreciated and loved

and she was called Stefa from then on. After the August 1944

their early lives nor of wartime experiences. Their children

instructed by the Polish government. Sent to Siberia as a

everything that was his and had the most positive outlook on

Polish uprising, Stefa, her mother and sisters, were taken

only knew that Rubin had no family and that they were lucky

political prisoner, he lived under very difficult conditions.

life. He passed away in 2001, leaving his beloved wife, two

as Poles to a work camp in Görlitz, Germany. They were

to have one grandmother when most of their friends did not.

After the 1941 Amnesty, he lived in Bukhara, Uzbekistan

daughters, two sons-in-law and six treasured grandchildren.

liberated by the Americans in May 1945 near Leipzig, made

In late 2000, Helen convinced her parents to share their life

until the war ended.

stories to be documented for their grandchildren and future

their way back to Warsaw and were reunited with their two Renia (Stefa) Rutman (nee Bialylew) was born in Warsaw in

brothers, who had also miraculously survived. Their father had died in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in April 1943.

generations. Sadly, a few weeks after finishing this project,

Returning to Warsaw, Rubin learnt that, tragically,

1921, the youngest child of Fryda (nee Szpacenkopf) and

Rubin passed away suddenly.

his whole immediate family and most of his extended family

Efraim-Leizor. The family were successful merchants and

had been murdered.

lived a very comfortable life.

Rubin Rutman was born in Radom, Poland in 1914, an

It was extraordinary that a mother and five adult children would survive, leave Poland as soon as they could and, via

only son with two sisters, Dola and Ewa. His father, Abram,

Soon after, he met Stefa Bialylew, they married in Warsaw in

Their home was in the Jewish quarter which was later within

had nine siblings and his mother, Helena (nee Szotland)

1947, moved to Paris, and had their first daughter, Helen, in

the Warsaw Ghetto. They lived in their own apartment,

had eight. Most were married with children and the

1948. Assisted by The Joint, they sailed to Melbourne on the

although overcrowded with many strangers, until 1942. After

Stefa was totally devoted to her husband and family

family numbered over 90 in 1939. The Rutman men were

Eridan arriving in January 1949. Their second daughter, Julie

managing to escape from the Umschlagplaz, Renia went

and, like Rubin, had an overwhelming zest for life.

successful timber merchants and they owned large tracts of

(Blashki), was born in 1952.

into hiding with her mother and two sisters. They moved

She passed away in 2014, leaving two daughters, two

frequently fearful of being denounced. All had false Polish

sons-in-law, six grandchildren and eleven wonderful

identity papers – Renia’s false name was Stefania Domeraska

great-grandchildren.

forests. They lived affluent lives.

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Paris, all settle in Melbourne to lead fulfilling lives.

35

by Ezra Faigenbaum

In Memory of

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget…

GARY GRAY

Gary was born Gustav Joseph Grajcar in Sosnewiec, Poland on 12 June 1926.

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

His parents were Ksil and Cyrla Leah. Gary was the older

win countless awards for his success as a car salesperson.

Freedom, happy lives no reason to fret

Turned to ash as the cold sun set

brother to sister Ada. He also had another sister Sarah who

One of his proudest achievements was also becoming a

Wealth, education, happiness were plenty

Mothers, fathers, children too,

died in infancy. His parents were hard-working and ran a

published author.

The Nazis stole this their hearts were empty

There was nothing at all that they could do

Kosher smallgoods business out of town in Katowice.

Gary was introduced to his future wife Stephanie when Gary’s

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

His life was turned upside down during the long dark years

aunt answered an ad in the Jewish News that Stephanie’s

An election, a ghetto, a lit cigarette

wandering alone going home and yet…

of the Holocaust. In April 1942, aged thirteen, Gary was

mother had put it in to find her eldest daughter a husband.

Imminent distress they wanted to ignore,

Home doesn’t feel like home anymore

incarcerated for three years in a number of camps including

Together they had three daughters, and six grandchildren.

Human waste on the streets, diseases galore

Not without the people killed by this war

Birkenheim, Brande and Ludwigsdorf. He was finally liberated at Reichenback Sportsschule in May 1945. During this

He absolutely loved being a Zaide. He was fully occupied

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

They don’t want to remember the loss and the cold,

period he experienced hard work, brutality and

ferrying his grandchildren to their various appointments and

A toothbrush, moustache, a uniform, a face hard set

we don’t want to forget the stories they told

indescribable hunger.

activities, filling them with schnitzel sandwiches and donuts in what he called his Zaida run.

Concentration camps being built, fences twelve feet high And although they don’t want to remember

After the war, as an orphan, Gary went to technical college

because we don’t want to forget,

and also served in the Polish army reserve. Eventually he

Gary began volunteering at the MHM, speaking to students

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget

they recount their stories to carry the torch

was tracked down by his two aunts Tosha and Fela who

despite the fact that every time he did, he would be

A mother kissing on their head

and keep the fire lit

had ended up living in Australia. He was compelled by them

confronting his worst demons.

A speech declaring they must die

An entire nation, deportation, searching far and wide A yellow star that can’t go far, they did their best to hide

to come to the other side of the world to be with his last And so we sit and listen to what they remember

remaining family.

Because they are the fire and we are the ember

Gary consistently said, “I am happy to be alive. I want to live

They don’t want to remember the shivering pains,

With limited English, Gary become a door-to-door

we don’t want to forget the lines as long as trains

encyclopaedia salesman and somehow still managed to

They don’t want to remember, we don’t want to forget, the people crammed together who’d never met, and the smoke came down like the night and everything was still

This poem was recited by student and poet Ezra Faigenbaum at the 2023 Yom HaShoah commemoration.

Though his journey in the end was fraught with difficulties, for as long as possible.”

impress one client so much that he asked Gary to come

He saw the good in everyone. Spontaneous, energetic,

and work for him selling cars. Here began Gary’s successful

charming, funny, honest to a fault and good to the core.

journey into car sales. Throughout his career, Gary would

He was a real mench.

And the mystery sent down their backs an electric chill 36

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