Speaking to an engaged group of 6th grade students who have already visited the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Long island and heard the testimonies of two Holocaust survivors, Joan had the priviledge of sharing the story of how the #Holocaust hero, Portuguese Consul General Aristides de Sousa Mendes, saved the lives of thousands of desperate refugees by issuing visas for safe-haven in Portugal.
To the credit of their librarian, Ms. Ellen Widawsky, and the three sixth grade teachers the students are deepening their understanding of this the darkest of periods in world history by studying ghettos, Righteous Among the Nations and other details of the Shoah (The Hebrew word which appears in the Bible more than a dozen times, always to signify complete and utter destruction.)
The Chatterton School in Merrick, LI, NY is an example of the New York State school system at its best.
Keep up the good work. #NEVERAGAIN.
A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II